Groove Tube (Aniv) Reviews

• Remember when Chevy Chase Was Funny

  
  By A2YRDIRL316QJL on 2000-06-19
  Well, neither do I, but that's a difficult stretch. The Groove Tube can help. It has some amazing skits, the best of which are Safety Sam's public health announcement, Koko the Clown's special kiddie time and Brown 25. This movie was really a groundbreaker and is still very funny almost 30 years later. Give yourself a treat, but not if you're easily offended.
  
  

• Histarically twisted

  
  By on 1999-11-08
  This movie is wrong in every aspected of the word. This Shapiro masterpiece summarizes the 70's in a nut shell. From Beggining to end it is parody genius at its best. "Move on up" by Curtis Mayfield is a perfect song for this movie. From the first scetch about the hitchhiker, the Koko show, the Dealers, Kramp TV kitchen, "Safty Sam" vanareal disease awareness (the men might want to leave the room during this scene), and the evening news. Not to mention the commercial parodies and plain 70's commentary. This movie is one to be enjoy in every household and enjoyed many times over and over again. Ever time i have seen this movie it keeps getting better and better revealing its underling humor. This guy Ken Shapiro is probably in a cave or jail or his own private island, maybe a combination of each. This is comedy at its best.
  
  

• watch "Kentucky Fried Movie" instead

  
  By ANAYSRE3LX8GZ on 2005-02-19
  I love these whacky kind of comedys, and when I heard about this one I tried to track it down for about 2 years. Finally after it's release here for under $5 aus. I was highly disapointed by waiting in anticipation for what I was sure was going to be histerical 'cause of what other reviewers wrote about it..
  
  It was a complete bore for about 30 minutes. I didnt think what they where doing was funny at all. The only funny bits where a couple of the sketches Chevy Chase was in and an amusing puppet. But the 4 or 5 laughs I had during this movie didnt save it.
  
  I'd recomend you watch Kentucky Fried Movie instead of this snore fest. Even it's attempt a stoner humour failed. Beleive me, i love these kind of movies, but this is by far one of the biggest piles of $#!% I have ever seen that so many have said is a classic. It doesnt compete with goof satire movies like...
  - Kentucky Fried Movie
  - Airplane / Flying High 1 & 2
  - Naked Gun 1, 2 & 3
  - Repossessed
  - Silence Of The Hams
  - Spaceballs
  - HotShots 1 & 2
  - Loaded Weopen
  - Scary Movie
  - History Of The World
  - Young Frankinstein
  - Anything by Monty Python
  
  check out one of those instead.
  
  

• When The Groove Tube hits, it is a riot.

  
  By A2DKBHVAFDLIAG on 1999-11-30
  I first saw this movie about five years ago with a friend who had just had surgery. She nearly busted her stitches out. You will not laugh harder than when this movie hits its target. There are some sketches that miss their target, but overall, it is really funny, and best of all there are several different levels of humor, if you like slapstick, there is plenty here. If you are more intellectual, and like irony, this movie has that, too. I just bought it and it is even better now that I am a little older and get some of the references. Check out "Brown 25," "The Dealers," and "Koko the Clown." These three, especially should have you near tears.
  
  

• The Groove Tube is not Saturday Night Live but...

  
  By on 2003-07-19
  Gross, outdated, crude, disgusting, a little drawn out in spots, and one of the funniest films ever! Mostly carried by Ken Shapiro & Richard Belzer, the film blasts away typical TV programming in rapid funny fashion. From the hilarious 2001 opening spoof to the Koko the clown sketch, the dealers (which hangs on too long after the great movie theatre scene), the News, the olympics, and safety sam, it's pure fun. One other recurring performer is Chevy Chase in the Geritan commercial, one of the highpoints of the film, as well as the fingers, and a quirky rendition of Four Leaf Clover. It's no Academy Award winner, and it isn't as clever or classy as SNL, but it's good for gross-out humor lovers. It's a classic that has been followed by, or in some cases imitated by Tunnelvision, Kentucky Fried Movie and Amazon Women On The Moon. Check it out!
  
