The Couch Trip (1988)

I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Please don't spend money on this.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Dan Aykroyd plays John Burns, a psychiatric patient under the care of the medically inept Dr. Baird. The two share a fierce rivalry culminating in Baird threatening to send Burns to a maximum security institution where he will be used for testing. Baird is also planning on leaving town to fill in for a psychiatrist radio show host who has fallen into a mid-life crisis. There's an identity mix up and Burns is mistaken for Baird, leading to him being the host of the show. But, believe it or not, Burns is actually better than the original host-and he has the popularity to prove it. He soon becomes the most listened to talk show in the U.S. and he definitely has the numbers to prove it. But, eventually the real Baird finds out about the mix up and attempts to track down Burns. What follows is a nice little cat and mouse game of a movie with some pretty decent acting on Dan Ayrkoyd's part. Walter Matthau also gives a good performance as Burns' cross country tag along.The tone of the film is incredibly well balanced and the jokes are mostly hits. In fact, there's nothing too terribly wrong with this film. It's surprising it's gained a reputation as a terrible film. It has a lot of heart in the story and it's very well cast. Dan Aykroyd is perfect as con-man John Burns. His performance is reminiscent of Bill Murray in "Stripes", which is an interesting turn for Aykroyd, considering by this time he had been type cast as the techno babbling sideman. It's interesting seeing Aykroyd in a full on lead role.So, overall, "The Couch Trip" is a fun little comedy It's nothing groundbreaking or spellbinding-but it is definitely a creative take on the cat and mouse genre. It's definitely not just your ordinary, average comedy.

Dan Aykroyd has fun in a fast talking con man role in this reasonably amusing but never uproarious comedy. He plays John W. Burns, Jr., a criminal who faked insanity in order to get a somewhat cushier life inside a mental institution. Burns runs amok at this place, getting it on with the secretary (Victoria Jackson) and making life miserable for his stuffy, hostile psychiatrist (David Clennon). One day he intercepts a phone call to Clennon, who's been selected to temporarily fill in for a hot shot L.A. pop psychiatrist (Charles Grodin) who's suffering from lots of stress. He pretends to be Clennon, and the hilarity ensues as he keeps up the charade in front of Grodins' associates, played by the likes of Richard Romanus, Donna Dixon (the lovely real life Mrs. Aykroyd), and Arye Gross.You know you can't go completely wrong with a cast such as this. Everybody plays their role to the hilt, whether it's Clennon as a guy we'll love to hate, the perfectly chosen Grodin in peak grumpy form, Arye Gross as a pathological ass kisser, or Mary Gross as Grodin's wife. Aykroyd is amiable and charming and as good at ever at getting lots of dialogue out quickly. Good character actors add to the enjoyment: Mickey Jones, J.E. Freeman, David Wohl, Michael Ensign, Charles Levin, Scott Thomson, Don Stark, and others. But you have to pay close attention to catch a cameo by Chevy Chase, who'd acted for director Michael Ritchie in one of his most successful vehicles, "Fletch". It's also a joy to see veteran Walter Matthau in one of his more carefree roles, as a self styled oddball who realizes Aykroyd's secret and attempts to blackmail him.The plotting is kind of standard, as we see the highly unorthodox and tactless Aykroyd actually become a real hit on the air while filling in for Grodin. This, however, leads to one of the better gags in the picture as Aykroyd thinks he's found the solution to following through on his promise of free therapy to Grodin's patients. The R rating does allow for some well timed (but not excessive) use of profanity - that actually made it into the trailer!Six out of 10.

This was an 1970s-type irreverent comedy, poking fun at the psychiatric profession and at Beverly Hills. I didn't mind that but I did object to more that irreverence regarding marriage and religion: two topics which secular filmmakers (meaning about everyone in Hollywood and elsewhere) just can't stop trashing. Walter Matthau plays a scuzzy character, "Donald Becker," who walks around with a cleric's collar on, which offends me but when has Hollywood ever been worried about offending Christians?Anyway, despite that nonsense the film has its entertaining moments and even some charm to it. Dan Aykroyd is good at paying a nut-case and Donna Dixon ("Laura Rollins") is a knockout. I am sorry she didn't have a bigger role.

I would agree with the comments already posted to this site by the previous rater.I first stumbled across this movie back in the '80s, when I was employed at a psychiatric hospital. Unfortunately, many of the barbs aimed at the psychiatric profession do hit home. I especially enjoyed the ending, where the psychiatrist would speak thru the door to the hospitalized Grodin. Trust me, its fairly accurate.Of course, doors at most psych hospitals are not locked, nor are straightjackets used much these days, and any hospital MUST be licensed to have a "padded room".But a wonderfully underrated film, and certainly one that is quite amusing.Jeff