Really Surprised!

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

After years of reading about this movie, I finally saw 200 Motels on Netflix Streaming. Conceived by Frank Zappa, this is perhaps one of the baddest trips I've taken watching weird movies from the late '60s/early '70s. I mean, Zappa only appears during the musical numbers which happen to be the best parts of this film. There's also Ringo Starr playing an actor playing Zappa, Keith Moon as the "hot nun", and Theodore Bikel as the devil. Oh, and Flo and Eddie, formerly of The Turtles, are among the members of Frank's Mothers of Invention and they get the deserved most screen time of the group. The people I mentioned have their charms (well, maybe not Moon whose characterization I really don't understand) but the whole thing is just soooo incomprehensible to the point that I kept pausing the film to see how much time was left. But it's really worth seeing at least once if you want to get it out of your system. So on that note, 200 Motels gets a fair warning from me of what you should expect if you dare...

Tony Palmer Films has reissued 200 MOTELS on DVD in "restored" form, with an interesting audio commentary from Tony that expands on how the film was produced and dispels some of the film's long standing rumors (ex: "the master tapes were destroyed" - Tony claims he still has them intact.).Unfortunately, the film print used, while having decent color, suffers from restoration artifacts and is often dirty and scratched (why the video tapes themselves were not used to make a new print is unknown). The 2 channel mono audio's muddy and occasionally drops out on one side or the other. Occasional splices obliterate short sections of the film, including Ringo Starr's description of how he, as "Larry the Dwarf", attracts women.Definitely worthwhile for Frank's fans who will again have access to this relatively obscure work.

200 Motels (1971) *** (out of 4) If you've heard any of Frank Zappa's music then you should know what to expect in this semi-documentary and that's originality and strangeness. The film follows Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention on a tour but don't expect your typical Don't Look Back type of scenery. Instead we get all sorts of short stories including an animated sequence with an acid taking Donald Duck wannabe, two groupies and Ringo Starr playing both Zappa and a dwarf. This film also has the distinction of being shot on videotape, which allowed Zappa to finish the movie in ten days. It's really hard to recommend this film to anyone because I'm sure most won't know what to make of it and in fact as a Zappa fan I wasn't sure what to make of it but that there is what makes the film work. Another movie like this can't pop up in my mind and for my money that originality is what makes this film special. Zappa himself is scene throughout the movie but never heard. That's an odd thing to do but what's even odder is having Ringo play Zappa and it's shocking how close they look to one another. Keith Moon shows up as a "sexy nun" so that there should tell you how nuts this film is. If you're looking for an actual documentary on Zappa or his tour then you're going to be out of luck here but if you want pure strange images then give this a try. There's plenty of music throughout the film as well, which is another big bonus.

I need to watch this again. That's something of a compliment, I think. Maybe I shouldn't think regarding a movie- so called- like 200 Motels. It's the kind of picture where the term 'freewheeling rock & roll comedy' would pop up as an example in the dictionary. As I recall there's nothing by way of plot to describe, except that the 'Mothers', Frank Zappa's band that he had early on his career, have to deal with the stress and issues of the road. This is interspersed with live musical performances (not just music played and then with other music dubbed over it, but live on film, er videotape), and some other odd little tidbits. But to use the word 'odd' with 200 Motels is too kind, and in fact just too bland. Maybe for some fans of experimental cinema it's still too rooted in trying to be funny to really accomplish anything truly groundbreaking. And to others it might just seem like Zappa is whackin it cinematically onto videotape.But it's hard to discount the 'period' value of the movie too, and I did have quite a few good laughs at some of the (as a given) random stuff that occurred throughout. There's even a spot-on cool turn by Ringo Starr as the "fake" Frank Zappa. Also, the music, which is what many will seek out 200 Motels for- not least of which Zappa's fans, of which I am more or less depending on the album- is pretty awesome and delightfully whacked out, even if it's a little much into the 'riffs' as opposed to Zappa's more well known tracks like Nanook and Montana. The Royal Symphony Orchestra accompaniment allows for Zappa to go ambitious with what he intends, which is not hard at all for him really considering that he IS more of a composer than a typical rock n roll guitarist. If I can't recommend the movie as much as I might want to though it's because it is the kind of experimental 60s-70s 'lets-go-wild-with-style' picture that does meander in spots, or rather because of its lack of sense if not in the right frame of mind (possibly one not under stimulants) it'll seem like trash.I do need to see it again to completely take in what specifically I liked in what scenes. Yet if you happen to come across this by chance in your video store or in some other markets, just read the back and you'll get an idea. If you take the chance and watch it, you might find that it's got some of the most bizarre, deranged, kooky and just plain weird fun type scenes in any non-traditional rock movie ever. That Zappa was a fervent anti-drug musician makes some of this all the more unique, or stupid, or both. This may also put off some of Zappa's fans who like the music but can't stand visuals and gags almost stuck in a time capsule. I dug it though, and I hope to 'dig it' again.