You'll probably love 'Hopscotch' if you love Walter Matthau. It's really a one man show with the supporting cast playing second fiddle all the way to the late, great thespian. The film dates back to 1980 during the height of the Cold War. Matthau plays Miles Kendig, a veteran CIA agent who takes down a Soviet spy ring but declines to eliminate the leader of the operation, his KGB nemesis, Yaskov. Kendig has been friends with Yaskov for years and when his new boss at CIA headquarters, Myerson (played by an unpleasant Ned Beatty who continually employs the "F" word throughout the movie), is angered by Kendig's refusal to eliminate Yaskov, he transfers the veteran operative to the file room.
Kendig then destroys his own file and takes off without telling anyone at the CIA where he is off to. He then meets with Yaskov who offers him a job as a double agent but Kendig regretfully declines. Yaskov then asks Kendig what he'll do with the rest of his life and when Kendig replies that he's uncertain, Yaskov suggests that he write his memoirs. This is the impetus for the second act of 'Hopscotch' in which Kendig decides to take his revenge on his former employer by sending the first chapter of his memoirs to various spy agencies around the world including the CIA. The memoirs chronicle a long history of CIA 'dirty tricks' in which Myerson had a big hand. Myerson is bent on eliminating Kendig in order to prevent the big expose.
The rest of Hopscotch involves a cat and mouse game where Myerson, along with the operative who replaced Kendig, Cutter (ably played by a young Sam Waterson), attempt to discover Kendig's whereabouts before he finishes his manuscript and has it published. Kendig ends up globe trotting including a trip to Myerson's house in Georgia where he places firecrackers inside the living room and then phones the CIA from Myerson's home phone. The FBI joins the CIA and they end up shooting up the house as the firecrackers go off. Kendig escapes by taking one of Myerson's bumbling operatives hostage, driving off in a small truck (since this is supposed to be a comedy, no one ever tries to jump Kendig while he brandishes a gun, knowing full well that he would never shoot anyone!).
Nothing much else happens until the climax when Kendig rigs an old bi-plane to fly via remote control. As Myerson chases the bi-plane in a helicopter, Kendig pushes a button and the plane explodes, leading the CIA to believe that Kendig is no more (it's not clear how Kendig makes it look like he never got into the plane). With the CIA no longer chasing him, Kendig's memoirs becomes a best-seller and he walks off into the sunset with his old flame, Isobel, played by the now retired Glenda Jackson.
We first meet Isobel at the beginning of the film where Kendig rekindles his old relationship with her in Austria. Unfortunately, the chemistry between the two actors fizzles, since they are never seen face to face until the end of the movie (they communicate constantly via telephone). The same goes for all the other principals (including Beatty and Waterston) who have virtually no screen time face to face with Matthau (there's a rather flat scene where Kendig ties Cutter up in a hotel room).
If you're looking for many twists and turns, you will not find it here in 'Hopscotch'. The whole thing is a rather pedestrian affair, adapted from a popular novel whose screenplay did not translate very well into the intended visual tour de force. Hopscotch is also supposed to be witty and amusing but is undercut by the one-note, nasty image of the CIA, represented by the aforementioned unpleasant Myerson, bent on taking down a rogue agent at any cost. The CIA's attempt to eliminate Kendig (instead of capturing him), ruins the otherwise whimsical tone of the film's narrative. On the other hand, Waterson's 'Cutter' and Herbert Lom's 'Yaskov' are too warm-hearted to have much effect on the proceedings, as the story simply plods along.
My late father, a big classical music aficionado, was a big fan of this movie and with a plethora of all that Mozart constituting the film's soundtrack, I can understand why. Despite the endearing musical score, Hopscotch's plot is a big dud as its protagonist's machinations do not prove to be very clever. If you're willing to give Hopscotch a 'pass' based on your love for Walter Matthau (as Roger Ebert did in his 1980 review), then you might deceive yourself into believing this is a well-written movie. It's not and in reality it's a rather dull and boring affair!
Kendig then destroys his own file and takes off without telling anyone at the CIA where he is off to. He then meets with Yaskov who offers him a job as a double agent but Kendig regretfully declines. Yaskov then asks Kendig what he'll do with the rest of his life and when Kendig replies that he's uncertain, Yaskov suggests that he write his memoirs. This is the impetus for the second act of 'Hopscotch' in which Kendig decides to take his revenge on his former employer by sending the first chapter of his memoirs to various spy agencies around the world including the CIA. The memoirs chronicle a long history of CIA 'dirty tricks' in which Myerson had a big hand. Myerson is bent on eliminating Kendig in order to prevent the big expose.
The rest of Hopscotch involves a cat and mouse game where Myerson, along with the operative who replaced Kendig, Cutter (ably played by a young Sam Waterson), attempt to discover Kendig's whereabouts before he finishes his manuscript and has it published. Kendig ends up globe trotting including a trip to Myerson's house in Georgia where he places firecrackers inside the living room and then phones the CIA from Myerson's home phone. The FBI joins the CIA and they end up shooting up the house as the firecrackers go off. Kendig escapes by taking one of Myerson's bumbling operatives hostage, driving off in a small truck (since this is supposed to be a comedy, no one ever tries to jump Kendig while he brandishes a gun, knowing full well that he would never shoot anyone!).
Nothing much else happens until the climax when Kendig rigs an old bi-plane to fly via remote control. As Myerson chases the bi-plane in a helicopter, Kendig pushes a button and the plane explodes, leading the CIA to believe that Kendig is no more (it's not clear how Kendig makes it look like he never got into the plane). With the CIA no longer chasing him, Kendig's memoirs becomes a best-seller and he walks off into the sunset with his old flame, Isobel, played by the now retired Glenda Jackson.
We first meet Isobel at the beginning of the film where Kendig rekindles his old relationship with her in Austria. Unfortunately, the chemistry between the two actors fizzles, since they are never seen face to face until the end of the movie (they communicate constantly via telephone). The same goes for all the other principals (including Beatty and Waterston) who have virtually no screen time face to face with Matthau (there's a rather flat scene where Kendig ties Cutter up in a hotel room).
If you're looking for many twists and turns, you will not find it here in 'Hopscotch'. The whole thing is a rather pedestrian affair, adapted from a popular novel whose screenplay did not translate very well into the intended visual tour de force. Hopscotch is also supposed to be witty and amusing but is undercut by the one-note, nasty image of the CIA, represented by the aforementioned unpleasant Myerson, bent on taking down a rogue agent at any cost. The CIA's attempt to eliminate Kendig (instead of capturing him), ruins the otherwise whimsical tone of the film's narrative. On the other hand, Waterson's 'Cutter' and Herbert Lom's 'Yaskov' are too warm-hearted to have much effect on the proceedings, as the story simply plods along.
My late father, a big classical music aficionado, was a big fan of this movie and with a plethora of all that Mozart constituting the film's soundtrack, I can understand why. Despite the endearing musical score, Hopscotch's plot is a big dud as its protagonist's machinations do not prove to be very clever. If you're willing to give Hopscotch a 'pass' based on your love for Walter Matthau (as Roger Ebert did in his 1980 review), then you might deceive yourself into believing this is a well-written movie. It's not and in reality it's a rather dull and boring affair!