Getting Straight (1970)

Very Cool!!!

So much average

Good movie but grossly overrated

Excellent but underrated film

Ever heard of the 'campus' comedy? No, we didn't think so. And after this film flopped with audiences the 'campus' comedy was never heard from again until the advent of the National Lampoon series in the early '80s, which for all I know, may have been funnier than this ever was. After the success of 'Easy Rider' with the youth audience of the '60's, Hollywood thought it could cash in on the counter culture with a number of ventures into what the press politely referred to as 'youth' movies. They were not however, about the joys of surfing in California. This sub-genre included such (forgotten) titles as 'The Strawberry Statement', 'The Baby Maker', 'Norwood' and maybe some others that have slipped even my memory down the years. Oh, and of course this one, which may be the best, but that isn't saying much.Elliott Gould stars as an academic who, previously as a post-grad student was heavily involved in political activism on his local campus. However, deciding to become a teacher puts a spanner in his works and Gould has to decide if he wants to become a career academic, or conversely, a career bum. Selling out didn't seem so easy because, hey, what's the difference! Girlfriend Candice Bergen looks young and lovely and bears the brunt of Gould's anti-Establishment tirades; she gets a lot of sympathy from the audience. This film makes no bones that women's aspirations to get ahead are not as highly thought of as those of men, and it communicates an uncomfortable message to wit, ladies, it's easier for the guys as well as you to stay at home and concentrate on the cleaning. 'Getting Straight' is interesting for its curiosity value; it is a useful snapshot of (hopefully) a bygone era and for that reason is watchable. But this also is what makes the film so dated. I dare any woman these days not to squirm at the abuse Candice Bergen endures at the hands of this arrogant male chauvinist who is as interested in keeping the status quo alive in the bedroom as he is in changing it in the public arena. The comedy is funny enough and a trifle droll, concerning the small-mindedness of academia and the thickheadedness of some teachers who should know more about the world they live in, but sadly do not.The film does have a certain value that we can appreciate today, but with the virtue of hindsight that technology affords us, 'Getting Straight' is not nearly as clever as it thinks it is. Or should I say, thought that it was

The sixties were a radical time which left an indelible mark on American culture!! Underneath all the tumultuousness and counter culture extremism of the 1960's, was the rudimentary need to cogently clarify our nation's privileges which are pertinent to the freedom of individual expression!! The movie "Getting Straight" illustrates how a bunch of young students went to college to learn something, above all else, they should have learned the myriad of desirable prerogatives to a democracy!! Elliot Gould plays a disgruntled and maverick associate professor who is baffled by the college's late twentieth century version of totalitarianism! This film depicts how the polarization of prevailing opinions between the student body of the university, and the faculty, was ubiquitously alarming!! This movie articulates the element of non-cohesiveness with all of the major characters in this film!! The sixties were a time of change, hence, change meant uncertainty.. Why was there such a vehement protestation to the war in Vietnam? For the simple reason that most Americans felt that we did not belong there!! The rumination of concepts that Elliot Gould engaged in left him with a precarious pot luck stew of convoluted ideologies!! Alternative philosophies which had galvanized the American youth could no longer be swept under the rug!! Ultimately, Elliot Gould had to come to grips with the fact that in your life, it does not matter what you do, but, it matters who you are!! Candace Bergen plays his love interest, as well as his succor for comprehending social changes!! The two of them are constantly stalemated by perpetual revolutionary pontifications which they are barraged with on an ephemeral basis!! It stands to reason that a happy ending in a movie such as this would bring on a bevy of unresolved perplexities of rebellion!! Both of these characters don't know what they want in life, but, they know what they don't want in life!! Such a plight cultivated a pleasant solace for both of these free spirited societal malcontents (Candace Bergen and Elliot Gould). I liked this movie, and I felt that the basic concept to this film evoked an individualism which accommodated the era in which it was made!! Effective acting performances made this film an empathetic précis of entertainment for virtually everyone who watched it... I give it a 10!!

