"Do you know your last name's an adverb?"

A hilarious spoof of gangster movies.
20th Century Fox
1984
90 minutes
color
MPAA rating: PG-13
Directed by Amy Heckerling (Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Clueless)

Some of the gags are a bit over the top (although better executed than your average Mel Brooks film), but this is a very enjoyable comedy none the less. Set in the 1930s, with a very good period soundtrack . Johnny Kelly is a respectable pet store owner who catches a young punk trying to steal a puppy. He decides to tell the kid about his former life as the notorious gangster Johnny Dangerously in order to convince him to stay out of trouble. Johnny tells the kid how he entered a life of crime in order to pay for his mother's never-ending doctor bills. He eventually becomes the head of the Jocko Dundee gang, fighting Roman Maroni's gang, the DA's office and Danny Vermin along the way. Johnny nearly fries in the chair like his father, but everything works out in the end. This movie contains excellent performances all around, but Keaton and Piscopo definitely stand out. The dialogue is well-written and quite humorous. There are lots of great quotes, even the gang's pet parrot has good lines, and most of the visual humor is excellent as well. The short educational film from the "Atlanta Genital Institute" is incredibly funny. Definitely worth a rent if you can find it.


Source: Johnny Dangerously on VHS