This was the film I was most looking forward to seeing during the festival. Not many people mentioned it, but it did garner one of the biggest line-ups (the line wrapped around the block) and was one of the more highly attended screenings. I got even more excited when I saw director Bobcat Goldthwait hanging in the theatre. Before it got too crowded, I walked over, said I was a fan of his work and was really looking forward to this movie. He smiled, humbly replied thank you and I sat back down as the theatre began to fill. The festivals Program Director introduced him to applause and cheers as Bobcat began to talk about how the Maryland Film Festival is his favorite festival to go to. He went on to say, “I don’t know what it says about Baltimore that you’ve embraced me… you’re all fucked up. The people from here come from all walks of life and that’s what separates you from the rest of them.” He went on to talk about reactions he’s been getting so far. One critic called this film “leftist snuff porn” to which Bobcat replied, “good luck rubbing one out to this… I think it’s more of a very violent movie about kindness.” Before leaving the stage, Bobcat Goldthwait talked about how nervous he was being there since he knew his mentor John Waters was in attendance. He referred to the legendary Baltimore director as the “awesome cool gay uncle that my mother didn’t want me to hang out with but I did anyway.” After the laughter died down, they dimmed the lights and…
The movie starts off with a bang. Well, a few bangs. Frank (played perfectly by Joel Murray) start off with an inner monologue about where he is in life and what he thinks society is coming to as he begins to fantasize about killing the neighbors. From there we see cinematic adaptations of people we see through out daily lives and the douche-baggery they all practice. Every character we meet as Frank goes to work, we’ve seen before and we couldn’t stand them. Frank goes into a diatribe at work with a fellow employee and get’s called into his boss’s office. Apparently Frank is involved romantically with another employee and that’s against HR policy. He gets let go. Then at the doctors office he finds out he’s got a brain tumor and only a few months left to live. At home, contemplating suicide with a gun in his mouth, he spots a show about a girl who didn’t get the right car she wanted from her super rich parents and then it hits him; why kill himself when there are others worth killing. Along the way he meets Roxy (a scene stealing performance from Tara Lynne Barr) and the two team up to take their vengeance upon rude filmgoers, political pundits, pedophiles, reality tv stars, and countless others. While you won’t get the profound emotional depth or character development seen in Goldthwait’s previous works (Sleeping Dogs Lie, World’s Greatest Dad) you will get a vivid satire that cuts to the core and keeps you laughing from beginning to end. Many critics have sighted that as a problem, but the writing itself is so biting and quick that you can almost forgive the few shortcomings this film has and appreciate the violence and satire behind it. The soundtrack dusts off a few deep cuts that sound great in the background as these characters, as modern as they are, dress in retro clothing that nods to other like-minded films such as Bonnie and Clyde and Natural Born Killers. Some might find this film too violent and others might not see it as violent enough, but if you can look past it’s bloody exterior and into it’s satirical heart there is a message to be learned by all. This film will start with a limited release and then expand into a wide one. Cinephile, average moviegoer, whoever; go see this movie!
As the lights came up, Bobcat began his Q&A by saying, “ I don’t know what the deal is with you people… you laugh at the part I laugh at.” To which the crowd resumed its enormous applause. Surprisingly enough the MPAA gave this film no problems when assigning it an R rating and nothing had to be cut from the film to geth that R. A director’s cut does exist but it’s nothing more than extra fake tv shows and longer scenes of the ones shown in the film. But to no surprise, this film tested poorly with middle-aged women. An audience member pointed out there is no Facebook in the film. Bobcat explained that the movie is slightly dated because it was written two years ago. And as far as holding back goes, there were some wet t-shirt contests and riots after a hockey game but some of the actors felt like it was a bit overkill so those scenes were not shot. When casting Roxy, Disney actually sent over Tara Lynne Barr (who is actually anti-gun) because Goldthwait didn’t want to go the goth or Lolita approach, he wanted something in between. Upon revealing that Barr came via Disney, Bobcat exclaimed, “Walt Disney is rolling over in his grave or cryogenic chamber or….” Another fun anecdote was when Joel Murray came to Bobcat and said, “Ya know, I’ve played so many suicidal characters that I can tell the caliber of a gun by its taste.” As dark as that is, you have to admit it’s hilarious. When writing, Bobcat likes to lock himself away into a hotel room for a few days and not come out until everything is written. As far as what’s next, Bobcat recently read a story about a minister in Wisconsin who got arrested for stealing aborted fetuses and giving them proper Christian burials. He’s calling it a “Pro-Choice Zombie Fetus Movie.” He also wants to do a musical and a genre piece.
