Where's Poppa? is a 1970 comedy film directed by Carl Reiner. It stars George Segal, Ruth Gordon, and Trish Van Devere.
The plot concerns Gordon Hocheiser, a single lawyer who cares for his senile and obnoxious live-in mother. After falling instantly in love with his mother's new nurse, Louise, Gordon struggles to finally achieve some measure of happiness despite his mother's inadvertent sabotage.
Tropes:
- Actor Allusion: Muthafucka, the street gangster sent to chase down Sidney, is played by former NFL running back Israel Lang.
- Almost Kiss: Gordon and Louise lock eyes and slowly move closer and closer, but Gordon keeps singing a love song, delaying the kiss until he's called away, and it's too late.
- Ambiguously Jewish: The Hocheiser brothers, Sidney's wife, and Sidney's son are all played by Jews, but the family's faith is never brought up.
- Black Comedy Rape: Sidney is peer-pressured by his muggers to rape a woman that they caught, which is played for comedy, especially after it turns out that the rape victim was an undercover male cop who enjoyed the experience.
- Bleak Abyss Retirement Home: Gus & Grace's, a dilapidated retirement home staffed by a single, belligerent man who admits that he sometimes doesn't have time to see if anyone died during the night.
- Catchphrase: Mrs. Hocheiser repeatedly asks "Where's Poppa?", referring to her husband. She apparently has no memory that he's long dead.
- Cherry Tapping: When Muthafucka chases down Sidney and catches up to him, he starts running backwards alongside Sidney, illustrating that Sidney has no chance of losing him.
- Gangbangers: A group of black street toughs hangs around Central Park and mugs Sidney every time he cuts through there. They are 1970s style, wearing hip and fashionable apparel despite their lifestyle.
- Market-Based Title: It was re-released under the title Going Ape due to the Running Gag of the gorilla costume.
- Morning Routine: The film opens with Gordon's miserable morning routine, which takes a detour when he starts putting on a gorilla costume...
- Naked People Are Funny: Sidney is stripped of all his clothes by the street gang, forcing him to arrive at Gordon's apartment building completely naked.
- No Name Given: Neither Gordon's mother nor his father is ever named.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: The fleet-footed gang member is only ever referred to by his nickname, Mothafucka.
- Overly Long Gag: Gordon and Louise are having an intense Almost Kiss, and Gordon sings a verse of a love song to her, but when she's expecting him to finally kiss her, he sings another verse... and then another verse... and then another verse, causing her to get increasingly flustered.
- Questioning Title?: "Where's Poppa?"
- Shout-Out: The leader of the Central Park gang asks whether Sidney has ever seen The Naked Prey and decides to base his torment of Sidney in that film.
- Sweet Tooth: Mrs. Hocheiser apparently has one, given that she eats Lucky Charms floating in Dr. Pepper for breakfast.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Gordon has no reaction to Sidney arriving at his apartment completely naked.
