HOME |  CULT MOVIES | COMPETITIONS | ADVERTISE |  CONTACT US |  ABOUT US
 
 
 
Newest Reviews
American Fiction
Poor Things
Thunderclap
Zeiram
Legend of the Bat
Party Line
Night Fright
Pacha, Le
Kimi
Assemble Insert
Venus Tear Diamond, The
Promare
Beauty's Evil Roses, The
Free Guy
Huck and Tom's Mississippi Adventure
Rejuvenator, The
Who Fears the Devil?
Guignolo, Le
Batman, The
Land of Many Perfumes
Cat vs. Rat
Tom & Jerry: The Movie
Naked Violence
Joyeuses Pacques
Strangeness, The
How I Became a Superhero
Golden Nun
Incident at Phantom Hill
Winterhawk
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City
Maigret Sets a Trap
B.N.A.
Hell's Wind Staff, The
Topo Gigio and the Missile War
Battant, Le
Penguin Highway
Cazadore de Demonios
Snatchers
Imperial Swordsman
Foxtrap
   
 
Newest Articles
3 From Arrow Player: Sweet Sugar, Girls Nite Out and Manhattan Baby
Little Cat Feat: Stephen King's Cat's Eye on 4K UHD
La Violence: Dobermann at 25
Serious Comedy: The Wrong Arm of the Law on Blu-ray
DC Showcase: Constantine - The House of Mystery and More on Blu-ray
Monster Fun: Three Monster Tales of Sci-Fi Terror on Blu-ray
State of the 70s: Play for Today Volume 3 on Blu-ray
The Movie Damned: Cursed Films II on Shudder
The Dead of Night: In Cold Blood on Blu-ray
Suave and Sophisticated: The Persuaders! Take 50 on Blu-ray
Your Rules are Really Beginning to Annoy Me: Escape from L.A. on 4K UHD
A Woman's Viewfinder: The Camera is Ours on DVD
Chaplin's Silent Pursuit: Modern Times on Blu-ray
The Ecstasy of Cosmic Boredom: Dark Star on Arrow
A Frosty Reception: South and The Great White Silence on Blu-ray
You'll Never Guess Which is Sammo: Skinny Tiger and Fatty Dragon on Blu-ray
Two Christopher Miles Shorts: The Six-Sided Triangle/Rhythm 'n' Greens on Blu-ray
Not So Permissive: The Lovers! on Blu-ray
Uncomfortable Truths: Three Shorts by Andrea Arnold on MUBI
The Call of Nostalgia: Ghostbusters Afterlife on Blu-ray
Moon Night - Space 1999: Super Space Theater on Blu-ray
Super Sammo: Warriors Two and The Prodigal Son on Blu-ray
Sex vs Violence: In the Realm of the Senses on Blu-ray
What's So Funny About Brit Horror? Vampira and Bloodbath at the House of Death on Arrow
Keeping the Beatles Alive: Get Back
   
 
  Citizens Band Good Buddies
Year: 1977
Director: Jonathan Demme
Stars: Paul Le Mat, Candy Clark, Bruce McGill, Roberts Blossom, Charles Napier, Ann Wedgeworth, Marcia Rodd, Alix Elias, Richard Bright, Ed Begley Jr, Michael Rothman, Michael Mahler, Harry Northup, Will Seltzer, Leila Smith, Micki Mann, Roy Hollis
Genre: Comedy, DramaBuy from Amazon
Rating:  7 (from 1 vote)
Review: The CB radio craze is at its peak and everyone is known by their handle, an alias which helps them to be readily identified as well as, for some, preserving their anonymity, which is handy for someone like Electra who gets off on chatting up the teenage Warlock and turning him on with her saucy talk. But it's not simply a form of entertainment, as information is broadcast over the airwaves as well, though not all of it beneficial, as there are always the cranks to contend with, spewing white supremacist hate or Bible-bashing religion to anyone within earshot. However, for electrician Spider (Paul Le Mat) it can be a lifeline too, for he runs a help station which picks up distress signals...

The equivalent of Citizens Band nowadays would be a movie about folks communicating over the internet, though that would not just stick with one corner of Nebraska as its location as this newer phenomenon would span the globe, making for storylines too big to grapple into one film. Mobile phones would appear to be a modern substitute for much of the CB technology screenwriter Paul Brickman (best known for Risky Business) wove his plot around, and would have certainly made his finale a lot easier to manage, but there isn't quite the same sense of community to sending text messages as there was to turning the dial late at night and connecting with someone out there.

