Der barfüßige Generaldirektor (1971)

Der barfüßige Generaldirektor: Directed by Robert Butler. With Kurt Russell, Joe Flynn, Harry Morgan, Wally Cox. A mailroom clerk and a chimp team up to pick hit TV shows.

“Steven Post (Kurt Russell), an ambitious mail clerk at the fictional struggling UBC (United Broadcasting Corporation) Network, discovers that a chimpanzee named Raffles in the care of his girlfriend Jennifer Scott (Heather North), has the uncanny ability to choose which television programs will succeed or fail with audiences by blowing raspberries at shows he hates and claps his hands at shows he likes. Through a series of shenanigans, Post convinces executives Wilbanks (Joe Flynn) and Crampton (Harry Morgan) that Post actually has the abilities and his usage of the chimp eventually results in UBC becoming the top rated network. Wilbanks and Crampton soon grow suspicious of Postu0026#39;s overnight success and fearing their future in the company is at stake set out to discover Postu0026#39;s secret.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAfter the success of The Computer Wore Tennis Shoeu0026#39;s Disney reunited star Russell and director Robert Butler as well as a few supporting players for The Barefoot Executive. Like The Computer Wore Tennis Shoeu0026#39;s, the movie follows Kurt Russell as simple everyman but unlike his previous film the movie adds more weight to itself and feels like an actual movie rather than an extended sitcom plot. The movie builds itu0026#39;s premise on the framework of working oneu0026#39;s way to the top and incorporates the gimmick premise of a Monkey that can pick successful TV shows. While the satire in The Barefoot Executive isnu0026#39;t the most cutting or acerbic about entertainment or corporate culture (save for the rather obvious satire of a Monkey understanding the public better than highly paid executives do) the movie is a pleasant enough sit thanks to Russell playing a more tangible level than Dexter Riley and Butler having honed his skills improving his timing and use of comedic friction. The story is fairly predictable and youu0026#39;ll be able to tell what story beats youu0026#39;re approaching well in advance of when the characters get to them but luckily the movie has enough amusing gags that itu0026#39;s familiar story doesnu0026#39;t make them stumble.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe Barefoot Executive isnu0026#39;t especially memorable and doesnu0026#39;t reach the highest points of Disney Gimmick Comedies like That Darn Cat, Blackbeardu0026#39;s Ghost or The Love Bug, but it is a well made film with good comic work from talented actors thatu0026#39;s an amusing albeit not all that memorable sit.”