The Absent-Minded Professor (1961)
Bumbling professor Ned Brainard accidentally invents flying rubber, or "Flubber", an incredible material that gains energy every time it strikes a hard surface. It allows for the invention of shoes that can allow jumps of amazing heights and enables a modified Model-T to fly. Unfortunately, no one is interested in the material except for Alonzo Hawk, a corrupt businessman who wants to steal the material for himself.
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Wonderful Movie
Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful
At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.
Blistering performances.
Fred MacMurray plays the vacuous title character who ignores everything in life when it comes to a new discovery. Even his own discoveries don't impress him. While he is perfecting the anti-gravity substance, Flubber, his world is collapsing around him. But he doesn't even know it. There are wonderful scenes in this movie. The stuff has crazy properties and when the high school basketball team gets their hands on it, it's utter madness. MacMurray is scheduled to be married, but while he putzes around, another man, Keenan Wynn, is sneaking in on his territory. His fiancée is becoming more and more fed up as time goes along. The sequels were never quite as delightful as this one. Just don't take it too seriously.
In "Double Indemnity" and "The Apartment" Fred MacMurray proved adept at drama. In this Disney, family comedy he shows his strenght as a comedic actor. MacMurray plays Ned Brainerd, a collegiate professor who devises an invention, "Flubber" (flying rubber) which is super-bouncy and allows his car to defy gravity. A rich alumni, Alonzo Hawk (Keenan Wynn) wishes to get his hands on the invention and the millions of dollars it is guaranteed to garner, so he uses under-handed methods to try to wrest control of Ned's spectacular discovery. Their is good humor throughout this movie, particularly when Hawk's desires become known to Ned and Ned uses "Flubber" to make Hawk bounce out-of-control. This film is one of the Disney Company's first comedies and one can only wish that their later one's are half-as-funny as this early venture. This movie gets a grade of A- and a very strong recommendation.
The Absent-Minded Professor was a typical Disney classic that I watched when I was younger. In short, this film is about a professor who creates an anti-gravity substance known as 'flubber'. This substance makes his car fly, sort of reminiscent of the car in 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'. Of course, someone is trying to kidnap this idea, and it's up to some children to save the day.I am not sure what children today would think of this film, but I did find it enjoyable, and I would have seen it in the mid-1980s. I would like to think that children today would find it just as enjoyable and entertaining.
The Absent Minded ProfessorClassic family from from Walt Disney that stars Fred MacMurray in the title role as a rather forgetful and absent minded professor who invents a strange putty substance that drives him and his close contacts bonkers. The movie is much more inspired, likable and family-friendly (not to mention funnier and more charming) than the remake starring Robin Williams, which was written by John Hughes long after his career had fallen downwards. This version is the definitive version--don't let the kiddies convince you to rent the other one before you see this one!**** / *****