Monday, February 21, 2011

WTF? Someone I Touched


VD on TV was never so funny-

If you, like me, think that Netflix on demand is probably the best human invention in the past 20 years then you may have come across this little gem called SOMEONE I TOUCHED starring the incomperable Cloris Leachman.

In this made for TV special (ABC Feb 26, 1975) a young girl plays the backtrack game to find out who gave her syphilis - "It can be a real drag if you don't take care of it." The path leads us to Laura Hyatt (Oscar winner Coris Leachman - The Last Picture Show) who finally gets preggers after years of trying with her hubby (James Olson). However, her husband is a carrier and struggles with the challenge of notifying Leachman that she and her unborn baby might be in harm's way. Leachman was also in the midst of Phyllis (the Mary Tyler Moore spin-off) at the time. Phyllis... Syph-Phyllis... I guess it's all the same.

Many WTF moments in this film; Leachman plays a children's book writer who seems to be writing what equals a 300 page novel. (How big are children's books from the 70's anyway?) Also The haunting (?) theme song, sung by Leachman herself, sounds like it's straight out of a 70's feminine hygiene commercial. The song is written by Joel Hirschorn (Composer for The Towering Inferno and Posiden Adventure). It's haunting because once you hear it (just like syphilis) it'll be very difficult to get out of you. Kenneth Mars (The Producers, Malcolm in the Middle) is the special guest star, playing Leachman's boss. His performance is oddly understated with an "Oh well" attitude. The "just give me my paycheck" acting by all is something the viewer then was probably listening to with bated breath, but today should be relished in the meaty badness, like eating a juicy-but-campy beef stew with a big fork.

My recommendation: Run to your computer, add this V-Delightful film to your Netflix queue AND WATCH IT with someone you would like to spread the disease of laughter.