Hal Ashby had such an extraordinary run of directorial efforts in the 1970’s, and one of this funniest, sexiest movies was Shampoo, a piercing satire of the sexes, which was co-written by star Warren Beatty and screenwriting legend Robert Towne (Chinatown). Shot in a casually stylish manner by the extremely prolific László Kovács (Five Easy Pieces, Paper Moon, Ghostbusters), this is a sex comedy in its purest form, with the shifting social codes and barriers firmly on display and ready to be picked at and smashed, while Ashby was up to his normal subversion of material from within the script’s fine details. Beatty is one of the ultimate big-screen womanizers in this film, bouncing from one beauty to the next, but none more alluring than the bewitching Julie Christie, who in this film, has one of the ultimate come hither glances that has ever been put up on the silver screen. Beatty, playing a composite of flamboyant real life hair dressers (some say that the infamous producer Jon Peters was an inspiration), is trying to get a loan for his business, while juggling the many women who have fallen under his spell, with the narrative set against the backdrop of the 1968 Presidential election. Jack Warden is absolutely hilarious (the scene with him walking into the plate glass window at the party is an all-timer), Tony Bill has some priceless supporting moments, and an extremely cute Goldie Hawn is also featured as one of Beatty’s many lovely girlfriends. Carrie Fisher has a brief appearance (her screen debut, actually), while the film, typical for Ashby, has an eclectic soundtrack and some seriously fluid editing. In the top five box office hits from 1975, this is yet another classic film that drops you in the middle of the action right at the start, and over the course of two hours, tells an intimate, funny, and ultimately sad story of people facing the many crossroads of life and passion.
Podcasting Them Softly 