William Friedkin directed The Night They Raided Minsky's based on the book by Rowland Barber and left immediately afterward. Norman Lear, Sidney Michaels, and Arnold Schulman co-wrote the adaptation, which is evocative of the mid 1920's era. Editor Ralph Rosenblum was left behind to pick up the pieces and shape the material into the form released in December 1968. What's left is a mixture of bawdy humor and a paper thin plot involving backstage doings at a burlesque theater, circa 1925 in New York City. Jason Robards stars as a ne'er-do-well straight man of the theater and teams with Norman Wisdom as a frantic performer, complete with an over-sized suit and make-up. They both try to make time with naive Britt Ekland, a wayward daughter, who arrives in town to escape her overbearing Amish father, Harry Andrews, complete with Amish get up.
Robards eventually wins out and has a memorable scene trying to seduce Ekland with a Murphy bed that goes back into the wall and then down again based on the individual accompanied by a knock outside their door. Forrest Tucker plays a gangster rival trying to move in on the theater owned by Joseph Wiseman whose son, Elliott Gould, tries to keep the show running amidst backstage chaos and looming trouble from police led by Denholm Elliott. Rudy Vallee provides the introductory narration, and Bert Lahr has an especially poignant moment at the very end, considering this was his last film. The film moves quite fast and is light-hearted entertainment. The film's highlight comes near the end when Harry Andrews comically tries to bring Ekland, his daughter, back into the fold, unleashing a fire and brimstone speech subsequently undermined by Ekland's defiance and "accidental" exposure on stage. The polarity of the characters mirrors actual burlesque scenarios. Her moment on stage supposedly signaled the dawn of the burlesque era. **1/2 of 4 stars.
Robards eventually wins out and has a memorable scene trying to seduce Ekland with a Murphy bed that goes back into the wall and then down again based on the individual accompanied by a knock outside their door. Forrest Tucker plays a gangster rival trying to move in on the theater owned by Joseph Wiseman whose son, Elliott Gould, tries to keep the show running amidst backstage chaos and looming trouble from police led by Denholm Elliott. Rudy Vallee provides the introductory narration, and Bert Lahr has an especially poignant moment at the very end, considering this was his last film. The film moves quite fast and is light-hearted entertainment. The film's highlight comes near the end when Harry Andrews comically tries to bring Ekland, his daughter, back into the fold, unleashing a fire and brimstone speech subsequently undermined by Ekland's defiance and "accidental" exposure on stage. The polarity of the characters mirrors actual burlesque scenarios. Her moment on stage supposedly signaled the dawn of the burlesque era. **1/2 of 4 stars.