It was this camaraderie that director Jonathan Demme was hoping to cash in on, yet while his graduation from basic genre thrillers to something more character based and lightly humorous here did lead to many of his most acclaimed works, the audience for Citizens Band (with a double meaning in the title) was small, as perhaps they were expecting a broader comedy like Smokey and the Bandit which this was assuredly not. After this had great reviews but still didn't conjure up any major business, Paramount renamed it Handle with Care (another double meaning, but a lot clunkier this time) and re-edited it to make it snappier, whereupon... it didn't bring in the crowds either, leaving a cult film for those who followed Demme's career with interest.

In many ways this was a dry run for Demme's other Paul Le Mat movie of three years later, and probably his masterpiece, Melvin and Howard, in that his leading man was portraying much the same type of personality in much the same milieu, only without the "based on a true story" tag which gave it greater resonance. But while it was rather fuzzy round the edges, don't dismiss Citizens Band as it featured gently amusing narratives, not episodic exactly but definitely more of a ramble through its subject's lives, and every cast member was well aware of what was necessary to bring out the laughs and indeed the unexpected sweetness, mostly centered on Spider's troubles with his elderly father (Roberts Blossom) who basically only communicates over his CB.

The way the CB was introduced as a plot point did feel as contrived as the many times movies since have depicted the internet, perhaps making more of it than was necessary, but at least the theme of making contact was brought out, and that means bringing all those quirks in your demeanour to the fore should you decide you want to be part of someone's life for a while, even if only for a few minutes to stave off any loneliness or create a little companionship to pass the time. Spider goes on a crusade to stop perpetrators misusing the CB, tracking down signals and preventing the criminals from broadcasting more, yet we can tell he blocks out the need to communicate with the three people he has trouble reaching out to, and it's a two-way street between him and his father, sports coach brother (Bruce McGill) and the woman he loves (Candy Clark) but has never been able to make a breakthrough with. More daffily, Charles Napier proved his worth as a bigamist whose wives meet by chance, but even the comedy of that contained the poignancy running through Citizens Band. Music by Bill Conti.
Reviewer: Graeme Clark

 

This review has been viewed 5205 time(s).

As a member you could Rate this film

 

Jonathan Demme  (1944 - 2017)

American director with a exploitation beginnings who carved out a successful Hollywood career as a caring exponent of a variety of characters. Worked in the early 70s as a writer on films like Black Mama, White Mama before directing his first picture for producer Roger Corman, the women-in-prison gem Caged Heat. Demme's mainstream debut was the 1977 CB drama Handle With Care (aka Citizens Band), which were followed by such great films as the thriller Last Embrace, tenderhearted biopic Melvin and Howard, wartime drama Swing Shift, classic Talking Heads concert film Stop Making Sense, and black comedies Something Wild and Married to the Mob.

Demme's Thomas Harris adaptation The Silence of the Lambs was one of 1991's most successful films, making Hannibal Lecter a household name, while the worthy AIDS drama Philadelphia was equally popular. Since then, Demme has floundered somewhat - Beloved and The Truth About Charlie were critical and commercial failures, although 2004's remake of The Manchurian Candidate was a box office hit. Rachel Getting Married also has its fans, though Meryl Streep vehicle Ricki and the Flash was not a great one to go out on. He was also an advocate of the documentary form, especially music: his final release was a Justin Timberlake concert.

 
Review Comments (0)


Untitled 1

Login
  Username:
 
  Password:
 
   
 
Forgotten your details? Enter email address in Username box and click Reminder. Your details will be emailed to you.
   

Latest Poll
Which star probably has psychic powers?
Laurence Fishburne
Nicolas Cage
Anya Taylor-Joy
Patrick Stewart
Sissy Spacek
Michelle Yeoh
Aubrey Plaza
Tom Cruise
Beatrice Dalle
Michael Ironside
   
 
   

Recent Visitors
  Stuart Watmough
Paul Shrimpton
Darren Jones
Mary Sibley
Enoch Sneed
Mark Le Surf-hall
  Louise Hackett
Andrew Pragasam
   

 

Last Updated: