Club Fed (1990) User Reviews

Low Budget "Comedy"

[Scott_Mercer · 3/10 · 20 December 2005]

Fans of the Police Academy series of broad comedies will find plenty to enjoy here; Lance Kinsey, who appeared in most of the Police Academy films, is the lead here. Others will not. Lots of silly, obvious jokes. Some are painful, but, I must admit, some of the gags had me laughing. But only some.

This is the kind of movie that throws everything at the wall and sees what sticks up there. If a joke isn't funny, relax, another gag will be along in half a second. The writing is uneven, and again, sometimes the script is funny, and at other times is just plain pathetic. All the lead actors are screen veterans, and in spite of the low budget, seem to be throwing their all into it. Hard to believe Allen Garfield devolved from an Academy Award nomination to this, but hey, sometimes you have to take whatever work you can get.

Overall, undemanding comedy fans may find this worthwhile to watch on TV. Okay, that sounded a bit harsh. But probably warranted.

Cheesy Yet Amusing 90's comedy!

[gwnightscream · 3/10 · 13 May 2019]

This 1990 comedy features Lance Kinsey, Proctor from the "Police Academy" films as FBI agent, Howard who is sent on an assignment to Club Fed, a minimum security resort where a group of wealthy criminals are serving time for fraud and such. He must keep an eye on any signs of corruption, but mostly on attractive blonde, Angelica (Judy Landers), who is sentenced for embezzlement by her late, boyfriend who was in the mob. Soon, Howard and Angelica discover that someone is making false accounts in her name, but also find romance with each other in the process. This is a cheesy yet amusing flick that's sort of a spoof similar to "The Naked Gun" and also features Burt Young (Rocky), Sherman Hemsley (The Jeffersons) and Mary Woronov (Night of the Comet). You could give this a view at least once if you're into laughs.

Had me laughing all through it!

[Irene-21 · 11 July 2000]

Caught this on cable. It's loaded with belly laughs, I enjoyed it for what it was. I also recently saw another one in the same genre, "Scary Movie"(which was also very funny). It seems that on a very low budget, the filmmakers were able to entertain us effortlessly. I highly recommend it.

Really bad, don't waste your time

[Phil_T_S · 1/10 · 5 May 2014]

I enjoy comedies. This was not a comedy. It is just silly. Over-the-top comedies like Airplane have clever, well thought out humor none of which is present in this movie.

Full of errors but not humor. For the first few seconds I thought that maybe this was going to be a movie worth watching. A few minutes later I realized that it was absolute junk. The script is completely lacking. The situations are just plain stupid. The only way that I would have been able to enjoy such a movie would be if I was drunk. Very drunk.

If you enjoy really mediocre slapstick then this might be the movie for you. Otehrwise avoid it. You will be hugely disappointed.

The credits rocked!

[kristin_walker · 1/10 · 2 April 2006]

OK, now I usually like bad campy films. I generally find them humorous. For example, the Ice Cream Man is a good "bad" film. It is so bad it is really humorous. Then their is Club Fed.

Now, if, say, Police Academy was too intellectual for you, you might give Clb Fed a try. It really tries to be PA or any one of the old Leslie Nielsen films; however it falls way short. It sucks in a a "Oh gross that kid just puked in the corner of the cafeteria" kind of way.

In conclusion, if you want to watch a stupid movie you will laugh at cause it is just so bad the get the Ice Cream Man and to this movie "just say no!"

A really funny movie!

[Cynthia176 · 9/10 · 16 September 2000]

Just caught this, really late, on Comedy Central and laughed out loud. Burt Young is the warden of a prison that "houses" very rich criminals. Karen Black, Allen Garfield, Sherman Hemsley, Judy Landers are outrageously funny as the prisoners. So are Lance Kinsey and Joe Campanella as the "good guys." There are lots of laughs and sight gags in this very broad comedy.

Lots of laughs! Crazy, kooky fun.

