Scavenger Hunt Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.0

Scavenger Hunt Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf January 25, 2017

Released during the 1963 holiday season, “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World” broke several comedy rules, making it a filmgoing event. Besides achieving an absurd length, the feature collected a wealth of funny people to participate in a madcap adventure, making it a must-see during its theatrical release, triggering the envy of producers around town. Knock-offs weren’t immediate, but they eventually arrived, including 1979’s “Scavenger Hunt,” which is a rather bold photocopy of “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World,” only without the sterling cast and widescreen expanse. While it retains a lack of editorial control, “Scavenger Hunt” attempts the same manic energy, boosted here with pronounced “Looney Tunes” inspiration, finding director Michael Schultz more of a manager than a director, trying to juggle groups of actors who are here to play, delivering extremely broad performances in a movie that welcomes any and all forms of goofballery. It’s a silly endeavor, but it’s also exhausting to watch, with its inherent harmlessness evolving into a threat as the one-dimensional picture is stretched over nearly two hours of screen time.

A game inventor hording a large fortune, Milton Parker (Vincent Price) has died, leaving his heirs to wonder how such a massive amount of cash is going to be divided. Gathering for the reading of the will, the group learns that his wealth will be awarded to the winner of an elaborate scavenger hunt, with lawyer Charles (Robert Morley) in charge of a special point system where players are rewarded for picking up specific items on an approved list. Inspired by greed, family and employees tear off into town, furiously attempting to collect as many necessary items as possible, eventually competing with one another for control of the lead position. Lawyer Stuart (Richard Benjamin) and client Mildred (Cloris Leachman), joined by her brat of a son, Georgie (Richard Masur), struggle with heights and weight as they speed off on their mission. Henry (Tony Randall) juggles the needs of his four children during his travels. Employees Jackson (Clevon Little), Henri (James Coco), and Jenkins (Roddy McDowell) join forces to master item collection. Taxi driver Dummittz (Richard Mulligan) fumbles attempts at scavenger scouting. And Milton’s nephews, Kenny (Dirk Benedict) and Jeff (Willie Aames), joined by Lisa (Maureen Teefy), take off in a van, starting small during their race for points.

To put “Scavenger Hunt” into perspective, the picture was Schultz’s follow-up to 1978’s “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” a box office bust that, in many ways, played like a practice round for the helmer, with characters darting off into different directions, embarking on a grand chase with strange encounters. The disaster also identified Schultz’s questionable taste in humor and casting, trying to turn Peter Frampton into a matinee idol and Aerosmith into supervillains. “Scavenger Hunt” isn’t nearly as a bizarre as “Sgt. Pepper,” but it retains the same wily energy, this time focused on an even bigger cast treated with more permissiveness, tapping into a special screen vibe that welcomes the return of old-fashioned slapstick. It’s a romp, no doubt, and one that leaps into action, spending very little time on introductions before Parker’s will is revealed and the game commences.

“Scavenger Hunt” tracks the progress of the game, following clumps of family and friends into the wilds of San Diego to collect unusual items for points. It’s theft on a grand scale (I suppose learning about ruined lives due to property damage isn’t conducive to comedy), but to Schultz, it’s entertainment, following the teams as they hustle around the city, checking off items on the list. Laughs are surprisingly rare in the movie, but the cast keeps trying to create a fury of flailing limbs and inflated reactions. Mulligan is perhaps the worst offender as Dummitz, a brain-dead cabbie who labors to collect a Rolls Royce grill by sacrificing his body in multiple car accidents. The actor’s extended homage to Stan Laurel is noted, and carries on for way too long. Parker’s servants are initially interested in retrieving a toilet bowl from a posh hotel, but there’s no joke here besides wet performers, leaving the extended scene a complete bust, lacking even a rudimentary punchline. Randall is more precise in his tomfoolery, becoming a highlight in “Scavenger Hunt” as a determined dad consistently in way over his head when attempting to find listed objects, including a bee hive. In a relatively modern touch, Jeff and Kenny take a moment to visit a Jack in the Box drive-thru, stealing a clown head as they order excessive food. Other dull quests include tempting obese people into their van and San Diego Zoo infiltration, with live ostriches claimed by the competitors.

Scavenger Hunt Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.86:1 aspect ratio) presentation graduates "Scavenger Hunt" to Blu-ray after the picture's long life on VHS. Its HD upgrade is adequate, providing varying levels of detail for this style of entertainment, which is dependent on frame information, allowing fans to scan around scavenger hunt collections and inspect rubbery comedic reactions. Softness remains, but sharpness is periodically encountered, with agreeable distances and textured close-ups. Colors are acceptable, emphasized though period costuming, which favors blues and reds. Primaries are secure, and greenery is vivid. Skintones are natural. Grain is present. Delineation is communicative. Source is in good shape, without major points of damage.

Scavenger Hunt Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Age is most apparent during the 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix. The track is muddy, lacking precision with manic performances. Fuzziness and dullness dominates, threatening intelligibility at times, but nothing is completely lost. Scoring is equally underwhelming, and while moods are established by the music, instrumentation is missing identity. Atmospherics are blunt, along with sound effects. Hiss is found throughout the listening experience.

Scavenger Hunt Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features director Michael Schultz.

• Interview (10:07, HD) with Richard Benjamin recounts the actor's early years in theater, where his time with co-star Myrna Loy introduced him to various icons of Old Hollywood, helping to inch his career along. Benjamin also discusses his graduation to the director's chair, maintaining behind the scenes control while still accepting the odd acting gig. Talk of "Scavenger Hunt" mostly pertains to isolation, with Benjamin, Cloris Leachman, and Richard Masur off on their own adventure while the rest of the cast worked on their subplots, only coming together as a large group for two scenes.

• Interview (10:12, HD) with Richard Masur is a more direct discussion of "Scavenger Hunt," with the actor sharing the inspiration for his infantile performance and his great joy working with Benjamin, with the pair hatching a plan to establish a subtle antagonism between their characters. A discussion of Leachman's energy and aloofness is interesting, along with Masur's own zoological background, which came in handy when dealing with a live ostrich on set. Masur also shares hopeful words about the feature's BD release (and his distaste for '80s nostalgia), recognizing that "Scavenger Hunt" is a fan favorite.

• A Theatrical Trailer has not been included.

Scavenger Hunt Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Scavenger Hunt" has a few cameos to keep it lively, including a young Arnold Schwarzenegger as a gym trainer who puts Henry through the paces, and Meat Loaf appears as an irritable biker who doesn't have time for Stuart's pleas for mercy. Overall, performances are cranked all the way up to achieve a cartoon appearance, but there's not much else to the picture, which consists of entirely of crashes, dashes, and bug-eyed reactions to danger. There's nothing in "Scavenger Hunt" that requires two hours of screentime, but Schultz doesn't know when to quit, with the last 20 minutes of the movie an orgy of slapstick and chaos. It's one thing to update "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World," but to do with such slackness borders on punishment at times.