Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn’s Hitchcockian thriller ‘Foul Play’ gets a polished 4K revival

“Saturday Night Live” alum Chevy Chase’s breakout blockbuster gave audiences a Hitchcockian comedic thriller way back in 1978 that now finally debuts in the 4K disc format in Foul Play (Kino Lorber, not rated, 1.85:1 aspect ratio, 116 minutes, $44.95).

Goldie Hawn co-starred as divorced librarian Gloria Mundy, caught up in a complex assassination plot when her date mysteriously disappears after showing up mortally wounded in a crowded movie theater.

Warned about a dwarf, kidnapped by an ominous albino and almost killed by a man with a scar, she eventually gets help deciphering her frantic predicament from bumbling wiseacre, San Francisco Police Detective Tony Carlson (Mr. Chase) as the mystery unfolds, playing out in the highest levels of the papal order.

The highlight of the insanity finds Gloria seeking temporary refuge with unassuming Stanley (a hilarious Dudley Moore in fine form) in his apartment until Stanley turns into a sex maniac as his living space transforms into a den of iniquity complete with “Saturday Night Fever” blaring.

The famed ensemble cast also includes Brian Dennehy as Sgt. “Fergie” Ferguson, the distinguished Burgess Meredith as Gloria’s landlord Mr. Hennessey and Billy Barty as a traveling salesman.

Director Colin Higgins’ “lady in distress” narrative often plays to the extremely absurd (refence a distressed dwarf stuck in a barrel rolling down a series of stairs and falling into a sewer) and features some lumbering dialogue, but still manages to deliver a mystery worth a look, just for the vintage star power alone.

The film is also best remembered for its fairly insipid theme song “Ready to Take a Chance Again,” a ballad sung by Barry Manilow and nominated for an Academy Award.

4K in action: viewers get a fairly visually dynamic presentation that fills the screen, delivered from a 4K scan of the original 35mm camera negative.

Moments to stop and admire include a flyover of a San Francisco harbor with bright blue water; panoramic shots of the Golden Gate Bridge; a shiny yellow Volkswagen Beetle; the flowing very red cape of a cardinal; and an ornate opera house featuring a colorful opening scene of the “Mikado.”

Although, considering the age of the film, there are areas with some unexpected soft focus and a bit of film grain in some outdoor scenes.

Best extras: Kino Lorber offers a handful of exclusive bonus content, starting with an optional commentary track on the 4K and Blu-ray disc with pop culture film journalists Bryan Reesman and Max Evry.

They unload on nostalgia, history, the cast’s resumes and the production notes with Mr. Evry quickly reminding viewers that he considers “Foul Play” a seminal movie that he first saw as a child.

Both speak early and often and embellish thoughts by reading from notes, reference materials and news articles that explain similarities between Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” and “Foul Play”; the Hitchcock influence; and a short history on the Los Angeles’ art house movie venue Nuart Theatre that was featured in a scene from “Foul Play.”

Fun nuggets that surface include that Mr. Chase was supposed to be cast as Otter in “Animal House”; Tim Conway turned down the role of Stanley; and a $10 million defamation suit was filed by Cary Grant against Mr. Chase.

Also, viewers get on the Blu-ray disc a 16-minute remembrance of Higgins with sporadic vintage interview clips of the director that gets hijacked by sound editor Nicholas Eliopoulos who initially talks about his own career.

Mr. Eliopoulos then gets more focused on memories of working with Higgins and specifically sound work on “Foul Play” as well as an animated sequence on “Nine to Five” before revealing being the creative force behind the 2022 documentary “Celebrating Laughter: The Life and Films of Colin Higgins.”