Let It Ride

It's a mystery how thespians on the order of Richard Dreyfuss and Teri Garr couldn't see that they were making a turkey large enough to sustain a small metropolis' total Thanksgiving needs, but that's precisely the case with Let It Ride. Covering one day at the racetrack, Miami cabdriver Jay Trotter (Dreyfuss) gets a hot tip on a longshot, bets his wad ($50), and then lets it ride for a couple of races until he's amassed over 300G. A story about Jimmy Swaggart attaining sainthood would be more plausible. Without a story, the guilty parties try to ramrod the film through with hysterical overacting by Dreyfuss and Garr (who plays his victimized wife Pam). Our sympathies go to Dede Allen, who had the thankless job of editing this mess--but understandably wasn't able to make much sense out of reams of unconnected baloney. About the only thing that comes out of this film--except for a headache--is that gambling, as an addiction, gets an unnecessary promotional push from people who not only don't give a damn about their subject, but demonstrate considerable ignorance about it to boot. Not recommended. (R. Pitman)