Petty Officer Billy Bad Ass Buddusky (Jack Nicholson) and Petty Officer Mule Mulhall (Otis Young) are idling away waiting for their next assignment to come through. When it does, it comes in the unexpected form of temporary duty as chasers escorting a prisoner up to the Naval Prison in Portsmouth, N.H. The unlucky prisoner is Seaman Meadows (Randy Quaid), a sad-sack kleptomaniac who had the bad luck to filch a charity box belonging to the charity favored by the base commander's wife. For this petty crime, Seaman Meadows received the not at all petty sentence of eight years in prison. By bus and train, the trio makes its slow way to Washington, D.C., getting to know each other through average chatter. When Meadows has a mental breakdown aboard the train, Buddusky and Mulhall decide to take him off the train at Washington for a little cooling off. A quick meal of burgers and malts in a dive becomes a lesson in spine stiffening for Meadows, and when Buddusky tries to get young Meadows a beer in a bar, Bad Ass lives up to his nickname. Now determined to see that Meadows has a decent time on his way to Portsmouth, Buddusky decides to take a more leisurely approach to the trip, and they stay the night at a local motel, drinking beer and engaging in more life education for the woefully meek Meadows.

Country: US    Genre: Drama    Released: 1973   
Rating: 18    Format: