Serial Review: The Green Hornet (13 Episodes; 2 Discs)

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2023
Images from the Internet

The Green Hornet
Directed by Ford I. Beebe (d. 1978); Ray Taylor (d. 1952)
Universal Pictures; VCI Entertainment; MVD Visual
258 minutes (appx. 20 min per episode), 1940 / 2023
www.VCIentertainment.com
www.MVDVisual.com

The last serial I reviewed was 1946’s The Monster and the Ape. And now, here we are with an even earlier one, The Green Hornet. No, do not expect Bruce Lee (d. 1973) as Kato, the role on the television series that arguably made him a household name in North America.

Not counting the extras on this Blu-ray, which I will get to later, there are over four hours of the main attraction. In the day, you would have to wait week-by-week to see the entire piece, which would be over 3 months. Now, it is all in one go, and thanks to the new habit of binge-watching entire seasons of shows, this is quite doable (though it will probably take me a few days to get through all of them, and the extras… I have a life…).

Unlike most modern heroes, such as Batman and Spider-Man, both of which came later, the Green Hornet character started out as a radio series in 1936, created by George W. Trendle (d. 1972), transferring into the serial and adapted by Fran Striker (d. 1962), thanks to its esteem. It was popular enough to snag the original radio series, two different film serials in the 1940s, the infamous television show in the 1960s, and a major film in 2011 with Seth Rogan of all people as the title character. The 13 Chapters of this program are listed below. One of the most recognized theatrical serials released, this is naturally in black and white, but it is a crisp, new 2K scan of the original 35mm master.

In this first of two series, the focus is not exclusively on the enemies of the State (i.e., spies) from the War in Europe, but the good old Racketeers and gangsters. Right off the Bat-man, in an unnamed city, we meet rich newspaper heir Britt Reid (Gordon Jones; d. 1963; note that the voice of the Green Hornet is Al Hodge, d. 1979, who played him on the radio and would go on to portray “Captain Video” on television) and his Korean scientific genius sidekick/”valet” Kato (Keye Luke; d. 1991, known as Master “Snatch the pebble…” Po from the “Kung Fu” television series). In the heavy exposition (as it is the first episode), Reid saved Kato’s life in Asia, and he is now working for him in gratitude; in the opening scene, Kato invents a new and faster car motor, which Reid states, “Wait until I release this on the world.” Wait, it was invented by Kato… Oh, yeah, it is the 1940s. Also helping in the house is brogue-speaking ex-cop/reporter/bodyguard Michael (Wade Boteler; d. 1943) who, unlike Alfred the Butler in Batman, is unaware of the Green Hornet’s identity; he is, however, the comic relief.

The other two main “good guys” are the only returning female in the cast, Reid’s feisty secretary, Lenore Case (Anne Nagel, who would star opposite Lon Chaney Jr. in 1941’s Man-Made Monster; d. 1966) and on occasion, the fast-talking reporter at The Sentinel, Jasper Jenks (Phillip Trent, d. 2001). Notably, there are only three other women who appear, all in a single chapter, and all uncredited. Future star Alan Ladd (d. 1964) has a bit part as a novice pilot (also uncredited).

A line that comes up often is “a new Robin Hood” as the incentive for the vigilante. The Green Hornet’s goal is to wipe out corruption between politicians and a variety of other scams, such as construction company who are using kickbacks to use faulty equipment and materials in their building sites, insurance fraud, a car thief ring, and so on over the course of the 13 chapters, though most of the topics are revolved around transportation. The syndicate is run by a mysterious man on the phone.

Like Batman in the early days especially, Greenie is seen by the police establishment as a bad guy, possibly trying to get rid of the syndicate to start his own. Only a loyal employee sees the good side.

The Green Hornet’s car, Black Beauty, is souped up by Kato (who was originally Japanese on the radio show but switched due to the war in the Asian Theater), makes a buzzing sound like a hornet, that I have learned is made by a Theremin. It is supposed to go 200 miles an hour, but as it speeds past the camera (in sped up footage), the sound is flat, without a doppler effect. Even that is not mentioned in the IMDB list of goofs. Strangely, most people get into their vehicles from the passenger side, rarely from the driver’s. The soundtrack that is worth noting is the nearly constant use of Rimsky-Korsakov’s 1900 “Flight of the Bumblebee,” for obvious reasons.

The acting is completely wooden as is true of nearly all B-films of the period (not just serials), as if doing stage acting, and the dialogue is laughable. However, this is truly fun to watch, and it really is better done than most other serials I have seen. It also mixed footage shot for the series, as well as adding in some historical b-roll (e.g., mining, dam building, etc.), especially in the first chapter. As for the car chases, well it is pretty obvious they play the same footage throughout all the chapters. I am sure this was a wise budgetary decision: remember, the B in B-films could stand for low Budget. These features were not made to make money on their own, but to draw people in with a stream of cliffhangers (a term originated in serials) to see the feature film and its lesser budget companion (e.g., double bill).

It is also fun to check out the tropes of the time, just before gangster films were phasing out for war propaganda and a hint of realism, though one story deals with illegal arms shipments by someone with a slight German accent (Fredrik Vogeding; d. 1942). For example, everyone wears dark suits and ties, fedora hats, and when guns are fired, they are always handguns, with the shooter standing straight up, one foot slightly behind the other, and shooting at waist level. There are numerous fist fights in every episode, and all are unintentionally humorous and cliché. Love this stuff.

Wade Boteler, Anne Nagel, Gordon Jones, Phillip Trent

There are lots of fine, subtle moments, such as the visual of a phone dial spinning melding into another location of a truck tire going ‘round. In another, Chase saying a line and cutting to one of the bad guys saying the same line. It is reasons like this that this serial was so popular.

The extras are on the second disc. They start with Don Blair and Chris Rowe reading from Clifford Weimer’s “I Am…The Green Hornet:’ Chapter Six: The Hornet in Hollywood’” (8 min). This is part of an “autobiography” taken from the perspective of The Hornet, “himself.” It is done with old-radio style vocals discussing the jump from aural to visual. Continuing with the audio aspect are two earlier radio episodes of “The Green Hornet”: “The Parking Lot Racket” (1939) and “The Highway that Graft Wrote” (1940; appx. 30 min each). The last digital extra is a Trivia (e.g., Reid is the grand-nephew of The Lone Ranger) and Photo Gallery. On the physical side is a lengthy booklet written by prolific cultural historian Martin Grams Jr.

Serial title list (disc 1):
Chapter 1: The Tunnel of Terror
Chapter 2: The Thundering Terror
Chapter 3: Flying Coffins
Chapter 4: Pillar of Flame
Chapter 5: The Time Bomb
Chapter 6: Highways of Peril
Chapter 7: Bridge of Disaster
Chapter 8: Dead or Alive
Serial title list (disc 2):
Chapter 9: The Hornet Trapped
Chapter 10: Bullets and Ballots
Chapter 11: Disaster Rides the Rails
Chapter 12: Panic in the Zoo
Chapter 13: Doom of the Underworld

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Safe House 1618

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2022
Images from the Internet

Safe House 1618
Directed by Calvin T. Shepherd
Outsiders Film Company; Black Sparrow Media; High Octane Pictures
102 minutes, 2021 / 2022
www.facebook.com/calvintshepherdfilms
www.octanemultimedia.com/

There is no question the three Holt sisters are badass, possibly the most I have seen since the trio in House of Bad (2013). They are on a mission for revenge, which is how we are introduced to them in the prologue. Even with full masks and not speaking for this part, you start to get a feel for their personalities which are sure to come up though the story.

For identification purposes, Joelene (Jasmine Day) is the short, gothy black haired one. Lee (Matison Card) is the redhead who assumes leadership. The last is the rebellious blonde Jamie (Brittney Carpenter), who listens to music via a headset in the shower (who does that?!). The last “fourth wheel” is their male driver, Craig (Jesse Davis), who is a bit of a dick who is not the sharpest stick, and not to mention a pill addict. After the hit that opens the film, they are given a safe house (guess the address?; filmed near Ft. Collins, CO) for forty days. Also, their go-between betwixt the world and a way out of the country and the assassins is (again, male), The Doctor (Randy Rochford in a cameo).

