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A Major Disappointment

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Dondi is not the worst movie I have ever seen or even in my bottom 20. That said, it is still a terrible movie. There may be those who like it, but for me I saw it once as a child and kind of liked it but when I re watched it I was literally appalled at what I just watched.To me the film looks dated, the cinematography is dreary and the sets, costumes and scenery didn't do much for me either. Likewise with the soundtrack, I liked the use of the single harmonica but nothing stuck out as memorable. The script is absolutely awful, the jokes are unfunny and tiresome while the sentimentality really left a bad taste in my mouth.The story is very badly paced and predictable and the direction is leaden. The acting I don't know where to begin criticising, David Janssen looks both humiliated and bored, while David Kory in the title role is incredibly irritating and can't act if his life depends on it.So all in all, not the worst but still an awful movie. 1/10 Bethany Cox

WE HAVE LONG kidded and made references to this movie in our other reviews; so it stood to reason that eventually, some day, we'd have to give it a first hand viewing and review. Well, we've only recently come into possession of a DVD of it. So, without further eloquence, here's Schultz and my thoughts about DONDI (Alfred Zugsmith Productions/Photoplay Associates/Allied Artists, 1961*).LOOKING AT THE source for this movie, that being the DONDI COMIC Strip by Gus Edson (writer) & Irwin Hasen (illustrator); one could see how this feature from the Chicago Tribune-N.Y. News Syndicate would do well being adapted from newsprint to the celluloid medium. After all, hadn't CBS done quite well doing the same with Hank Ketcham's Hall Syndicate feature, DENNIS THE MENACE (Darriell/Screen Gems/CBS, 1959-63)? NOW THEN, THERE'S a good comparison with another 'Cute Kiddie' Comic Strip. Although there are some basic differences; being that whereas DENNIS is a 'bad boy' and played strictly for laughs and DONDI is a sort of serio-comic tear jerker & Soap Opera.IN CHECKING OUT the categories that the Dondi movie project edged out the Dennis TV series in scoring higher marks we found the following comparison. David Kory looked much more like the Dondi Character than Jay North did to Dennis. That's the only category won by DONDI. DENNIS THE MENACE took home the Gold in all other categories.ALSO WE MUST concede that the production team on this started out with a really fine cast for what could be described as a Disney-type Family Comedy. Starting off with the leads, David Jansen (Dealy) and the lovely, popular Singer,Patti Page(Liz-Woo,woo,woo,woo!)proved to be up to filling their roles. The group of supporting players assembled was second to none. Featuring such seasoned veterans as: Mickey Shaughnessy, Arnold Stang, Robert Strauss, Louie Quinn, Gale Gordon, Susan Kelly, Dick Patterson, Bonnie Scott, Nola Thorp, John Melfi, Joan Staley and Jack Carr. Also in the cast are William Wellman, Jr., Walter Winchell (as himself) and cameo appearances by Gus Edson & Irwin Hasen; as Police Captain & Police Artist, respectively.INCIDENTALLY, WE DID observe that Mr. David Jansen's 'interpretation' of the character 'Dealy' seemed to be akin to both William Holden's Sgt. Frank Sefton from STALAG 17 and Phil Silvers' SGT. BILKO; all three being money hu$tler$.. A LARGE PART of the problem with the movie lies with young Master David Kory, whose rendering of the highly specialized Dondi-specific dialog lacked any authentic tone and cadence. This really wasn't David's fault as he had to deliver lines like "...me friend now, Dealy buddy?", or "...chow taste good now, Peewee buddy!" This goes on for the whole 99 minutes.WE CAN TESTIFY that there was a lot of speculation on the part of the production company and the copyright owner about some further Dondi film projects. At the time of the movie's release, we recall an article that appeared locally in the Chicago Tribune's Sunday TV listings magazine supplement. In it, there was discussion of the newly released movie. They also did some speculation about a sequel and plans for a Dondi TV Series. They even went so far as to having the character in the funny pages age as David Kory did.WELL AS WE all are aware, no further DONDI movies appeared. Much like the Tribune Company's character in Warren Beatty's DICK TRACY (1990), no film franchise materialized. There was a DONDI Movie connected Comic Book published by Dell Comics. It featured a photo cover with David Kory and the illustration was done by veteran Comics Artist, Joe Certa; who'd previously done CAPTAIN MARVEL, JR. for Fawcett and was currently drawing JOHN JONES, MANHUNTER FROM MARS in DC's Detective Comics.THE SOUNDTRACK OF the movie did sport its own original score, as much as it was and an original song. Sappy as it was, both "Dondi" and "Meadow in the Sky" by Mort Gadson & Earl Schuman were rendered on screen by Miss Patti Page; who certainly gave it her all.THE REST OF the sound track is filled with audio punctuation and emphasis provided by Tommy Morgan on Harmonica! It's much like that music that we are so familiar with on GREEN ACRES, PETTICOAT JUNCTION and DEPUTY DAWG CartoonsNOTE: * Formerly Monogram Pictures, Allied Artists Studio was experienced in Comic Strip adaption; having done a couple of SNUFFY SMITH films (starring Bud Duncan) and a few MAGGIE & JIGGS (with Joe Yule-Mickey Rooney's Father). DONDI made these potboiler/programmers look mighty good!

The summary line is, of course, intended to parody David Kory's very strange use of language in this film, but I can't shake myself of the idea that the pinhead who first proposed this as a project spoke of it in like glowing words.The comic strip was okay for what it was. But trying to make a movie out of it? Watching this is a stomach-turner to be sure. The whole syrupy lovableness bit is nauseating, and I've heard stories of kids who watched this when it first came out having squirmed with embarrassment at it, which is pretty painful when you consider how undemanding kids usually are when it comes to kid-friendly movies. Even worse are the stale, unfunny jokes.A sequel was planned, but thankfully it went nowhere. David Kory couldn't act, but even worse is the fact that his director couldn't, evidently, do his own job either.

Undoubtedly one of the worst little films ever made. The well-known "shlock" movies have no pretensions, don't take themselves too seriously and at least give the viewer a few laughs. "Dondi" is a true BOMB with no redeeming features which, when originally released, probably went long way to undermine US/Korean relations. As Leonard Maltin suggests, "Watch this film and you will understand why David Janssen became a fugitive!"