************ Caution --- Contains Spoilers ********** Have you ever wanted to tell off your boss? Have you ever longed to tell off a rambling, narrow-minded, spacey, self-righteous college professor? If so, `Getting Straight' is the movie for you.`Getting Straight' is almost a good movie. The story line is very dated, very much in the 1960s. The script and the acting are uneven, the characters are flat, and overall the film is just average. But – the REAL value in this movie is the climax!Harry Bailey (Elliott Gould) is a penniless graduate student working on his Ph.D. thesis in American Literature. Everything is going wrong for him – he never has enough money for the rent, his old clunker is always breaking down, he's worried about his thesis, and even his girlfriend Jan (Candace Bergen) starts dating a wealthy doctor.The academic aspect of this movie is very true to life. To earn a Ph.D., a student must pick a very specific topic and write a comprehensive book that covers every bit of knowledge on that subject. The thesis topic must be approved by the advising professor, and students have five years to finish it. When completed, the student must defend his/her thesis to a panel of professors who ask very incisive questions.There is a lot of ‘Sixties flavor to this film. Student leaders are trying to radicalize the student body, Harry's friend is always working on beating the system by draft-dodging scams and welfare scams to collect $900 a week. This movie came out not long after Kent State, Columbia student strike and the `Moratorium' March on Washington. The dialog and the clothes and the "zeitgeist" in general are all true pictures of a bygone era. However, some other movies have done a better job, such as "The Strawberry Statement" or even "Hair." I was in college at the time, and the majority of students were trying to get an education. The political radicals were a minority, although most students were against the war in Vietnam. If you rent this movie, I would recommend checking in at the beginning for a few minutes just to get the background, and then fast forward about 75 minutes to the exciting climax.Harry's PhD Thesis presentation scene will have you laughing and cheering! His thesis deals with the literary value of the works of F. Scott Fitzgerald. As Harry tries to make his points, the professors derail him on a tangent that Fitzgerald may have been gay. No matter which book he references, one of the ivory tower denizens will always relate it to Fitzgerald's alleged homosexuality. When Harry defends his points about `Tender is the Night,' one prof enthuses, `Ah, yes, perfect, don't you see that the Dick Diver Character was the manifestation of Fitzgerald's repressed latent homosexual drives?' Unable to take any more, Harry explodes, `Well, that must have been news to ZELDA!' Shocked, the profs are speechless as Harry grabs each man's copy of the thesis and tells off the eggheads one by one. Jumping up on the table, he trashes everything they believe in as he throws papers all over the place, especially in their faces. It is a better catharsis than `Dilbert.'The denouement comes as the student riot finally erupts on campus. Harry sneaks out as small hordes of authentic sixties hippies run through the building and seize rooms including the one holding the stupefied, frightened professors. Jan magically appears among the anarchy and once again pledges her love to Harry, who has decided to leave the academic establishment.Harry never indicates what he will do instead of teaching in college, but the happy couple walks off into the sunset in search of a better tomorrow. If they ever make a sequel to this movie, I wonder if Harry would start a `dot-com' company.

While it would be easy for many to catagorize "Getting Straight" as a period film,it nonetheless is a timeless homage to those poor souls who are casual victims of circumstance.From the beginning of the movie we see as protagonist Harry Bailey is set upon by all of his much younger and very politically naive fellow college students who think that if only Harry would join up with them,then their causes of the moment would be complete.It doesn't dawn upon these people that Harry is much older,with a completely different set of priorities than he had before going off to fight in the Vietnam war.At this time in Harrys life,he wants to finish his masters degree in order to be given a teaching credential.Once he gets this,he can go about the business of molding future system challengers and left-wing banner carriers.The only thing that stands in his way is his own naivite and egalitarian mind-set that he has reserved for all but himself."Getting Straight" shows us all the inevitable complications of fence-sitting and ignoring our potential in life.