Don't Drink the Water (1969 film)
| Don't Drink the Water | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Howard Morris |
| Produced by |
Charles H. Joffe A Jack Rollins and Charles H. Joffe Production Executive producer Joseph E. Levine |
| Written by |
R. S. Allen and Harvey Bullock |
| Based on |
the play by Woody Allen produced on the stage by David Merrick |
| Starring |
Jackie Gleason Estelle Parsons Ted Bessell Joan Delaney |
| Music by | Composed arranged and conducted by Pat Williams |
| Cinematography | Harvey Genkins |
| Edited by |
Ralph Rosenblum A.C.E. (editorial supervision) |
| Distributed by | Avco Embassy Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Don't Drink the Water is a 1969 American comedy film starring Jackie Gleason and Estelle Parsons.[1] It is directed by Howard Morris and based upon a 1966 play Don't Drink the Water by Woody Allen. The supporting cast includes Ted Bessell and Joan Delaney.
In 1994 Allen remade the story as a television film, with himself in the Gleason role.[2]
Plot
Walter Hollander, a caterer, is on vacation with his wife Marion and daughter Susan. While flying to Athens, their plane is hijacked to Vulgaria, behind the Iron Curtain. While waiting for the plane to be cleared to take off again, Marion insists they go outside and take a few pictures. Unfortunately they are in a restricted area so the secret police suspect them of being spies. Inspector Krojak sends a squad of soldiers with machine guns to arrest them, and the Hollanders flee to the car of the American ambassador which is parked nearby.
The Hollanders take refuge in the U.S. Embassy nearby. The ambassador is away, leaving only his inept son Axel Magee to grant the Hollanders political asylum. Picketers protest outside the embassy as everyone tries to figure a way out. Walter and Marion even don a sultan's robes and attempt to sneak out with his party, but complicating matters further is that Susan has fallen in love with Axel.
Cast
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Turner Classic Movies showing
Turner Classic Movies presented this adaptation of Woody Allen's Don't Drink the Water as part of its November 2–3, 2015 political satire film series "Geofiction Comedies", with commentary by host Ben Mankiewicz. Shown earlier were two other color films, 1959's The Mouse That Roared and 1961's Romanoff and Juliet as well as two black-and-white features from an earlier era, 1933's Duck Soup and 1940's The Great Dictator.
References
External links
- Don't Drink the Water at the Internet Movie Database
- Don't Drink the Water at the TCM Movie Database
- Don't Drink the Water at the American Film Institute Catalog
- Don't Drink the Water at Jackie Gleason info