Putney Swope (1969)

Featured Audience Ratings

• AJ V

  
  This movie is cool, it made its audience think about the racism in the media at the time and showed in a radically comedic way how things could change. I think this movie is awesome, but it has some weak spots, it could be a bit better. Overall, I liked it, it's good, and I… More
  This movie is cool, it made its audience think about the racism in the media at the time and showed in a radically comedic way how things could change. I think this movie is awesome, but it has some weak spots, it could be a bit better. Overall, I liked it, it's good, and I highly recommend checking it out.

• Stella D

  
  robert downey's dad produced this withering satire in 1969 giving madison avenue and 60's race relations a thorough skewering. it's a bit scattered and certainly dated with no-budget production values and the dubbing of swope's lines throughout bothered me. i… More
  robert downey's dad produced this withering satire in 1969 giving madison avenue and 60's race relations a thorough skewering. it's a bit scattered and certainly dated with no-budget production values and the dubbing of swope's lines throughout bothered me. i wish i could give it more than 3 stars as i certainly admire the spirit behind it. of interest to fans of underground films and counterculture

• Cassandra M

  
  The movie starts with a board meeting at a major advertising agency. Putney Swope is on the board for no other reason than the fact that he is black, and the agency needs a "token" on the board. Swope is ignoring the meeting, reading Jet magazine at the big table, and… More
  The movie starts with a board meeting at a major advertising agency. Putney Swope is on the board for no other reason than the fact that he is black, and the agency needs a "token" on the board. Swope is ignoring the meeting, reading Jet magazine at the big table, and everybody is ignoring Swope... Suddenly, the CEO croaks on the spot. No time is wasted. A janitor is called to haul off the corpse, and the board immediately and unceremoniously tackles the business of electing a new CEO. And as the votes are tallied one by one, the tension is built up and then finally snapped in a hilariously ironic climax to the vote, that gives the viewer a delicious dish of logical implications to savor for the rest of the movie. If you've ever talked back to some stupid television commercial, you'll like seeing this movie. Too bad there don't seem to be any real Putney Swopes in the world.

• cody f

  
  At times very original and very funny and other times just plain chaotic. Putney Swope is Robert Downey Sr's satire about what would happen if a revolutionary black man was put in charge of one of America's biggest advertising agencies in the late 60's. This movie has a… More
  At times very original and very funny and other times just plain chaotic. Putney Swope is Robert Downey Sr's satire about what would happen if a revolutionary black man was put in charge of one of America's biggest advertising agencies in the late 60's. This movie has a great opening and some great scenes and laugh out loud moments. Arnold Johnson is very good as Putney and Robert Downey Sr.'s voice over of Putney makes the character even better. I might have liked it more if it wouldn't have gone so crazy at times. It's such a interesting story I think it would have worked as a regular satire narrative. It is a movie of it's time, so it's a bit dated,but shot in B/W documentary style does make it timeless. It is defiantly worth a watch and it will help you understand a joke in Johnny Be Good better.

• Wu C

  
  Interesting offbeat satire, that has some funny scenes. I really liked some of the camera work too, but it loses some momentum towards the end.