Retired gangster Jackie Gleason (living a staid modern life with his antagonistic spouse and would-be hippie daughter) checks into prison in order to rub out jailed mobster Mickey Rooney, but--after unintentionally dropping acid behind bars--finds he can't go through with it. This is what the fogeys thought the Summer of Love was about: loafing kids chucking the materialistic values of their elders and living off everyone else. Director Otto Preminger may very well have related to the flower children, but he never loosens up here, and never develops a sense of humor (and most of his actors seem extremely tense). The premise of the film (yesterday's honchos colliding with today's idealistic youth) actually had promise; but instead of quirky comedy, "Skidoo" becomes a silly free-for-all, witless and leering, and the interesting cast is at a loss. Groucho Marx manages to eke out some laughs as the godfather (named God), Gleason is a good sport, and Austin Pendleton has a squirrelly presence as a professor who burned his draft card. Otherwise, pitiful. For some reason, the end credits are set to music and sung by Nilsson. * from ****
Review of Skidoo
