Dan Aykroyd plays John Burns, a psychiatric patient under the care of the medically inept Dr. Baird. The two share a fierce rivalry culminating in Baird threatening to send Burns to a maximum security institution where he will be used for testing. Baird is also planning on leaving town to fill in for a psychiatrist radio show host who has fallen into a mid-life crisis. There's an identity mix up and Burns is mistaken for Baird, leading to him being the host of the show. But, believe it or not, Burns is actually better than the original host-and he has the popularity to prove it. He soon becomes the most listened to talk show in the U.S. and he definitely has the numbers to prove it. But, eventually the real Baird finds out about the mix up and attempts to track down Burns. What follows is a nice little cat and mouse game of a movie with some pretty decent acting on Dan Ayrkoyd's part. Walter Matthau also gives a good performance as Burns' cross country tag along.The tone of the film is incredibly well balanced and the jokes are mostly hits. In fact, there's nothing too terribly wrong with this film. It's surprising it's gained a reputation as a terrible film. It has a lot of heart in the story and it's very well cast. Dan Aykroyd is perfect as con-man John Burns. His performance is reminiscent of Bill Murray in "Stripes", which is an interesting turn for Aykroyd, considering by this time he had been type cast as the techno babbling sideman. It's interesting seeing Aykroyd in a full on lead role.So, overall, "The Couch Trip" is a fun little comedy It's nothing groundbreaking or spellbinding-but it is definitely a creative take on the cat and mouse genre. It's definitely not just your ordinary, average comedy.

There are a couple of significant problems with this film, although that's not to say that it's not worth watching. After all, I could have just turned if off, but I stuck with it.First, the longer I sat watching the film, particularly in the scenes in the mental institution, I had this feeling that Ackroyd was being very smug here. The "aren't I just terribly funny and clever" syndrome. Which is not to say that he wasn't fairly funny. But it bothered me. And, at least in that part of the film, things just happened so easily...and almost totally illogically. Things improved once he took up his role as a fake psychiatrist radio personality.Second, if you're watching this film because of Walter Matthau, you're probably going to be disappointed. He's very clearly the second or third banana here, and that's quite a step-down from his star status of less than a decade earlier. Yes, his role is critical to the story, but just about anyone could have played the park.Charles Grodin always worked out pretty well when a part suited him. This is not one of those times.I don't even know what to write about this movie. It's just "okay"; has a few funny moments. But it's just disappointing. Maybe watch it once. I can see why the IMDb is so low.

I would agree with the comments already posted to this site by the previous rater.I first stumbled across this movie back in the '80s, when I was employed at a psychiatric hospital. Unfortunately, many of the barbs aimed at the psychiatric profession do hit home. I especially enjoyed the ending, where the psychiatrist would speak thru the door to the hospitalized Grodin. Trust me, its fairly accurate.Of course, doors at most psych hospitals are not locked, nor are straightjackets used much these days, and any hospital MUST be licensed to have a "padded room".But a wonderfully underrated film, and certainly one that is quite amusing.Jeff

To say I wasn't expecting much sitting down to watch "The Couch Trip" is an understatement. I had no idea what it was about - I thought it was going to be a journey into the realm of sexuality when I heard Chevy Chase played a condom man and the movie's title involves the word "couch trip," *wink, wink.* Then I figured out that it had something to do with a mental institute and a patient escaping. My expectations dropped even lower.I was literally expecting a grin movie - the type where you grin once and walk out feeling a bit cheated. And in a way, this is cheap comedy - it doesn't have the greatest gags, the plot is ludicrous, but you know what? I had a big dumb smile on my face the entire time I was watching it.Dan Aykroyd plays John Burns, a patient at a mental hospital who may or may not actually be mental. He gives the psychiatrist, Lawrence Baird (David Clennon), plenty of grief and misery, which leads us to believe he is a sane person after all.Following a little bit of a riot in the mental institute's cafeteria, Burns is awaiting a tongue-lashing from Baird in his office when the phone rings. Burns picks it up, pretends to be Baird, and finds out the caller on the other line, Harvey Michaels (Richard Romanus), wants the real Dr. Baird to come fill in for a radio shrink named George Maitlin (Charles Grodin), who is taking a vacation with his wife, Vera (Mary Gross). Michaels wants Baird so bad he has even booked him a ticket on an airplane.Burns escapes the institute with the help of a receptionist, and drives to O'Hare. He gets Dr. Baird's ticket, gets on the plane, and eventually poses on the air as Dr. Baird. His show is a phenomenal success. "People love him!" one man says, and the other man replies, "It's because he actually cares about them."Donald Becker (the late, great Walter Matthau) is an ex-mental patient who recognizes Burns' clothes to be confinement-issued pants and shirts. To keep him quiet, Burns promises Becker a percentage of his income. The secret is kept closed.Meanwhile, Maitlin and his wife get in an argument. He flies home to end his vacation short and realizes that the man on his talk show is not, in fact, Dr. Baird after all, but no one believes him. He gets the real Dr. Baird, but unfortunately he has lost his ID so the police take them as nutcases and don't listen to their story.Let me name just a few of the plot holes I noticed while watching this film: Burns poses as Dr. Baird, but is never asked for his ID, even when claiming his plane ticket (he was robbed, he says, but they would still make sure he is Baird). If Burns becomes so very famous, how come the real Dr. Baird in Chicago never heard people talking about him? Word travels. And finally, why would the police ever arrest Maitlin and Baird (the real Baird, that is) without following up on their stories?To be frankly honest, I couldn't care less. I went into this movie with a closed mind and it surprised me - I really liked it. It entertained me. Its ideas are essentially ludicrous and not at all realistic, but Dan Aykroyd gives a truly spirited performance as a half-a-loon that makes "The Couch Trip" a trip worth taking. 3.5/5 stars -John Ulmer