Putney Swope

1969 comedy

Rating: 13/20

Plot: The president of a struggling advertising firm drops dead during a board meeting. The board members immediately vote on who should be the new president, the only condition being that they can't vote for themselves. They all decide to vote for Putney Swope, the lone black member of the board, thinking that nobody else would vote for him. He replaces the white collar white guys with some brothers and brings some truth and soul into the firm.

Another Robert Downey flick, this one less of a glorious mess and more of a frustrating one. One problem is that it's dated, a product of its time that likely would have raised some eyebrows back in the late 60s but doesn't retain much of its shock value 40 years later. It's definitely not without its moments and at times is pretty funny, but the hour and a half of gritty and artsy-fartsy incoherency would be draining for the average audience. Still, it's daring, unconventional, and anarchic enough for adventurous and patient film lovers to pop in. It's another one of those types of movies that I think I'd probably like better if I watched it a second time.