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IMDbPro

Taking Off

  • 19711971
  • RR
  • 1h 33m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
4.4K
YOUR RATING
Taking Off (1971)
  • Comedy
  • Drama
  • Music
While searching for their runaway teenage daughter, the parents rediscover life's joys as they get acquainted with a self-help group for parents of vanished children.While searching for their runaway teenage daughter, the parents rediscover life's joys as they get acquainted with a self-help group for parents of vanished children.While searching for their runaway teenage daughter, the parents rediscover life's joys as they get acquainted with a self-help group for parents of vanished children.
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
4.4K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Milos Forman
  • Writers
    • Milos Forman
    • John Guare
    • Jean-Claude Carrière
  • Stars
    • Lynn Carlin
    • Buck Henry
    • Georgia Engel
Top credits
  • Director
    • Milos Forman
  • Writers
    • Milos Forman
    • John Guare
    • Jean-Claude Carrière
  • Stars
    • Lynn Carlin
    • Buck Henry
    • Georgia Engel
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 27User reviews
    • 28Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 6 BAFTA Awards
      • 2 wins & 9 nominations total

    Photos89

    Milos Forman and Miroslav Ondrícek at an event for Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Taking Off (1971)
    Linnea Heacock in Taking Off (1971)
    Buck Henry in Taking Off (1971)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Lynn Carlin
    Lynn Carlin
    • Lynn Tyne
    Buck Henry
    Buck Henry
    • Larry Tyne
    Georgia Engel
    Georgia Engel
    • Margot
    Tony Harvey
    Tony Harvey
    • Tony
    Audra Lindley
    Audra Lindley
    • Ann Lockston
    Paul Benedict
    Paul Benedict
    • Ben Lockston
    Vincent Schiavelli
    Vincent Schiavelli
    • Schiavelli
    David Gittler
    David Gittler
    • Jamie
    Ike Turner
    • Self
    • (as The Ike and Tina Turner Revue)
    Tina Turner
    Tina Turner
    • Self
    • (as The Ike and Tina Turner Revue)
    Linnea Heacock
    Linnea Heacock
    • Jeannie Tyne
    Rae Allen
    Rae Allen
    • Mrs. Divito
    Frank Berle
    • Committee Man
    Philip Bruns
    Philip Bruns
    • Policeman
    • (as Phillip Bruns)
    Gail Busman
    Gail Busman
    • Nancy Lockston
    Corinna Cristobal
    Corinna Cristobal
    • Corinna Divito
    Barry Del Rae
    • Schuyler
    Robert Dryden
    • Dr. Bronson
    • Director
      • Milos Forman
    • Writers
      • Milos Forman
      • John Guare
      • Jean-Claude Carrière
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      After the success of Easy Rider (1969), Universal Studios hit upon the idea to let young filmmakers make "semi-independent" films for low budgets in hopes of generating similar profits. The idea was to make five movies for low budgets ($1 million or less), not interfere in the filmmaking process, and give the directors final cut. The other movies were: The Hired Hand (1971), The Last Movie (1971), Silent Running (1972), Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970), Two-Lane Blacktop (1971) and Minnie and Moskowitz (1971).
    • Quotes

      Schiavelli: So you take it and you pass it to the person sitting next to you until the joint gets passed around and it's very, very small. That is called a *roach*; and I will collect those.

    • Connections
      Featured in Before 'Taking Off': Milos Forman's Road to America (2011)
    • Soundtracks
      Air
      Performed by The Incredible String Band

      Elektra Records

      Composed by Mike Heron, Paradox Music

    User reviews27

    Review
    Top review
    6/10
    Buzzing with talent, if not energy...
    Czech director Milos Forman made his American debut with this sweetly-zonked look at the generation gap, circa 1971. Straight, tightly-wound suburban married couple just outside New York City panic when their teenage daughter runs away...but eventually they tire of looking for her ("She's probably out there having fun," the kid's father says, "so why shouldn't we have some fun, goddammit!"). Scenes of the grown-ups letting loose with marijuana experimentation and strip poker are intercut with teenagers auditioning for a musical, and this is where Forman's true talent comes to the fore (he's mad about faces, and passionate about eccentrics and talent). The well-chosen cast (including Buck Henry, Lynn Carlin, Audra Lindley, Paul Benedict, Georgia Engel and Allen Garfield, with music performances from Ike and Tina Turner, Kathy Bates and Carly Simon) is uniformly excellent, though the thin screenplay (penned by Forman with John Guare, Jean-Claude Carrière and John Klein) doesn't give the actors much to work with--they're all flying high on the exuberance of collaboration. Forman's vision is predictably cockeyed, though his pacing is slow and his staging is sometimes puzzling. For instance, is he holding the singers at the audition in esteem with his camera or using them satirically? The blank faces of the judges are probably meant to get a laugh, but their dumbfounded reactions shouldn't dictate what we're experiencing watching them for ourselves. The movie does take off on occasion, but it isn't from energy (Forman doesn't display a temperament, he's of the low-keyed school of filmmaking); the sheer intrinsic delight of showcased talent gives the picture its charge, ultimately making it a unique, quirky bird all its own. **1/2 from ****
    helpful•6
    1
    • moonspinner55
    • Jul 3, 2016

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 28, 1971 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • S.P.F.C.
    • Filming locations
      • Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA
    • Production companies
      • Crown-Hausman
      • Forman Production
      • Renn Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 33 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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