The Longshot (1986) User Reviews

I really liked this movie, deserves more stars

[dzy88p · 6/10 · 23 October 2002]

Imagine a rap song by Ice-T... and Tim Conway! That's how it starts. There are a lot of funny moments throughout the movie. The scene where Tim is in Stella Steven's room is hilarious.

I watched this movie especially to see the cameo by Ernie Anderson. I was disappointed that he didn't get a close-up, I recognized him by his voice.

Most movie guides give this movie one star. Highly underrated. I'd give it two and a half.

If you like Tim Conway, watch this one.

Cute for Conway fans

[jrs-8 · 6/10 · 20 July 2001]

"The Longshot" is the story of four losers who get what they think is the break of a lifetime. A tip on a horse that can't lose. So they scrape every penny they can together to make a bet on the title's longshot.

That's about all there is to this film. It is said that Conway wrote the script in 24 hours. It shows. It plays more like a group of skits from "The Carol Burnett Show" then a movie with such a thin plot line. But for fans of Tim Conway (especially) it has its amusing moments. Stella Stevens offers a little support in a throw away role but looks sexy enough to be memorable. If you have time to waste and need a few chuckles then you could do worse.

The Boat Race

[boblipton · 5/10 · 8 June 2021]

Tim Conway, Harvey Korman, Jack Weston, and Ted Wass are buddies with a gambling habit and no money, four race track losers who get a chance at a long shot.... but they have to come up with serious money to get in on it, and that means borrowing from loan sharks.

It's a low-key, depressed comedy that uses their broken-down lives as the setting for gags. The movie is populated with comedy pros, including Anne Meara and Edie McClurg as two of their wives, Jonathan Winters as a random passerby, and Stella Stevens as an aborted liaison with Conway. Given the particular and peculiar comedy chops of the people involved, it very much comes down to one's taste.

Sporadically funny.

[formula44xxx · 8 September 1999]

Awesome comic cast is pretty much wasted in this only sometimes funny story of a bunch of losers trying to make it big on the horse racing circuit. Best is Jonathan Winters. If you're a fan of any of the cast members (Winters, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, etc.) you may like this, others beware!

this looks like a niche market

[lee_eisenberg · 5/10 · 5 April 2024]

I've never been into horse races, so "The Longshot" shouldn't be the sort of movie that appeals to me. I took an interest because it's directed by Paul Bartel (of "Eating Raoul" fame) and because the cast includes Harvey Korman, Tim Conway and Stella Stevens.

It's a mixed bag. There are some slapstick scenes (namely the toilet) and some sexy ones (Stella Stevens was always a babe), but it's not exactly laugh-out-loud funny. Maybe it wasn't trying to be. Either way, this is one movie that won't appeal to everyone. Definitely more sedate than I prefer.

The rest of the cast includes Anne Meara, Edie McClurg, Eddie Deezen and Jonathan Winters.

Actually quite funny!

[jc1305us · 7/10 · 6 August 2012]

Watched this recently for the first time in many years on Netflix, as I thought it might be the same movie I enjoyed when I was a kid, and it was! 'The Longshot' is a fun, breezy way to pass a rainy afternoon with a few chuckles, and I must say some good laughs.

The plot concerns four buddies who love betting horses at their local track. With not much else going on in their lives (They are presented as lovable losers), they fall into a scheme to bet a fixed horse race with money borrowed from the mob! Tim Conway (Who wrote the script) Harvey Korman, Jack Weston, and Ted Wass are the four buddies who take part in the action. We get a glimpse into each characters home life, where they are browbeaten husbands, content to play cards in Conway's garage, or, in a great scene, happy to grill steaks in the back of Ted Wass' possessed station wagon. It really is a funny movie with some good comic performances from all the actors. I won't give away the ending, but suffice to say it'll leave a smile on your face as the credits roll.

Two bonuses, Eddie Deezen (Of 'Grease' fame plays a funny bellhop in a cameo, and Jonathan Winters brings the laughs as an old tow truck driver. Give the 'Longshot' a chance, you'll be happy you did!

A mostly fun watch

[pmtelefon · 7/10 · 1 October 2022]

Writer/star Tim Conway and company deliver the goods (for the most part anyway) with "The Longshot". It's laughs/clunker ratio is pretty good. The cast is very likeable. A couple of the scenes go on a bit too long but that's not a deal breaker. "The Longshot" is not a classic comedy but it is a pretty satisfying watch. (That's all I have to say about this movie but IMDB is now making use a minimum of 600 characters so I have to ramble on. It's a rainy Saturday movie here on Long Island, NY. I think the sun is going to come out later this afternoon. I hope you're enjoying your Saturday. Okay, I think that's about it...)

Hilarious comedy that deserves to be appreciated more

[Marta · 10/10 · 31 August 2002]

The prior comments for "The Longshot" are not true. It's not a series of skits strung together. It's a full-fledged comedy film that deserves to be appreciated more than it is. These skilled character actors and actresses bring the plot to life, and it's a plot filled with the pathetic losers who live just on the fringes of prosperity and can never seem to get ahead. To these guys, $100 is big, big money. It's a film about losers and how they never stop trying to become winners, and that's the key to it's appeal.

The film focuses on the characters played by Tim Conway, Harvey Korman, Jack Weston and Ted Wass, and boy, are these guys ever grade A losers. They've spent their lives at the local horse track, trying to get that big win, but they never do. They decide to take the advice of a trackhand who says he can make a horse win and bet enough to make a bundle. Because none of them have a dime they try to borrow the money from the track rich lady who has a stable of winning racehorses, and they decide Conway's character should seduce the money out of her because they can tell she's hot for him. This turns out to be the disaster you'd expect, so they are reduced to going to the local syndicate boss to borrow the money. When they find out the trackhand is not on the up and up and they've already place the bet with the borrowed mob money, they panic.

