The Groove Tube (1974)

The Groove Tube (1974)

1974 75 Minutes

Comedy

Chevy Chase makes his film debut in this riotous collection of live skits. Directed by Ken Shapiro and featuring Chase, Richard Belzer and others, The Groove Tube mocks TV Land and its trappings by...

Overall Rating

4 / 10
Verdict: So-So

User Review

  • Variety shows built around multiple skits were all the rage in the 60s and 70s. Saturday Night Live, Monty Python's Flying Circus, the various variety shows like Carol Burnett, Sonny and Cher, Benny Hill, The Flip Wilson Show and many others constantly appeared and disappeared during that time frame. These were the Reality TV of that time and every network (all three of them in the United States) had a continuous ebb and flow dating back to the origins of television. The Groove Tube is just another version of the variety show, albeit with a lot more risque content than what you would see air on network television.

    I was hoping for something along the lines of Kentucky Fried Movie (1977) or Tunnel Vision (1976), but what I received was a less-than comedic fare that struggled to find a laugh and resorted to vulgarity and nudity when the writers struggled to deliver the funny. Believe it or not, Richard Belzer (Law and Order: SVU) was the best that the movie had to offer. Chevy Chase's 2 segments were short and forgettable and Ken Shapiro was horrible in just about everything else. Truly a disappointment.

    Warning: This movie contains gratuitous amounts of both male and female full-frontal nudity. This definitely is a hard "R" rated film. Watch accordingly.