Viva Knievel! (1977)

Absolutely Fantastic

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Sometimes a film is so badly made, that in itself is a source of entertainment. Hope on such fun made me watch this movie. I was bitterly disappointed. Not because of the clumsy acting, the rickety cutting, or the lack of anything posing as a storyline or plot. I expected all these flaws and was prepared to enjoy the rubbish. What put me off, was the appearance of Gene Kelly, a performer of some standing in my opinion, in this rag. What baffled me, was the lead caricature mister knievel himself. I admit having had dreams with me in grand roles, saving the world, democracy, freedom and the girl, but to have this wet dream put on celluloid would not arise in a similar dream. The man has an ego like Jupiter (God and/or Planet) and the sense of relativity of an amoebe. And his cinematografical skills equal the latter. Do not watch this movie, even when you want to see it for its lack of quality. This one is too bad for even such entertainment.

Evel Knievel, the greatest thing on two wheels (despite the fact that he had immense trouble with actually landing!) is on the attack! Truth, justice & the American way are under threat from some nefarious drug dealers out to use Evels fame as a way to smuggle drugs into the U S of A & then into the innocent hands of the nations youth no doubt!From the opening bars of the theme tune to the closing credits this is non-stop-two-wheeled-high-octane-death-defying-cinema! You will witness the sheer power of Evel as his mere presence causes crippled children to walk - "You're the reason I'm walking, Evel! YOU'RE THE REASON!" Feel the love as he woos a captivating female reporter, what a dame! See the horror as his best friend is turned into a drug crazed dope-fiend by the bad guys, then rejoice as he is saved & reunited with his estranged son by the one & only Knievel! In the grand, suspense filled rubber burning finale let out a mighty Huzzah as Evel foils the bad guys & saves the day for all the innocent children of the free world! Viva Knievel indeed!!

Oooh... Leslie Nielsen is trying to sabotage Evel's bike. Will Lauren Hutton discover the plot in time?And can Evel convince his mechanic to give up the bottle, and be a good father to the son he has heretofore ignored?Will Evel and Lauren give up their adversarial flirting and get together?DOES ANYBODY CARE?!?!I am a fan of bad, cheesy movies. And even this one had me snoozing. Although I do give it thumbs up on the marvelous transition from the final jump to the closing credits.

WARNING: REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERSViva Knievel! Who could resist a title like that? And who could resist the cheesy Shaft-U-Like funky 70s theme? Especially when that theme is played during the film on what sounds like a paper and comb or a kazoo? Yet expecting a "so bad it's good" experience can only lead to disappointment hereTo be honest I'd quite forgotten what Evel looked like, if in fact I'd seen his face at all. I'd imagined he looked like his English rival Eddie Kidd, all black-haired, butch and youthful. As it turns out, Knievel looks like a cross between Garry Shandling, 70's Elvis and my Uncle Derrick. Okay, that last example doesn't have that wide a frame of reference, but it's true nonetheless. And in case the first two make you think this is a dark-haired raven, then Knievel's hair not only recedes, but is also grey, just like ... well, my Uncle Derrick's. How tasty Lauren Hutton is supposed to find a man attractive when he looks old enough to be her father is beyond me. The reality is that Knievel was no more than five years her senior, and hadn't reached forty, though the silver chest hair sprouting from his shirt gives a different impression. Maybe he had a picture of Dorian Grey that worked in reverse. And when the climax inevitably involves Knievel putting his cycle skills to work against crooks, and tackling them in unarmed combat, you think this is less a rugged action hero, more a rather silly old man.Strangely, Knievel's character is written as an ego-bloated, self-congratulating bore. Or maybe he's supposed to be charismatic, and it's just Evel's performance that has the charm of a rotting carcass. "Honey, I've known what to write to pretty girls like you since I was in Kindergarten" he says in one of his many chauvinist moments. While his ability to give a whiter-than-white sermon every two seconds is annoying in the extreme. Evel spends most of his time around garages and motor displays, which is handy as he carries a permanent spare tyre around his waist. When told by a Doctor that his hospital only accepts American patients, he replies: "Boy, you sound too good to be true." Is this a xenophobic Knievel or him mocking the Doctor? God knows, as his robotic delivery makes it impossible to tell. Even the illegitimate love child of Chris Rea and Keanu Reeves couldn't produce such a wooden performance.The "plot" involves drug dealers trying to kill Knievel (Not that anyone could tell if he was dead or not) and use his funeral procession to ship drugs. The use of drugs, and Knievel's reaction to them, is as adult and sophisticated as that in Moonwalker... except worse. It's this forcibly wholesome, mom's apple pie, Stars and Stripes attitude to the whole venture that really makes things unbearable. Viva never becomes fully enjoyable for it's awfulness as it's all done so straight. There is no trace of irony or self-depreciation in the script, and with the atrocious dialogue that should have been a necessity. Favourite bad lines include: "That kid was your number one fan, why, he'd take on the Supreme Court for you"; "What is this, judgement day?"; "You're chicken, huh?"; "You're supposed to be the head honcho of this hacienda" and "You're the reason I'm walking, Evel! You're the reason!" Most of these can only be appreciated in context, where their sheer absurdity or ham-fisted delivery makes them killingly funny. Just for example, the last line is a crippled child who throws away his crutches upon meeting Evel.For acting, Leslie Neilson playing it straight is far funnier than Leslie trying to be comical. Only Gene Kelly produces anything approaching a competent performance, though all have their presence sapped by the lifeless direction. For this one's IMDb "goofs" entry, the goof should have read: the film being made in the first place. Ultimately, Viva comes across as a TV movie, or one of those kitsch action shows of the eighties. Sort of like The Fall Guy, but with your overweight dad playing the part of Lee Majors. Neilson's car crash is hilarious, but generally this isn't so bad it's good... it's just bad, plain and simple. Avoid.