[ollie100 · 7/10 · 20 December 1999]

I saw this late at night on the tube and burst out laughing from the get go. In the tradfition of the off-the-wall-alls-out spoffiness, this movie scores without having to rely on a big budget or fancy special effects. I was able to get my mind off of the daily doldrums and have fun, the old fashioned way by laughing.

Funny, off the wall and irreverent!

[BestCritic22 · 8/10 · 18 February 2003]

I had a good time viewing this film. I liked its broad off the wall humor. It looked like everyone had a good time making this movie. Sherman Hemsley is hilarious as a preacher who gets thrown in a prison for rich people. Judy Landers is cute. There is also some fun performances by Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe winner, Karen Black, and Allen Garfield. The direction was quick non pretentious and lively.

I roared with laughter.

[billy2x2x2x · 18 July 2004]

Well, first of all, the premise is a bit much. But it is a broad comedy and it takes you for a a wild ride. Rich people in prison! Okay, I guess we can match the names with the characters. Whether you like to chuckle or laugh, you'll do both with this film. Burt Young is the warden of a prison for the wealthy. JosephCampanella is an FBI director who plants an agent in CLUB FED. Alan Garfield is a crooked investment broker. Karen Black is a rich hotel owner. Sherman Hemsley is a crooked preacher and Judy Landers is an innocent girlfriend who takes the rap for her dead mafia boyfriend. We watched it late at night and had a great time.

Mindless Slapstick Comedy

[abbazabakyleman-98834 · 7/10 · 10 July 2019]

I first saw this late one night on Comedy Central and discovered Lance Kinsey (Proctor from the Police Academy films) was in it. To be honest, Kinsey was more hilarious in the PA comedies, but this comedy's not too bad for what it is. Sure, it's zany and way over the top, but you can't go wrong with the cast: Burt Young, Sherman Hemsley, Karen Black, Allen Garfield, Judy Landers, and a special appearance by Wally George, himself. It's worth watching for a few laughs.

A very funny movie!

[NYcritic2 · 9/10 · 27 August 2001]

This is one of those Jay and Silent Bob type of funny movies. When I rented this, I wasn't sure what it was about, but I watched and laughed out loud many times. Definitely worth watching if you just want to have a good time.

So pathetic it was funny (and, hey, it's a comedy, too!)

[vchimpanzee · 16 June 2003]

Some examples of the type of comedy in this movie: a camera has a sign on it saying 'Secret Surveillance Camera'. A gun with a silencer says 'Silencer' but, as it turns out, the silencer doesn't work. FBI agents wear Groucho glasses as disguises.

Howard Polk is an FBI agent assigned to undercover work in a prison more luxurious than most resorts, where only the richest criminals go, to be pampered like few people would be even on the outside. Girls in bikinis are everywhere, and the guards are dressed like Chippendale dancers. Classical musicians provide ambience (one clarinetist makes a brief detour into jazz). Polk's boss claims that a prisoner named Angelica is embezzling from the prison (in fact, the FBI boss has planted a warden whose job is to frame Angelica--who claims to have already been framed), and the boss wants Polk to find evidence of misconduct so the place can be shut down and the inmates can be sent to regular prisons. Also, a large, demented red-haired woman seems to want Angelica dead but doesn't have much luck.

Anyway, that's what passes for a plot. Some comic highlights: before and after scenes (funny for different reasons) when the clumsy and dense Angelica has sex with a man. A bizarre car chase that's too ridiculous to be anything but funny. The announcement (resembling a game show) of Angelica's sentence. A man in stripes wanting to leave his regular prison for this palatial one. An ethics class at the prison where everyone is dressed like Little Lord Fauntleroy.

Whether or not Judy Landers can act, in this movie she seems quite talented, and her character is very likeable. I was disappointed in Sherman Hemsley. Normally even he can bring quality to a production such as this, but I didn't care for his very sinful Reverend.

Some of the jokes worked, and others didn't (for me, anyway). And some jokes were just plain sick. But there was plenty here for me to enjoy.

