With the past several years and all the bad publicity that has come out about Bill Cosby the fact that he could be cast as an emissary of Satan himself seems less ironic these days. The other half of the title of The Devil And Max Devlin is played by Elliott Gould who is destined for the lower depths after falling into a manhole unless he agrees to get three innocents to pledge their souls.Where to find innocent souls in 1981 is the question, but in his new guise as a manager/promoter he finds promising singer Julie Budd, a BMX racer David Knell and a little kid Adam Rich with a real pretty mom in Susan Anspach.I have to tell you that I was a bit uneasy in the scenes involving Gould and Rich. It was like he was stalking as a pedophile would. How Disney Studios were comfortable with that God only knows.The Devil And Max Devlin has some interesting moments, a few laughs but not quite the hit it could have been. I would have not used the whole business with Adam Rich if I were producing the film

This is nothing like any movie I've seen before, a tale about an ungracious man who goes straight to hell and gets the chance to redeem himself by selling his soul for three others. I must admit, Bill Cosby seems more like a mere tormentor than Satan. But then again, this is a family film. If this were simply a comedy, the performance would probably be different. Anyway, this guy, Max, helps three people: a singer, a biker, and a boy who's trying to get his mother to marry. I did enjoy all three of these stories. And I really enjoyed the song "Any Fool Can See". Max eventually does become a better person, but of course, this is not what Barney really intended.*** out of ****

Elliott Gould dies in an accident and goes straight to hell to meet the devil himself (Bill Cosby), but that is not the end. Gould makes a deal to get out of hell by going back to Earth to get the souls of three young people in this would-be-comedy that is just not funny. Cosby is not on screen enough to even make a lasting impression and it is up to Gould and some sub-par young actors to carry the project. Gould does do his best, but all in all the film is just a project that wants to entertain and provide messages to its audience and failed to do either of those things. An odd production from the Disney studios. 2.5 out of 5 stars.

Elliott Gould's career slowed down after a string of R-rated films in the 60's and 70's...and came to a screeching halt in 1981. Disney's attempt in the eighties to modernize their films included casting Bill Cosby and Elliott Gould as The Devil and Max Devlin respectively. The plot involves Gould signing up three good souls for the Devil so as to replace his own soul from going down South. In concept, this is basically the flip side of Oh God! (George Burns and John Denver). Bill Cosby probably seemed like a hip if not fair replacement for George Burns (both being beloved stand-ups) but Elliott Gould was too much of a bad boy to be considered sympathetic in any film. The sort of sympathy evoked by John Denver in "Oh God!" Together, Cosby and Gould had no chemistry with little if any comic opportunities. Cosby was not very believable as the Devil and we could care less if Gould spent eternity in Hell. Singer Julie Budd was cast as one of the "good" souls (the in-joke here is that Julie Budd is a look-alike, sound-alike clone of Barbara Streisand and Streisand is the former Mrs. Gould. Of course kids who saw this film in 1981 didn't have a clue who she was...oh heck, most adults didn't know who she was...so why the trouble in casting Julie Budd?) To make things worse she sings one song "Rainbows and Roses" over and over and over and over and over again. Disney turns out more music than any film studio, couldn't they write a few songs for this film? Adam Rich (former "Eight Is Enough" social tragedy) and David Knell round out the trio in appearances that are a notch below a below-average Love Boat guest spot. Susan Anspach ("Montenegro") plays Adam Rich's mom and Gould's love interest and deserves the most sympathy for that alone.