{"id":16043,"date":"2011-02-25T13:28:59","date_gmt":"2011-02-25T20:28:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=16043"},"modified":"2022-08-30T11:59:17","modified_gmt":"2022-08-30T18:59:17","slug":"honky-tonk-freeway-1981","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=16043","title":{"rendered":"Honky Tonk Freeway (1981)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;The International House of Pancakes is the one consistent thing in my life.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Poster-210x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"210\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-16044\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Poster-210x300.jpg 210w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Poster-89x128.jpg 89w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Poster.jpg 280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 210px) 100vw, 210px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA motley group of individuals &#8212; including two petty bank robbers (George Dzundza and Joe Grifasi), a busty blonde (Beverly D&#8217;Angelo), an aspiring children&#8217;s book author (Beau Bridges), a pair of nuns (Geraldine Page and Deborah Rush), a middle-class family (Teri Garr, Howard Hesseman, Peter Billingsley, and Jenn Thompson), an elderly man (Hume Cronyn) and his alcoholic wife (Jessica Tandy), a pair of car thieves (Al Corley and Murphy Dunne), a prostitute (Sandra McCabe) and her flashy john (David Rasche), a songwriting trucker (Paul Jabara), a coke-sniffing hitchhiker (Daniel Stern), a jeep full of gay men, and a bus of Asian-American orphans &#8212; drive towards Florida, where the evangelist mayor (William Devane) of a small town is desperate to lure tourists.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Beau Bridges Films<\/li>\n<li>Comedy<\/li>\n<li>Ensemble Cast<\/li>\n<li>Geraldine Page Films<\/li>\n<li>Hume Cronyn Films<\/li>\n<li>Jessica Tandy Films<\/li>\n<li>John Schlesinger Films<\/li>\n<li>Road Trip<\/li>\n<li>Small Town America<\/li>\n<li>Teri Garr Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nThe brief synopsis provided above should give a clear indication that John Schlesinger&#8217;s notorious clunker (with a $24 million budget, it was the most expensive movie of its day, earning back only $500,000 at the box office) aims to be QUIRKY, in all capital letters. The very premise of the film &#8212; a small-town mayor-cum-preacher unsuccessfully attempts to bribe city officials into providing his town with an off-ramp on the new interstate freeway:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council-1024x558.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"349\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council-1024x558.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council-300x163.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council-128x70.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council-768x419.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council-1536x837.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council-495x270.png 495w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-City-Council.png 1657w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>and eventually resorts to more extreme measures, including painting his entire town pink, shipping in a troupe of African safari animals, attempting to teach an elephant to water ski, and much more: <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink-1024x557.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"348\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63396\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink-1024x557.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink-300x163.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink-128x70.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink-768x418.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink-1536x835.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink-497x270.png 497w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Pink.png 1635w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant-1024x561.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"351\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63397\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant-1024x561.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant-300x164.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant-128x70.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant-768x421.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant-1536x841.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant-493x270.png 493w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Elephant.png 1645w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8212; sets it up as a wannabe &#8220;drolly comedic commentary&#8221; on the eccentricities of America. Unfortunately, however, while every single situation and character in the script seems designed to milk laughs, I never chuckled &#8212; not once. <\/p>\n<p>Like most comedies, this film has its core set of devoted fans: many viewers seem to find inherent humor simply in the IDEA of a children&#8217;s story about &#8220;Ricky the Carnivorous Pony&#8221;, pronounced &#8220;Licky&#8221; by the group of generically &#8220;Asian-American&#8221; orphans; or the concept of a blonde floozy gathering her mother&#8217;s ashes from a drive-in mortuary and driving with them to Florida, accidentally allowing them to spill and be snorted by a cokehead in the meantime; or the notion of a young boy (Billingsley) who hates peeing in his RV&#8217;s urinal so much he holds it in for hours; or the portrayal of a defiant elderly woman who insists she ISN&#8217;T an alcoholic since she &#8220;only&#8221; indulges in mixed drinks and never hides her bottles:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-1024x567.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"354\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-63400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-1024x567.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-300x166.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-128x71.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-768x426.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-1536x851.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-487x270.png 487w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn-1038x576.png 1038w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/Honky-Tonk-Freeway-Tandy-Cronyn.png 1655w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; or the revelation that a young nun (Rush) actually longs for sensual experiences like swimming.   <\/p>\n<p>Well, there&#8217;s clearly no point in going on &#8212; either it works for you, or it doesn&#8217;t. The biggest mystery is why Peary includes this clunker in the back of his book, without any kind of revealing &#8220;code&#8221;. Is he a fan himself? Or does he consider it simply too historically notorious to miss? Regardless, it&#8217;s most certainly NOT must-see. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>For me, nothing <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nAbsolutely NOT. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0082525\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thespinningimage.co.uk\/cultfilms\/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=1118&#038;aff=13\">Spinning Image Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1981\/08\/21\/movies\/harsh-view-of-america-in-honky-tonk-freeway.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/movies.tvguide.com\/honky-tonk-freeway\/review\/101187\">TV Guide Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeout.com\/movies\/honky-tonk-freeway-1\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The International House of Pancakes is the one consistent thing in my life.&#8221; Synopsis: A motley group of individuals &#8212; including two petty bank robbers (George Dzundza and Joe Grifasi), a busty blonde (Beverly D&#8217;Angelo), an aspiring children&#8217;s book author (Beau Bridges), a pair of nuns (Geraldine Page and Deborah Rush), a middle-class family (Teri Garr, Howard Hesseman, Peter Billingsley, and Jenn Thompson), an elderly man (Hume Cronyn) and his alcoholic wife (Jessica Tandy), a pair of car thieves (Al&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=16043\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16043","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16043","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16043"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16043\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":86571,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16043\/revisions\/86571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16043"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16043"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16043"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}