  
• one of the most funny bunch of skits ever put on film!!!!
  By A12VDGLGS190B7 on 2005-04-12
  Oh...........where do I begin. Just one of the most nasty,raunchy funny as hell movies. Between the Talking,"package" warning you about VD and other diseases you could contract...as if he had some experence with the subject! And lets not forget Koko the clown,...that caught me of guard...jees...a clown reading the most raunchy part of a romance novel, and the sex olempics,... MY GOD! Great movie if you love SNL type skits,NUDE WOMEN,twisted humor and as a bonus you get to see some of your favorite stars (Richard Belzer, Chevy Chase) before they were household names. Highly recomended!*****
  
  
• Boring and amateurish - you can have my VHS for free
  By A2EO02TQOE7M5F on 2005-09-18
  I'm a great fan of all kinds of comedy, but this is incredibly amateurish and boring. Unfunny sketches that go on and on, completely unfunny. If you pay the postage, you can have my VHS copy for no extra charge. Otherwise I'll just throw it away. Awful.
  
  
• Hysterical!!!!!
  By on 1999-10-01
  View sober at your own risk!!! The skits involved are hilarious. Everyone who's ever seen it is in tears by the end of the "Kraft" baking scene. Get together a group of friends and watch this video!!! It's for a group ready to laugh.
  
  
• "What the hell is that puppet thing?...Oh, sweet Jesus!"
  By AR1OT2Q3V9BK2 on 2001-03-21
  THE GROOVE TUBE has been on my wish list of movies to own since I first saw it as a child. I guess I was around 12 at the time of my first viewing and the grainy quality of the video transfer gave the flick a kid of "forbiden fruit" quality. Upon finding it again all these years later I was surprised how well the thing holds up. Some of the stuff is pretty dated-that "Dealers" routine goes on for waaaaaay too long (although I must admit the punchline is just weird enough to make it worthwhile). Shapiro ends up with a highly influencial and successful film at the end of the day. Many of the skits are laugh out loud funny and give the audience enough credit to catch a D.H. Lawrence joke. There is a good bit of talent and creativity that went into this. Plus it was the first and one of the best of those "short attention span comedies" made so popular by the Zucker Bros... And this sucker is going to have a longer shelf life than that stinker. Mark my words your kids ain't gonna find that referential piece o' poop too funny in the coming years! But this one might just stick around. Don't expect it to turn up on Turner Classic Movies anytime soon. There are too many bush shots.
  
  
• If you have a shanker on your privates...
  By on 2002-07-10
  Anyone who doesn't get the humor in this classic needs to get a life. Bad taste? No kidding! One of the funniest movies of all time. Complaints about the lack of dvd extras are pointless since the movie's budget was so small, we all are lucky to have the movie itself to enjoy. Is there any film out there that takes you back to the carefree days of hippiedom better than this one? Okay, I'm really nostalgic since I saw it at the age of 13 (along with Flesh Gordon), and was infatuated with the girl in the VeeDub for about 2 years. Also, I think I may be related to Koko the clown... Seriously, I somehow got the email of Lane Sahronson (the assassin, the cop and the movie's co-writer) and he was told me what a blast it was to make the film and that he wasn't in touch with Ken Shapiro any longer (too bad- I would love a sequel). Think I'll get my copy out tonight, crack open a Butz beer and 'move on up.' Groovy!
  
  
• As Unfunny as the TV it mocks
  By A1WTR8ADFQLFJ9 on 2004-01-15
  First of all, in response to an earlier review, I grew up in the 70s so I get it and it is crap. I liked LOOSE SHOES, KENTUCKY FRIED MOVIE and AMAZON WOMEN ON THE MOON, but this film, from the man who brought us MODERN PROBLEMS and then faded from humanity's recorded history, is utterly lame. I guess P.T. Barnum was right about a sucker being born every minute and they are posting the positive reviews here. I challenge anyone to tell me what is funny about Chevy Chase singing while someone plays air drums on his head. The hitchhiker scene sets the tone for this junk - naked flesh and toilet humor aplenty. I have got nothing against toilet humor.....when it's funny. The clown sequence was mildly amusing for a fleeting moment and that is about it. The Dealers segment makes you appreciate Cheech & Chong all the more because, even stoned, this skit is a bummer, man. I could go on, but there is really no point.
  