I'm in this thing!

[mkillentv · 7/10 · 7 August 2009]

My wife at the time was an actress and I accompanied her to the audition for this film. She didn't make the cut but someone spotted me in the parking lot waiting for her and asked if I'd like a small non-speaking part. Now I was working as a producer in Hollywood at the time and thought it might be fun to do a bit on camera. So I said yes. That's me driving the van with the funny nose and glasses early on in the film. Of course, I'm not really driving and the crash was fake. It makes me laugh to see myself as I had absolutely no desire to be a film actor. And my bit in this movie confirms it! It was a first and last for me. But I'm glad I did it!

Lots of laughs in a movie where you can just lay back and enjoy!

[Fastframe · 9/10 · 6 January 2003]

It was nice coming home and channel surf until I came upon this very funny film about the upper class going to a rich man's prison. How appropriate for today! The film let me forget about my problems, albeit momentarily, and occasionally laugh out loud. I would definitely recommend this!

Giggles aplenty. Comedy Central picks the funny ones!

[Brower · 9/10 · 4 March 2001]

A group of us watched this on Comedy Central. They play it every so often. It's lots of fun. Some wonderful actors pull off the comedy "shtick" quite well. They had some a biographical info on the movie afterwards, and for a low budget independent, it came off very successfully.

Funny, funny, funny!!

[Smart Guy · 10/10 · 4 October 2001]

I really loved this film. I just wish they would play it more, because it's the type of movie you can enjoy understanding all along that it's not trying to change the world or trying to be too clever. Good pacing, good actors and loads of fun.

"I want to go to Club Fed!"

[Movie Fan-4 · 9/10 · 12 July 2000]

This is a terrific farce. I had a great time watching this movie. It has classic TV stars like Sherman Hemsley and Joe Campanella along with interesting film stars like Karen Black, Allen Garfield and Burt Young (Rocky's brother in law). Judy Landers is a natural with comedic material. I particularly enjoyed the sight gags and the endless parodies. Oh, and the court room scene is a classic.

This movie had me laughing in stitches all through it!

[MM1-4 · 10/10 · 5 January 2001]

I loved watching this movie late at night. It had me laughing and cracking up with its sight gags and off-the wall style. Much like the Airplane and Naked Gun movies. The cast is comprised of normally "serious" actors who pulled this off in a big way.

Ha ha. This movie's very funny. I laughed all through it!

[Ranger-71 · 9/10 · 13 February 2001]

If you want to have fun and have your funny bone go for a ride, watch this movie! It's hilarious! I've seen a lot of movies like this where a lot of money was spent and guess what? No laughs. This movie was obviously made for very little, but it had me chuckling all night!

Funny, off the wall craziness!

[L.T. BERMAN · 9/10 · 5 December 1999]

Caught this funny movie on Comedy Central and had some real belly laughs. Just sat back and enjoyed it in the wee hours of the morning. A well crafted off the wall comedy straight form the Police Academy - Airplane genre. Definitely a popcorn movie, but I didn't have any popcorn!

OUTRAGEOUS COMMENTS FOR ONE OF THE GREAT MOVIES

[kstevens91 · 10/10 · 18 July 2001]

All those people who wrote derogatory comments about Club Fed should be locked in a screening room and forced to watch the movie as a loop, until they see the merits of the film and revise their thinking. To not see what this movie is saying to the world is to miss smelling the roses or seeing the trees for the forest. I resent the limits of their abilities to see satire and their comments should be removed from this internet page lest they influence others and deter intelligent people from watching it. We owe that to the brilliant cast and producers who worked so hard to make a mini-masterpiece.

life in a white-collar prison

[kstevens91 · 10/10 · 12 February 2001]

Club Fed is a brilliant satire on life in these United States. For the white collar criminal, there has always been an easy place to be incarcerated. In spite of the vast damage they cause, the white collar crook never has to fear being in a "hard-time" environment and that is what this film talks about. It is presented to us in the style of Ingmar Berman ("Seventh Seal" etc.) and when we go beneath the surface, which many fail to do, we see life as it exists for the people of wealth and position,

