The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977)

A series of short, highly irreverent, and often tasteless skits.

Director:

John Landis

Writers:

David Zucker, Jim Abrahams

Stars:

Evan C. Kim, Bong Soo Han, Bill Bixby

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marilyn Joi	...	Cleopatra Schwartz (segment "Cleopatra Schwartz")
Saul Kahan	...	Schwartz (segment "Cleopatra Schwartz")
David Zucker	...	Man (segment "His New Car") / Technician #2 (segment "Eyewitness News") / Grunwald (segment "Courtroom")
Marcy Goldman	...	Housewife (segment "Household Odors")
Dulcie Jordan	...	Guest #1 (segment "Household Odors")
Gracia Lee	...	Guest #2 (segment "Household Odors")
Sheila Rogers	...	Guest #3 (segment "Household Odors")
Joseph G. Medalis	...	Paul Burmaster (segment "High Adventure") (as Joe Medalis)
Barry Dennen	...	Claude LaMont (segment "High Adventure")
Colin Male	...	Spokesman (segment "Argon") / Voice Overs
Ed Griffith	...	Host (segment "Danger Seekers")
Robert Starr	...	Rex Kramer (segment "Danger Seekers")
Richard Gates	...	Boy (segment "Eyewitness News") (as Rick Gates)
Tara Strohmeier	...	Girl (segment "Eyewitness News") (as Tara Strohmeir)
Neil Thompson	...	Newscaster (segment "Eyewitness News")

Storyline

Madcap spoof, a collection of comedy skits includes the Kung-Fu parody, "A Fistful Of Yen" and "Catholic School Girls In Trouble." Enjoy the future of movie-going with the "Feel-A-Round" theater experience. See a notable and highly respected actor as the clumsiest waiter in motion picture history. Watch such character as Cleopatra Schwartz and Big Jim Slade tickle your funny bone until it has to be removed surgically!

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Plot Keywords:

pressing breasts against glass | sex scene | large breasts | female nudity | kissing breasts | 

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Taglines:

This movie is totally out of control!

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Korean

Release Date:

4 November 1978 (Japan)

Also Known As:

A Fistful of Yen

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$600,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

KFM Films, United Film Distribution Company (UFDC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker shopped the movie around to the Hollywood studios. They all refused, saying "audiences didn't like movies composed of sketches."

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Goofs

When Paul Burmaster interviews Claude Lamont, the gag is that the roving boom mic picks up sounds that it otherwise wouldn't (heart beats and the like). But while the moving mic picks up these other noises, the voice levels of the actors do not vary. We know that within the sketch they are not otherwise miked because when the mic goes into the water pitcher their voices gurgle.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Newscaster: The popcorn you are eating has been pissed in. Film at eleven.

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Crazy Credits

Before the credits start, there is a short bit with the TV anchorman saying "The popcorn you're eating has been pissed in, film at eleven". For the TV version, this is replaced with "I'm not wearing any pants, film at 11"

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Alternate Versions

A version aired on Comedy Central (and perhaps on other channels) features a small variety of edits:

• The 'Cleopatra Schwartz' sequence is censored heavily for language and nudity
• During the closing sequence (where the teenagers are having sex on the couch, and the news crew is watching), the camera zoom is altered several times so that nothing but the teens' faces show. The zooms are awkward, and blatantly added.
• The entirety of the 'Catholic School Girls In Trouble' scene is missing. It is listed in the credits, however.

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Connections

Referenced in A Planet Comicon Panel with Helen Slater (2011)

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Soundtracks

Heavy Bopper
(uncredited)
Music by Alan Moorhouse
KPM Music Ltd

User Reviews

Saturday Night Live on acid

There's something to be said for any movie that actually has a character named "Enormous Genitals". This is the first movie by the Zucker Brothers, the same geniuses that brought us Airplane, Top Secret and the Naked Gun movies. Haven't seen this yet? Pull up a nice comfy chair and get ready for 90 of the most hilarious minutes of film you can find. Cleopatra Schwartz is a riot, A Fistful Of Yen is the best spoof of Enter The Dragon or any Kung Fu film ever. The mock commercials are funny too. Anybody with Attention Deficit Disorder like me, this is the movie for you. It never stops moving, not for a minute. Henry Gibson's bit roll in this will have you laughing for days. But it's Samuel L. Bronkowitz's presentation of Catholic High School Girls In Trouble that will sit in you the longest. Best line: "Show me your/you're nuts! They certainly have.