  
• Amazingly hot -scrumptitiy scrump!!!Delicious!!!
  By on 1999-10-01
  This is one of my all time favorite movies,I first watched this movie in 1984?it was on a movie channel and I was compleatly fascinated with it!!!From the first naked boy skit to the rest of the classics,My eyes completely bullged at how muny and exciting and interesting this was!!!This movie greatly inspired me with my own local t.v. comedy sketch show I did on a local station,back in 1993!!!
  
  
• Get comfortable with an adult beverage....
  By A1Y7JKCYPRXPNW on 2000-08-06
  ....and enjoy this classic spoof flick. I remember this flick as the first movie I ever sneaked into as a kid. Some of the skits are simply solid gold classics... others may leave you offering up only a pity chuckle. That is a good thing tho because you will need those lulls to get control of your laughing from the truely hilarious stuff this movie has to offer.

  Definately watch this one when the kids are out.
  
  

• Not Clever, but sick and perfect!
  By A3M4HHJFX524MS on 2002-01-30
  I first ran across this when I was 16, my mother mentioned seeing this in the theaters. I nearly died laughing the first time I saw this...insanity? It is a bit dated, and is clever parody of pop culture of a period most dear to baby boomers, but there are some timeless moments. Safety Sam is best when watching other people's reactions. The Curtis Mayfield song at the beginning was sublime. I love suggesting this film to friends who want to see something different...or obscene. It is on of my favorite X-rated films.
  
  
• Okay, it's dated but........
  By A3F6PT1514GODB on 2003-01-07
  Ken Shapiro's movie is comedic genius.

  If you're old enough to remember Ed Herlihy's voiceovers for the Kraft Kitchen bits on Perry Como, the Kramp Kitchen hits home. The rock steady voiceover, the ridiculous recipe and Shapiro's frenetic hands are so funny that I have to turn away to catch my breath.

  Granted that this isn't a slick comedy by today's standards but it is very original and hilarious to the right viewer.
  By the way, for the Kentucky Fried Movie fans, it probably isn't an accident that KFM came out three years after Groove Tube.

  Note to Mr. Shapiro - wherever you are, Thanks for the Laughs!
  
  

• THEATRICAL MASTERPIECE
  By on 2003-10-16
  chevy chase delivers an oscar worthy performance. richard belzer establishes himself as a first class actor with this absolutely smashing performance. with the combination of exceptional screenplay and spell binding special effects, the groove tube speaks in volumes. if siskel and ebert were still together, they would give this movie a 12 out of 10, and 3 thumbs up!!!!!!! THE ACID INHIBITING APES AT THE MOVIES FIRST SCENE, SET THE TONE FOR AN EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER RIDE THAT IS TODAY BECOME A TIMELESS CLASSIC IN THE THEATRICAL WORLD. TASTY SAM, I LIKE TO CALL THEM MY LITTLE GUYS IN DISGUISE, WERE JUST EARTH SHATTERING. THIS MOVIE IS NUMBER 1.
  
  
• a dated classic
  By A22R5457ZGHIYR on 2004-05-07
  How can any one who saw this film as a kid ever forget it? Many of the scatalogical blackout sketches are no longer as provocative as their original release, but who cares? The film is hysterical. Sure there are low points, the all too long the dealers, the evening news (although of course Brown 25 is classic), but the high points are extaordinary; The Kramp kitchen, Safety sam, Chevy Chases' brilliant 4 leaf clover, the extremely subtle and amazingly funny, Koko the clown show. Best of all though is writer, director, producer Ken Shapiro's manic pas de deux down a busy Manhattan street, while he sings Nat King Cole's Just You Just Me. It is forever etched in my mind. All that and Curtis Mayfield as a bonus. Definitely dated, still, The Groove Tube remains an unrelenting jolt of joy in an era that is certainly in need of it.
  