All of these people are amazing; they are losers extraordinare, losers for the ages - the epitome of loserness. Ted Wass, in particular, is so good it's uncanny. He is a man who is so devoid of intellect he can't even figure out what 1/4 of $20 is, but he's such a sweet, sincere, loyal friend that he promises to stand in the way of the gangsters when they come for the rest of his friends. He lives in a 6 foot wide mini-trailer with his fish; he sets up a picture of himself by the fishbowl when he leaves, so the fish isn't lonely. Everything he owns is 11 years old, including the fish. Anne Meara is a trip as Conway's wife, who knows he can't do anything right yet sticks with him with no idea that he will ever get his or her head above water. Joseph Ruskin ably handles the mob boss role and George DiCenzo is great as the mob boss' righthand man. Conway is the shoe salesman who is the nominal leader of the group; his car is a heap, and the driver's side window is broken so he uses cardboard. He doesn't have any more brains than the rest, but he has more confidence and he never stops talking. In this group, that makes him a leader.

In short, this is a quiet comedy film that doesn't go for the belly laughs but gets them anyway. I've seen it a hundred times and it never gets old. Beware, though, of the cut cable version that has been running, and make sure you watch the version put out on VHS or DVD. These different versions may account for the bad reviews, because the version I've seen on A&E is not the theatrical release but a butchered, watered down cut that is very different.

Not a Bad Movie. Not Great, but Not Bad

[geatornez82-202-283937 · 7/10 · 1 August 2020]

First of all, DO NOT believe the synopsis on this site. It's described her as this: "Four losers borrow money from gangsters to bet on a "sure thing", but lose. The gangsters go after them to get their money." This is completely wrong. The only true statement about it is that four losers borrow money from gangsters to bet on a "sure thing." Not once in this movie do the gangsters go after them to get their money.

This isn't the world's best movie ever, but it's not that bad, either. This movie features four "Lovable Losers" who are trying to win it big at the racetrack. They get an inside tip from someone who works at the track, and try to come up with the money to make a big bet so they can finally win big. When they can't come up with the money by themselves, they have to resort to going to the mob to borrow enough money (telling the mob they're planning on opening a hot dog stand). Then they find out that the "sure thing" is just a scam, and three of them have to stop their buddy from placing the bet before it's too late.

Some of the highlights of this movie include the opening credits, with Tim Conway rapping with Ice-T; Stella Stevens' character talking to Tim Conway's character about how he reminds her of an ex named Lyle Dorf (could be a shout out to Tim Conway's Dorf character), and Tim Conway trying to fix a malfunctioning bathtub. The ending credits song, "The Longshot," performed by Irene Cara is pretty catchy, too.

Lame comedy

[Wizard-8 · 14 January 2014]

It appears that the major Hollywood studio that backed this so-called comedy didn't give it much of a promotional or distribution push. Watching the movie, it doesn't take long to figure out why the studio heads got nervous. "The Longshot" is an unbelievably lame comedy. Most of the fault has to go to Tim Conway, who wrote the not ready to be filmed screenplay. There is barely a story here, and the movie frequently comes to a complete stop for minutes on end to try and deliver humor. That wouldn't be bad if the humor was actually funny, but for the most part it isn't. In fact, I only laughed once, at a sight gag involving Tim Conway dressed only in his underclothes. Conway and the rest of the cast have shown talent elsewhere, but they simply can't do anything with this screenplay and the dull direction by Paul Bartel. However, if you've ever wanted to hear Tim Conway do an old school style rap number with Ice-T, this movie will give you your chance.

silly, corny fun from the mind of tim conway

[ksf-2 · 6/10 · 10 July 2023]

Harvey korman and tim conway. They were so funny on carol burnett. But this was eight years after that. In a film written by conway himself! Has funny man jack weston. Anne meara is the nagging wife. Even frank bonner, a couple years after "wkrp". Jonathan winters. Even edie mcclurg (ferris beuhler). The gang spends all their time betting. On everything. So when they find a sure thing, they borrow the cash from a gangsta. But if they can't pay it back, they will lose their knee caps. Or thumbs. Or something. It's silly fun! It's a good one. Produced by the talented mike nichols. Directed by paul bartel, best known for "eating raoul". Also did "lust in the dust" and cannonball! Check it out... some pretty funny jokes here and there. On free tubi streaming.

Good film for the 1980's

[enojones · 8/10 · 18 March 2012]

Prior reviews which stated the film as a series of skits strung together indicates a lack of appreciation for comedic films in the genre of farce. Without generating a spoiler, reference the film summary for the plot line. The cascade of thoughtful plots builds into the 'chase' by the mobsters who are owed. Genius.

Considering that this film did not follow the typical formula for the mid-1980's by casting the "brat packers" or saturating the musical score with music from the "chill generation," it has a stunning brilliance. It has enough toilet humor to fascinate the "American Pie"-crowd. And, the hapless characters are surely inspiration for such shows as 2.5 Men & Big Bang.

It's a classic comedy.

hilarious hack comedy

[zimbo_the_donkey_boy · 8/10 · 22 January 2012]

Tim Conway (writer) really knew how to put together a fine comedic project. These characters' logic reminded me of that of my gambling friends but the main point is that I was laughing throughout this thing (while watching it on TV, with lots of naughty words cut out). Yeah, Conway, Jack Weston, & Harvey Keitel really knew their stuff. They made each line work. As much as I enjoy Anne Meara, I also appreciate Stella Stevens bringing a different element to this flick. Sure, this was rather formulaic -- I wish there were MORE 26-year-old formula comedies for me to watch over lunch to get me started on my weekend. What did a running toilet have to do with gambling? So what? Conway made it so that I'll never look at a toilet the same again.