The list of classic Bill Murray comedies sometimes feels endless and is even a bit daunting to wrap your brain around. From Groundhog Day to Stripes to Caddyshack to Ghostbusters, the brilliant jester has a resumé of hits longer than your arm. During the same era as all of these memorable sidesplitting offerings, another well-written comedy that Murray co-directed somehow got lost in the shuffle. In 1990, alongside Howard Franklin, Murray was behind the camera directing himself, Geena Davis, Randy Quaid, and the legendary Jason Robards in Quick Change. It's not completely clear how this laugh-out-loud film slipped through the cracks, but with a score of 84% on Rotten Tomatoes, it is one of his most highly regarded and complete films in a career that includes over 50 movies. Let us make the case why it is worth a couple of hours out of your busy schedule to enjoy on a Saturday night with a bucket of popcorn in your lap.
What Is 'Quick Change' About?
Murray plays Grimm, a New York City civic planner who has grown weary of the topsy-turvy and unpredictable nature of the Big Apple. He decides to disguise himself as a clown (the "drying on the inside kind") and rob a busy Manhattan bank, hoping to pocket enough cash to move himself, his girlfriend, Phyllis Potter (Davis), and childhood friend Loomis (Quaid) to a picturesque island in the South Pacific. Everything goes according to plan, and the three make it out of the bank disguised as hostages, while the police believe that the suicidal clown is still in the bank, willing to kill hostages.
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Grimm even planned on dealing with the salty, veteran police Chief Walt Rotzinger (Robards), who is not as gullible as Grimm may have assumed and is hot on the trio's trail. Having escaped the scene of the crime, Grimm makes a phone call to Rotzinger and makes more outrageous demands. Still, a slip-up by the ungainly Loomis during the call gives the savvy, hard-driven cop all the information he needs to figure out that they are no longer in the bank and on the lam. Getting out of New York proves to be exponentially more complicated than the heist and will test the nerves of all three.
The Commitment to the Second Half of 'Quick Change' Makes It a Unique Comedy
Image via Warner Bros.
Unfortunately, the late '80s into the early '90s is known as an era that took simple comedy plot devices and tried to make an entire movie out of them, even if the material was stretched too thin. However, Quick Change deserves credit for taking the wacky idea of a clown robbing a bank and segueing into a second half that is even better and funnier than the first. The chemistry between Murray, Davis, and Quaid is phenomenal. It is buttressed by marvelous supporting turns from a young Tony Shalhoub, the versatile Stanley Tucci, and SNL legend Phil Hartman to round out the chaotic and often quixotic attempt to get on a plane out of town and off to Fiji.
Two of the movie's most hilarious sequences happen as they try to get to JFK airport when GPS is unavailable and maps are hard to come by. As a viewer, you are definitely going to want to pay attention to a bicycle jousting scene that is played up as a dramatic and harrowing battle for pride in a low-income neighborhood. Loomis is correct when he scrambles to drive away and says, "It's bad luck just seeing something like that!" A pre-Monk Shalhoub is mesmerizing as a foreign cab driver who doesn't speak English and ends up getting the threesome in an even worse predicament just by getting in his taxi. By the time they get to the airport, the trio isn't even sure if they want to be together anymore after the hell they've been through. Give Quick Change a quick watch, especially if you're a fan of the incomparable Bill Murray.
Quick Change is available to stream on Prime in the U.S
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Quick Change
Release Date July 13, 1990
Runtime 89 Minutes
Main Genre Comedy
English (US) ·