  
• Not gut-busting,
  By AAECAHBNP1VD2 on 2005-02-01
  but not totally junk, by any means. When GT was released, the humor was kind of funny-crude and a few sketches were a little eye-opening. But that was then. Today, a decent amount remains funny, other things you wonder why you ever found funny, and still others weren't even funny when the film came out (the dealers, for example, which you can FF right through without missing a beat). Boittom line: yes, it's worth watching, but don't expect YOung Frankenstein, y'know? Like any comedy sketch film, it's uneven.
  
  
• Funny movie, terrible DVD transfer
  By A17RFKCYS69M3Y on 2006-05-12
  A lot of the skits are dated but the non-dated stuff is hilarious. Unless you are a baby boomer you won't get the dated jokes, unless you know about Pop culture of the early 70's. The DVD video quality is awful though, they could have did a better transfer. The video is dull and grainy. Its also a Pan & Scan 4:3 ratio! What happened to the widescreen??
  
  
• Material Good, DVD adds nothing
  By A3TRC145BHORWU on 2000-07-19
  While the comedy is still sophomoric at times, this sketch-filled movie hits its mark more than it misses. I still laugh at some of the material 25+ years after I first saw it. Other stuff that was fresh then has been ripped off and redone so many times it seems stale now.

  The biggest dissapointment was with the DVD itself. No book, no added features. Just the movie. The quality was not really enhanced either. Stick with the VHS unless you have to be able to skip from scene to scene right away.
  
  

• Clever, very funny and a bit raunchy!!
  By on 1998-11-20
  "Groove Tube" is a series of sketches, some really belly-laugh funny, all clever, some in questionable taste. Ken Shapiro steals the show and Chevy Chase does a couple of sketches that he later copied in Saturday Night Live. It also reminds me of the TV show "Laugh-In" that came later.
  
  
• I've almost memorized it word for word
  By A31WNUWFR6U2LG on 1999-06-14
  Kramped Kitchen makes me laugh so hard that I start crying and can't breath. Since my buddy aquired this movie 15 years ago, I've probably watched it 20 times.
  
  
• Simply one of the funniest films ever made but not for all.
  By A3LS0P46BQY2SU on 1999-08-27
  I completely disagree with most of the reviews I saw. It is not hit and miss comedy with throwaway skits. It's brillant comedy with great social com mentary. It refected the times and is still fresh to this day. FORGET AUSTIN POWERS.No it's not a Zucker brothers films. Shaprio is much much more talented and original than them and most of the "comedy" writers/directors working today.
  
  
• KOKO THE CLOWN
  By on 1999-08-30
  This is a film that predates 'Kentucky Fried Movie' and may in fact be one of it's inspirations. If there was only one reason for me to recommend this film (aside from it's general raunch) it would have to be the genius of the KOKO the Clown sketch!!! The guy deserves an Academy Award for 'Funniest Five Minute Portrayal'!!!! Hands down the best part of the film and something to make you think about when you watch the likes of 'Barney' or god forbid the 'Teletubbies'!!!! The rest includes Chevy Chase ...etc...blah...blah... oh, and a singing puppet of a body part that even I could not belive I was seeing!!!!! Kooky stuff!!! We need more like it!!!!
  
  
• If you only buy one movie in your life let it be this one
  By A1P6R0KZ5NTC6N on 2000-08-03
  This movie is revolutionary in the arts of comedic film. Ken Shapiro is "ingenius boss your are a genius"~Rodreguez (Richard Beltzer). This film has everything A perverted clown, the grandest material known to man Brown 25, the festive recipe only found in the Kramp Kitchen, and yes the porno (well as much as he could show us). Every second of this film is magnificant you will watch it hundreds of times and still find new humor every viewing. It is a true cult classic but anyone who watches it will find it hilarious. It is well worth the price, the funniest thing you can watch without being high, The Groove Tube.
  