There are a lot of issues facing the crew, including a lack of cohesiveness between the sisters, each one isolating in their own way (not to mention the contraband against the rules of the house, which they are warned about by The Doctor), and a heavy dose of cabin fever. However, that all is the least of their problems, as their victim was the son of a (assuming Republican) nasty politician, Senator Kelly (Andrew Hook), who is withholding evidence to the police to take care of his own revenge-for-the-revenge problem – even though his son was an abusive and violent Matthew Cawthorn-type) through his own dubious connections. The hit man dispatched is the evil, methodical, and soulless No. 1 (Ryan Fredericks).

Brittany Carpenter, Jasmine Day, Matison Card

The question is, who will be the weakest link of the house’s occupants? Mentally unstable with PTSD and vivid nightmares, some of which we get to see? Jamie, who misses her boyfriend and takes risks to express that? Lee, who is suffering from a case of concussion? Or the slacker, horny and stoned driver? Which ever it comes to be, it’s inevitable that No. 1 will show up at the house, and the games will begin (my guess is in the third act)

Through a sheer case of stupidity (mixed with cabin fever), sure enough, No. 1 finds the place (will not say how but you can see it coming a mile away), and that is when the tension escalates, and the killing begins. No. 1 has a reputation, as is explained earlier, of being unkillable. Is this a supernatural touch added to the story, or is it that he’s just too damn good at his job? Either way, I am curious to see who walks out of this alive (I have my guess, that again, I will not share).

An opportunity lost here is that the house itself could have been made more of a character. Sure, the red light in the bathroom, newspapers on the wall, all help you know where you are, and some of the secrets they reveal that will be exploited later, but it is just there, when it could have been made so much more, especially since they are trapped in there for so many days. It really is neither here nor there for the storyline, just a musing on my part. However, I believe it was a wise choice to only show No. 1’s face once in the whole film, with lots of POV shots to represent him; other times, he is disguised.

Matison Card

The film nicely builds upon itself using layers of tension and violence, but even so, it could use editing, such as the step-by-step shots of making a packaged salad (which I am certain is to show a purposeful methodology of the killer, but is not interesting), or the driver’s psychedelic revelry (while it is cinematographically interesting, it does not add much to the story). Sometimes, and this is true of other films as well, the tension of an action about to occur that is obviously coming, lasts too long to the point of either annoyance or boredom, and that happens at least once here. Again, it is in the editing.

That being said, once the violence starts with No. 1, and I do not believe I am giving anything away since that is the direction in which the film is going from so early on, it really kicks into high gear with both violence and bloodshed, making it worth the wait.

Jasmine Day

While I have said a couple of harsh things here, but please understand that this is an enjoyable film. While I was right about the survivor of the ordeal, that did not take away from the action. The characters were consistent, which I always like, and the acting was well played. As for the storyline, in the long run, it was well done, even those times I yelled at the screen as a character did something ridiculous, though it moved the plot along.

It is also beautifully shot with some fine artistic moments, even some I kvetched about for length, by ace cinemaphotographer Eli Solt. As a crime drama, with ramped up violence, it was worth the watch.

Available on iTunes/Apple TV, Amazon Video, VUDU Fandango, Google Play, Xbox, YouTube, and RedBox Digital.

IMDB listing HERE

Review: Baby Assassins

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2022
Images from the Internet, unless indicated

Baby Assassins (aka Beibî warukyûre)
Directed by Yugo Sakamoto
Rights Cube; Far East Films; Well Go USA Entertainment; Hi-Yah!
95 minutes, 2021 / 2022
www.wellgousa.com/films/baby-assassins
@WellGoUSA

When I first read the title, I was confused: was this about infants in diapers who kill people, or adults who kill toddlers? Of course, in both cases, I was wrong (pretty sure I would be). I should have known better as this film is from Japan.

