Putney Swope (1969)

September 14, 2018 3:39 AM

Dark satire in which the token black man on the executive board of an advertising firm is accidentally put in charge. Renaming the business "Truth and Soul, Inc.", he replaces the tight regime of monied white ad men with his militant brothers. Soon afterwards, however, the power that comes with its position takes its toll on Putney...

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some pro

This is the true definition of a 'you have to see it to believe it' type of film. There is no question that this goes into the found section although it should not have been lost in the first place. Swope you got my vote! The Ransom Note

...Putney Swope still has the refreshing feel of someone trying to tell the truth in a forum where people aren't used to it. The movie remains a landmark, if only for the way it brought hipness to the town squares. AV Club

some con

The situations include political caricature, but disappointedly nothing much beyond marginal interest occurs. The comedy is only intermittently funny and the satire is mostly shallow and obvious. Variety

After some good lines in the opening scene, however, it all fizzles out in a series of damp squibs aimed indiscriminately at capitalism, Black Power, TV commercials, etc. Time Out

miscellany

• Robert Downey Sr. and Paul Thomas Anderson on Putney Swope
• Revisiting Putney Swope with Robert Downey Sr.
• Robert Downey Sr. and Film Forum Look Back on a Life Underground
• Six Decades of Robert Downey Sr.
• Hey Filmmakers, Robert Downey Sr. Has Some Lessons For You
• Putney Swope: Most under-rated cult film of the 1960s?
• Welcome To The Basement: Putney Swope
• PUTNEY SWOPE IS THE GREATEST F*CK YOU MOVIE OF ALL TIME

posted by Ten Cold Hot Dogs