Synopsis
A mockumentary that depicts the final concert of Yosh and Stan Shmenge aka the Happy Wanderers.
The Last Polka
1985 Directed by John Blanchard
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Theatrical
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USAPG
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USA
15 Apr 1985
- TheatricalPG
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Available on YouTube: long before the arrival of New Zealand's fourth most popular folk duo, Flight of the Conchords, the world was gifted with a mockumentary honoring another pair of musical trailblazers, The Last Polka. Originally aired on HBO, this production gently satirizing Scorsese's The Last Waltz chronicles the modest beginnings, meteoric rise and dramatic conclusion of the chart-topping Shmenge brothers from the (fictional) nation of Leutonia, who will win you over with their exceptional love for polka melodies.
As first seen in the "Happy Wanderers" sketches on SCTV, Yosh (John Candy) and Stan Shmenge (Eugene Levy) bring old-fashioned charm to their tremendous catalog (88 albums!) of cheerful accordion-and-clarinet ditties. To commemorate their farewell concert, the film looks back at…
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"It was almost a moving experience."
After the cast of SCTV called it a day, John Candy and Eugene Levy gave two of their recurring characters -- Leutonia's most famous sons, Yosh and Stan Shmenge, the Happy Wanderers, who specialized in polka medleys of popular songs -- their own comedy special, a This Is Spinal Tap-style parody of The Band's The Last Waltz. As with a lot of SCTV's character-based sketches, the humor is rooted more in behavior than overt punchlines, but this yielded its share of laugh-out-loud moments. (One of my favorites: the stage-clearing tuba solo.) And the participation of fellow SCTV vets Rick Moranis, Catherine O'Hara, Robin Duke, and Dave Thomas (plus Juul Haalmeyer, albeit without his dancers) didn't hurt, either.
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Why watch The Last Waltz when you can watch this and get the Shmenges, a tuba solo, and Rick Moranis doing a road song medley
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Starting the post-Halloween season the way any normal person should, with Candy.
A little tighter and this would've been perfect. -
Great movie featuring what I honestly believe is Canada's answer to the blues brothers.
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Much of this is funny and clever. Rick Moranis’ polka performance is a standout imho. However the voices get a little old and then get pretty grating. And it’s just way too much polka. It’s essentially an hour of very similar polkas on repeat. To make it through without fast forwarding was a real test of will.