  
• Saw the original movie!
  By A7TILEOPEH4YK on 2001-11-07
  We sat in wonder, back in the 70's, not sure at all what this movie was going to be about, but nearly split our sides when the ad for VD came on. Everyone in the audience was completely silent trying to figure out just what that thing was??? Then all of a sudden this guy lets out the biggest laugh I've ever heard and it was as if everyone else realized what IT was at the same time...you never heard so much sheer, honest laughter...even if some of the guys were a bit embarrassed, the women sure enjoyed seeing the men being "used" for a change. Yes, it did "drag" in some places and some of it could have been left out, but that one skit made our viewing all worth while.
  
  
• Cheap, Uncreative Excrement
  By A8RXFK5XUD5P0 on 2004-12-03
  If Amazon.com let me, I would have rated this dvd NEGATIVE 5 stars. Some actors really do some movies that stink, but this is one of the very, very, very few movies Chevy Chase acted in that smell like it had been floating in a sewer for centuries. The true indication that comedy is uncreative is when they resort to nudity as a crutch. One scene was really obscene. The scene was a children's clown asking every non-kid to leave the room before he read sexually explicit passages from romance novels. If you are thinking of buying this, do this. Cash your paycheck. Pay your bills and with what is left, flush it directly down the toliet so you can cut out the middle man.
  
  
• Feed Your Head
  By A2AAHVC9E2Y7JL on 2007-02-25
  I'll probably revise this later because it's been many years since I saw this. But back in the 70's this was a late night and drive in favorite. Like I said I haven't seen it for many years and I'm guessing that it's probably not as funny as it used to be afer a few tokes, but I think it'll still be worth a watch because this was the beginning of the kind of humor we found later in SNL. Much of the humor is subtle and can easily go over your head if you're not aware of what's going on, but if you are then there's a lot of fun here. In fact I still remember having to take a second look at the end VD talk to realize what that puppet actually was...It was the absurdity that made it so funny....
  
  
• A little dated but still has its moments
  By AHX5FWNGWG5RC on 2007-04-04
  I first saw this movie when I was in college in the mid 1970s. It was pretty radical for its time as it predated the original Saturday Night Live. It is made up of a number of individual bits, most of which were topical at the time. There are references to 2001 A Space Odyssey, the Watergate hearings, Vietnam, counterculture drug dealers, etc. and features the first screen appearances of Chevy Chase and Richard Belzer.
  If you are nostalgic for those times and willing to suffer some misses along with the real laughs, this movie is for you.
  
  
• I guess, you had to be there...
  By A21XREPFNR2154 on 2008-04-16
  Is this a GREAT movie? Um , Citizen Kane it is NOT. Is the humor PC? Ah, no... Well then, is it a funny movie anyway? Well, frankly...that depends on when you were born and where you were when it came out. Much like Kentucky Fried Movie this takes a jab at several topics "of it's day." If you happened to be around in 1970's USA, then you either saw this movie at the theater or wished you had... (And 1970's USA cannot be stressed enough.)
  
  Like KFM, some of the jokes have lost their edge... Not because they're not funny, but because they are time/era specific. If you remember the TV and movies of the early to mid 70's it's a funny movie. If you have no experience with those...well, it may well prove a little flat. Hmmm, perhaps a lot flat. Yeah, it's dated in many parts but then maybe that's a product of overzealous PC run rampent as much as it is somewhat dated sophomoric humor...
  
  Bottom (snicker) line: If you were at least 11-12 (minimum) when it came out (and had cool parents!) then go ahead and buy it...along with Kentucky Fried Movie, invite a bunch of your "old" friends over and have a blast. OTOH, if the 70's happened WAAAAY before your time...find somebody "older" that owns it AND can explain some of the jokes. ;-) (That goes for both this and KFM.)
  
  All in all it's a funny movie that doesn't pretend to be anything more than a bunch of stupid skits. If you can live with that...and it's somewhat dated humor, then go for it.
  
  FWIW. I think Kentucky Fried Movie is a bit better, but what the heck...owning both is well worth it.
  
  

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