Hilarious Comedy For It's Time

[FloatingOpera7 · 10/10 · 21 April 2006]

Club Fed (1990): Starring Lance Kinsey, Judy Landers, Burt Young, Allen Garfield, Sherman Hemsley, Karen black, Joseph Campanella, Mary Woronov, Debbie Lee Carrington, Seth Jaffe, Lyle Alzado, Dee Booher, Wally George, Greg Lewis, Kathy Karges, Director Nathaniel Christian, Screenplay Ruth Landers, Jordan Rush

Released in 1990 but filmed in '89, this is one of several hilarious, nonsense comedies that were popular ever since "Airplane!" hit the big screen in 1980. The 80's and early 90's would continue to see such spoof comedies as Police Academy, Hot Shots and Naked Gun comedies. Club Fed falls into the same category of comic film. It stars Lance Kinsey, himself an actor from the Police Academy films as Howard Polk, an FBI agent sent to investigate the illegal going-ons in a prison for white-collar criminals who are filthy rich. Not only is it minimum security, but it's a resort with luxurious and comfy rooms, swimming pool and entertainment! One joke follows another in a hilarious sequence. Judy Landers stars as Angelica Paziotopolos, the dumb-blonde girlfriend of a gangster who is innocently accused of a crime she didn't commit. Sherman Hemsley (of the Jeffersons!) is the corrupt, scheming, money-hungry Reverend. He is in his element doing comedy and it's really a riot to see him in the role. Wally George (an 80's TV talk show host/in-your-face comic Republican spokesperson and father or actress Rebecca De Mornay) plays a hilarious spoof of himself. There are several jokes about the rich, corruption in church and government and sex jokes. If you don't find it funny, it's because this type of comedy has fallen on the wayside after so many years.

Better than an unanesthetized root canal

[pine valley cosmonaut · 15 September 2001]

But not much. First off, this film is many things. It IS badly-acted, and Burt Young looks like he'd rather be anywhere else. It IS not funny. It IS not a satire or a Bergman-esque like examination of the treatment of white-collar criminals. You want to see a good satire? Go rent Dr. Strangelove or Network or even Starship Troopers. Club Fed is just a crappy comedy with a posse of washed-up TV stars and character actors, all of whom have a look on their face that says "Please don't let anyone see this movie" It's amazing that a film like this can even get financed when something like Memento can barely find a distributor.

Tain't funny, McGee

[lor_ · 24 June 2023]

My review was written in June 1991 after watching the film on Prism video cassette.

Comedy isn't pretty (per Steve Martin), and it's also a fragile commodity, as evidenced by the strenuously unfunny "Club Fed". Direct-to-video release mainly is a showcase for Judy Landers.

Film is produced by Lander's mom, Ruth Landers, who in the spirit of equal time also produced (with the same director, Nathaniel Christian), a vehicle for daughter Audrey Landers titled "California Casanova", another upcoming video release. Siblings have starred together on tv and in the video "Ghost Writer".

Judy, as a murdered gangster's girlfriend, is framed and sent to the new security prison Club Fed. FBI director Joseph Campanella has sen agent Lance Kinsey there as part of an embezzlement scam involving prison warden Burt Young, and film depicts the slapstick high jinks of Kinsey and numerous guest star inmates.

Silly stunts and in-jokes don't add up to laughs, and as usual for a Landers production, there's plenty of sex tease involving low-cut gowns for Judy. Pic's nadir occurs when Kinsey is on the phone and says "I want to speak to the (FBI) director", and helmer Christian steps into the scene for a dumb gag. It might have worked had a recognizable director had pulled it.

Pic's obviously in trouble when extraneous drug routines are essayed by Allen Garfield, Kinsey and Sherman Hemsley. No less than eight writers are credited with "additional sight gags".