Amiable lawyer Wilby Daniels (winningly played by Dean Jones) is running for district attorney. Wilby once again gets stricken by the Borgia ring curse which causes him to transform into a large shaggy sheepdog at inopportune moments. His shady and crooked no-count rival John Slade (a marvelously hearty'n'huffy portrayal by Keenan Wynn) tries to get his hands on said ring so he can fix the election. Director Robert Stevenson, working from a blithely silly script by Don Tait, relates the loopy story at a constant zippy pace, maintains a good-natured and innocuous tone throughout, and stages the expected zany slapstick with considerable panache (a wild pie fight and an equally crazy car chase rate as the definite sidesplitting comic highlights). Moreover, the top-rate cast play their parts with infectiously zesty aplomb: Jones is totally engaging in the lead, Tim Conway is in peak goofy form as eager beaver ice cream man Tim (the scenes with Tim trying to convince other people his dog Elwood can talk are hilarious!), Suzanne Pleshette brings some class to her role as Wilby's supportive wife Betty, Wynn grouches it up with growly gusto as a deliciously broad heavy, plus there are neat supporting contributions from Jo Anne Worley as brassy, chipper lunch lady Katrinka Muggelberg, Dick Van Patten as Slade's obsequious partner Raymond, Vic Tayback as fearsome crime boss Eddie Roschak, Richard Bakalyan as bumbling hoodlum Freddie, and John Fiedler as jolly dog catcher Howie Cummings. Buddy Baker's bouncy score, Fred V. Phillips' sharp cinematography, the nifty make-up f/x, and the jaunty theme song all further enhance the sweetly inane charm of this immensely enjoyable hoot.
Review of The Shaggy D.A.
