There have been few directors who have managed to work so effectively across as diverse a range of genres as Peter Bogdanovich, who emerged as a rambunctious young filmmaker filled to the brim with ambition and a distinct point of view, and honed his artistic voice over several decades, each one of his films (even those that were not very good) being works of unimpeachable brilliance, effective documents of one of the great filmmakers of his generation. Choosing one film to consider his greatest achievement is impossible – one could easily choose Targets, his trulyharrowing debut that gave a horror icon his greatest work, or we could choose between The Last Picture Show and Paper Moon, bittersweet stories of the working class that capture a specific moment in America’s history. Perhaps it is likely that one of his later works are favoured by certain viewers. My personal opinion is that, despite being a versatile and brilliant filmmaker, nothing he has done has come close to reaching the heights of What’s Up, Doc?, which is quite simply one of the most perfect comedies ever made. Inspired by the screwball comedies that he grew up watching (and thus shaped his entire directorial approach), the film is a magnificent, beautifully poetic and wickedly funny voyage into the lives of a few eccentric characters, each one brought to life with precision and earnest dedication by both the director and his cast, who commit entirely to a premise that proves the value of giving a platform to the most audacious ideas, since the results will uniformly come to be seen as nothing short of incredible when done right – and when it comes to a director like Bogdanovich, there was very little chance that he would produce anything even vaguely unworthy of our time or effort.

The production history of What’s Up, Doc? is just as madcap and exhilarating as the film itself – conceived in a quick meeting between the director and studio executives who were keen to put him in contact with the film’s stars (who desperately wanted to work with, for reasons that would become very clear once we saw the final film), and written by a team of screenwriters hired to throw the script together in order to make tight deadlines, the film was a feat of not only astonishing artistry, but a logistical achievement, the likes of which are simply not possible in an industry driven by meticulous scheduling. Normally, such details aren’t that interesting, but they play a part in understanding precisely what made this film such a triumph, since it demonstrates exactly how many of the greatest comedies in history are essentially works of carefully-controlled chaos, especially those that seem to be running at a mile-a-minute pace. The challenge when it comes to making a pastiche of a certain genre or era in Hollywood is that these works often pale in comparison, and exist mainly as homages, rather than actually reaching the heights of the films that inspired them. It’s almost a sacred fact that What’s Up, Doc? is not only a remarkably faithful tribute to the screwball comedies of the 1930s and surrounding years, but a film that exists on the exact same level as them, being just as compelling and entertaining, and being worthy of standing beside these major works, rather than just being designed to imitate their most successful qualities. We don’t often find such works, so when we do come across them, it’s impossible to not celebrate and appreciate their approach, which reminds us of a very special moment in the industry’s history, and the marvellous people involved in the creation of these stories.

The impetus behind the creation of What’s Up, Doc? was initially due to Bogdanovich being pitched the opportunity to work with Barbra Streisand, granted that he had an idea that was thought to be worthy of her talents and efforts, since she was rapidly ascending around this time, being very close to reaching her peak of stardom (which has essentially never faded, to the surprise of her many detractors that doubted she’d ever make it in Hollywood) – and from this proposal, the director cobbled together a team of writers and set forward to make a film that would undeniably be one of the esteemed actors’ greatest roles, and proof that she was not only a terrific actress, but an exceptional comedic performer, something that she had shown a great prowess towards in recent years, with her decision to expand beyond someone who had their origins in musical theatre being a terrific choice that saw her take on many fascinating roles. It’s not hyperbolic to say that Streisand is one of the most magnetic performers to ever work in film – her very presence feels immense, and her ability to take a character like Judy “Burnsy” Maxwell and transform her from a relatively “daffy girl” (as the director referred to her) and into one of the most stunningly entertaining heroines of this era of Hollywood only speaks to her incredible gifts and undeniable charisma, the likes of which we have never seen. Comparatively, Ryan O’Neal was also at his peak (and did some of his best work under Bogdanovich), and while he has quite appropriately gone out of favour due to his personal issues, his performance in What’s Up, Doc? is excellent, and reminds us of a time when he was one of the most compelling actors of his generation, someone who may not be all that charismatic, but had a very unique quality that made him the perfect patsy for his more exuberant co-stars, Streisand being one of the best. The pair have insatiable chemistry, and create a couple of unforgettable characters that brilliantly define this film and help the director bring it to the screen as per his audacious vision.

There were countless moments in What’s Up, Doc? in which the film could have so easily fallen apart at the seams, especially considering Bogdanovich was still a relatively young director – but as we saw in nearly everything he did, he didn’t enter into the industry as a naive greenhorn, and instead emerged as someone with a fully-formed vision of the kinds of films that he wanted to make. He was the rare instance of a filmmaker who was both a terrific artist and someone who brought an almost academic quality to his productions – not necessarily in a way that felt stuffy or verbose, but rather came from a place of careful planning and a profound understanding of the details that go into the filmmaking process. He was a marvellous storyteller and technician, often using his skillfulness and knowledge of film to produce works that feel genuinely very compelling. What’s Up, Doc? is one of his most challenging films, despite seeming extraordinarily easy in terms of the tone and narrative – there’s a bizarre sentiment that broad comedies are somehow easy to make, with the idea being that all one needs is a strong script and good actors, which is often true, but not with something as meticulously-plotted as this, where every moment needs to be meaningful, since they all converge into a single narrative that would spiral out of control as a result of even the smallest and most seemingly insignificant error or plot hole. It has many tremendously funny ideas, but also has the artistic integrity to support them, allowing What’s Up, Doc? to be a far more encapsulating film than other romantic comedies from this era, where the emphasis was on delivering the jokes in as straightforward a format as possible, rather than taking the chance on a more ambitious idea, which not every filmmaker is capable of achieving without a considerable amount of work, which only proves the relentless genius of Bogdanovich, who frequently produced films of an immensely high calibre, especially at his peak.

There aren’t many films produced in the last few decades that have been able to capture the pure magic that Hollywood is able to conjure up on occasion, especially in terms of filmmaking that is driven less by the spectacle, and more by the desire to give viewers a genuine human experience while still entertaining them. It’s not even a case of wanting to disparage the current state of the industry, since some excellent work is still being done very frequently – it just feels like we are constantly overlooking situations in which films like What’s Up, Doc? can emerge, which is essentially nothing more than a very gifted director taking a strong script with a few remarkable actors, and just throwing it all together to form an enticing and captivating comedy that feels simple but expansive. Perhaps it is just a case of lamenting the past, since we tend to view films like this with a sense of nostalgia, and where everything produced more recently is going to feel like it pales in comparison. However, the brilliance of this film goes far beyond just looking at it through rose-tinted glasses – despite being released half a century ago, this film does not feel like it has aged even a day. The humour is fresh and frequently funny (and part of Bogdanovich’s brilliance is his ability to use jokes that are timeless – there’s very little in any of his films that restricts them to a specific date unless it is entirely on purpose), and the atmosphere is one that draws the viewer in and invites us to get lost in this world, rather than feeling like we are just observing these zany antics from the outside. As a whole, What’s Up, Doc? is a comedic masterpiece, a delightfully irreverent and compelling film that pays sufficient tribute to the screwball comedy genre, as well as giving its actors some of their best work. It’s a charming film, the kind of compelling, off-the-wall comedy that feels crafted by a genuinely gifted artist, and which remains as entertaining today as it did decades ago, which is always one of the clearest signs of an artwork destined to remain a cultural touchpoint, and quite simply one of the best comedies Hollywood ever produced.