The Black Bird is not the worst movie I have ever seen - that would be Matrix Revolutions. I must confess, I did not make it all the way through to the end. However, I was able to get farther than my first attempt when I walked out of the movie theater around 1976. If you are going to spoof a CLASSIC, and one of the best movies ever made, you have to do a first class job or else the film looks like a low-budget mess. Three movies immediately come to mind as examples of great spoofs: Young Frankenstein, Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein and Play It Again Sam. Each of these fine films are excellent spoofs that capture the magic of the originals. The Black Bird violates the most important rule of any film, including comedies and spoofs. A film must take itself seriously, no matter how ridiculous the subject matter. I am never able to take George Segal seriously in this film, or any other character for that matter, including Effie, who was splendid in her small and effective part in the original. Segal's hat and cigar are totally ridiculous and out of place then (1975) and now. The rest of the movie and supporting characters are not really worth discussing, except to say the quality wavers from low-budget bad to just unwatchale. If you're looking for a film spoof, rent anything other than this mess, such as Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid or many others.
Review of The Black Bird
