Condorman (1981)

Cartoonist Woody becomes the superhero he draws. Using his gadgets he helps a Soviet spy defect to the West.

Director:

Charles Jarrott

Writers:

Marc Stirdivant (screenplay), Robert Sheckley (novel)

Stars:

Michael Crawford, Oliver Reed, Barbara Carrera

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Michael Crawford	...	Woody Wilkins
Oliver Reed	...	Krokov
Barbara Carrera	...	Natalia
James Hampton	...	Harry Oslo
Jean-Pierre Kalfon	...	Morovich
Dana Elcar	...	Russ Devlin
Vernon Dobtcheff	...	Russian Agent
Robert Arden	...	CIA Chief

Storyline

Comic artist and writer Woody performs a simple courier operation for his friend Harry who works for the CIA. But when he successfully fends off hostile agents, he earns the respect of the beautiful Natalia, who requests his assistance for her defection. Woody uses this request as leverage to use the CIA's resources to bring his comic book creation, Condorman, to life to battle the evil Krokov.

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Plot Keywords:

non comic book superhero | character name as title | condorman character | soviet spy | spy | 

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Taglines:

The World's New Super Hero

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Family | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

official site

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 August 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kondormannen

Filming Locations:

Monte Carlo, Monaco

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

While this film was in theaters, Baskin-Robbins offered a movie tie-in flavor called "Condorman Crunch".

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Goofs

After the scene where Woody and Natalia escape from Morovich by turning the Condormobile into a hovercraft, Morovich reports to Krokov that the Condormobile turned into a hydrofoil.

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Quotes

Woody Wilkins: Condorman - vulture of the Western world.
[takes drink, looks surprised, spews jet of flame]

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Crazy Credits

In the first version released by Anchor Bay Entertainment, the pace of the opening credits has been sped up, as is evidenced by the speed of the boats, vehicles, tourists, and finally Michael Crawford's walking around on the Eiffel Tower before Russ appears.

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Connections

Referenced in Toy Story Toons: Small Fry (2011)

User Reviews

Ready for a Re-make.............

I saw this on VHS rental in the early 80's and remember it with massive fondness. Over here in the UK the film has been deleted from VHS for over a decade so my chance to see this film again was nil.

So along came DVD, I had no player and this was only available in the US. I bought a player that could play all regions and imported me a copy, and when it bounced through the letterbox to the floor I was like a kid at Christmas.

This is the story of an American comic book artist drawing his books from Paris. His best friend, and flat mate, is a CIA office clerk. When a job comes up for a civilian to carry out, Woody is recruited. After the success of the first mission, all be it by pure luck, Woody is requested by a KGB agent to help her defect.

Now this film is still one of my favourites at the age of 30. And that's not seeing through rose tinted glasses anymore. This film is funny and you really wanna see the good guys win. The gadgets blow James Bond away and I dare anybody who doesn't wanna own a old wagon that converts to a car, or a massive condorman suit that helps you fly.

Now for the bad bits. The film doesn't relate to today's audience with the cold war long since dead and the Russians our friends and allies now. Michael Crawford will always be Condorman to me, but his American accent is very poor. The films print looks lifeless with no colour and the music still lives in 80's ville. Also the plot is very loose, why they went across the alps and through small villages when they could of got on a plane and been in the US in a few hours is never explained. But please do not let this put you off. This is a gem of a movie that still makes me wanna be Condorman. So Speilberg you ever make a remake of this count me in...........