Mr. Mike's Mondo Video

I can see how this would be unusual (and maybe even shocking?) for 1979, but in 2023 it seems relatively tame, at least to me. I've known about this movie for over 30 years but I only just got around to seeing it today. Some of it is definitely the same kind of humor from SNL's early days. A lot of it is random. Some of it is just dumb (but still funny). And a lot of it is just weird, which isn't necessarily funny but it is fascinating to watch. I see some of the same random humor in tik-toks and YouTube videos and memes today. Whether it's asking people on the street stupid questions or showing girls in their underwear jumping over fire, everything old is new again.

"Mr. Mike's Mondo Video" is almost indescribable in terms of its mind-blowing bizarreness. This is Michael O'Donoghue's vision unfettered and it's not a pretty sight. (This is, of course, not to discount the contributions of his fellow writers Mitch Glazer, Emily Prager and Dirk Wittenborn, but this is Mr. Mike's show through and through.)

This is definitely the sort of film that has a polarizing effect on its audience. You either love it or hate it; it's hard to feel indifferent about it. Personally, I think it's brilliant, even if each individual segment isn't. Some things -- like the Klaus Nomi dream sequence and the cat tossing -- go on a bit too long, but they're almost invariably followed by something which is outrageous and/or laugh-out-loud funny. (My favorite segments are the non sequitur-like commercial lead-ins --"Gig Young's groceries... Looking up Cheryl Tieg's dress.")

A must-see for fans of Michael O'Donoghue. As a cultural document it is irreplaceable.

"Mr. Mike's Mondo Video" was created under the auspices of NBC-TV as a proposed network special. NBC's motivation for doing so was largely supported by O'Donoghue's strength as a writer and performer for Saturday Night Live, then one of NBC's few genuine hit shows. When NBC censors saw the finished product, they were horrified; much as they had been when Richard Pryor's earlier comedy specials were first reviewed. But unlike the situation had been with Pryor, NBC rejected "Mr. Mike", which sent O'Donoghue packing from the network, Saturday Night Live and all. 'Twas a pity; after all, his unpredictable, twisted sense of humor had helped to make SNL distinctive, and his departure was the first indicator of the gradual decline of SNL into the mediocrity it eventually became. Somehow M O'D retained the rights to the finished product, and it was released as a theatrical film in 1980; the author was one of perhaps a half dozen souls who braved it in first release at my particular theater. Few films have been such a poor draw, and it was pulled from distribution very quickly. NBC's main objection to the show was the inclusion of a clip of ex-Sex Pistol and suspected murderer Sid Vicious singing Paul Anka's song "My Way" and firing a pistol at the camera. It's arguably the weakest segment in the film, but for some reason M O'D refused to part with it. When "Mr. Mike's Mondo Video" was issued on VHS in 1985 the audiotrack to this segment was expunged from the release, as Anka's publishing company refused to grant a license for the song. Ironically, the same segment, in a somewhat different visual form, appears in Julien Temple's Sex Pistols film "The Great Rock and Roll Swindle", and no such censorship is imposed in the video release. I am commenting as I am surprised by the low viewer rating for this title on the imdb. Some of the segments here are quite honestly among the funniest, darkest, most irreverent comedy ever committed to film. Fans of offbeat humor really shouldn't miss this one; much of it is still cutting edge two decades on, and certain segments are even now enough to reduce me to helpless hysterics, tears rolling down my cheeks with laughter. Mr. Mike, your "Mondo Video" is so funny, it hurts.

The title of my summary pretty much says it all. The movie is hilarious, but there are less "belly" laughs than there are "Where the hell did that come from?" laughs. As National Lampoon fans know, Michael O'Donoghue was an "evil genius" of comedy. His philosophy was that there's no such thing as "too far", and that rings clearly in this film. The movie was banned from TV by the FCC, for obvious reasons. I highly recommend this movie to lovers of dark, surreal comedy, or the underground movement. Chances are that if you have a short attention span, or stay with the mainstream, it's not for you. Praise Jack Lord!

This is the first movie I've ever walked out on and I've stomached quite a few. Half the people in the theatre walked out before I did. If you enjoy watching cats being thrown off the rooftop of buildings, looking at Dan Aykroyd's deformed feet and feel some sort of affinity toward Jeffery Dahmer and Ted Bundy, you'll love this movie. But if you have just an atom of decency somewhere in your soul, don't waste your time.