The “babies” in question are two teenage high school girls and possibly future cosplay objects, Chisato (Akari Takahasi). and blonde Mahiro (Saori Izawa). They are the innocents who are both about to graduate from assassin school, and are highly trained to kill. Needless to say, there are some strong comic elements to the story as they butt heads.

The film is on a couple of different tiers: first, there is the stereotypical two opposites needing to work together to survive with fun and merriment, and then there are the (literally) deadly serious assassinations, where the ladies come into their own. Like many teenagers, even with their killing expertise, it’s the simple and every day tasks that are filled with angst (such as adding whip cream to a meal).

Like “The Odd Couple” (whatever incarnation), their personalities are different, and yet they overlap in Zinn Diagram means. For example, Mahiro is Gen Whatever, with a slacker attitude of not-caring or wanting to be bothered, whose wardrobe choice is PJ bottoms and a tee (at one point it’s a Lou Reed Transformers one); and yet, she has an inclination towards philosophy. Chisato, on the other hand, is more focused, but just as lost in menial tasks. Thing with Assassin School is that, as implied, they teach killing but not social skills needed for employment or fitting into society. This is a really interesting added on touch.

Reminiscent of the series “Dead Like Me” (2003-04), between assignments the women are expected to hold down jobs that will not bring much attention to them. For example, Chisato, at some point, works in a small waffle eatery as wait- and kitchen staff, but is totally out of her element.

Now, 20 minutes into the film, and we are somewhat familiar with their sitch, enter the credits and a flashback to them first being thrust together. The commentary on government bureaucracy, such as taxes, housing and basically not taking care of their own (sound familiar?) permeates the underscore of the film. This is used both as comedy fodder and with a figuratively pointed stick.

Another jab of the elbow in the side is the Japanese tendency for older men to be attractive to younger women, as I mentioned previously. Be it an assassination target or a store clerk, the two are hit on mostly by adult men. Creepy; always was, always will be.

Things get a bit darker in the third act, as our heroines are at odds over attitudes, and to add to the mix is confrontations with a Yakuza (must be powerful; he has all of his fingers), his blowhard son Kazuki (think Sonny Corleone), and revenge seeking, psychotic, over-the-top enthusiastic daughter, Himari, who seems to be about the same age as our two killin’ protagonists.

In the first two acts, there are some decent kills scattered throughout, and somewhere along the way I made a note for myself, “Increased violence in the third act?” Of course there is, including one superb fight with Izawa, who has some Taekwondo training, and a Yakuza. Now, the fight scenes are not overly choreographed to ridiculous level, with people flying through the air, or stylized like the infamous corridor scene in the original Oldboy (2003). This is sloppy in a good way, more like fighting than something sterile in a mainstream release.

I also really liked this dive into modern Japanese culture. In fact, there are two things discussed that I had to look up: the first was a food called Oden, which is a fish cake stew (ironically, I was eating fishcakes while I was watching this… ”it’s a small world, but I wouldn’t want to paint it” – Steven Wright. But I digress…). The conversation about it takes on almost a Tarantino-eque quality, without the camera needing to swirl around the couch. The other is the use of the expression Moe Moe Kyun, which apparently means something like happiness to a level of blushing.

The director does really well in translating the personality of our two assassins to be likeable characters, even when they misbehave. He also has a way of showing the mixture of action and the lull between without getting boring. It is a mash-up of the mundane and murderous mayhem. Sometimes the action comes as a surprise, which was quite pleasant, and other times, it builds up. Also, pleasant.

By the end, it kind of leaves it off as a possible franchise, as the Japanese are wont to do with police procedurals and gangster mayhem. If this comes to be true, I will enjoy seeing what happens next with Mahiro and Chisato.

The film is available on the martial arts streaming service Hi-Yah!, and the digital and Blu-ray versions will be accessible on August 16, 2022.

IMBD Listing HERE

 

Review: Diamond Cartel

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2017

Images from the Internet

Diamond Cartel

Directed by Salamat Mukkammed-Ali

Cleopatra Entertainment / Shoreline Entertainment / BES QARU Films / MVD Visual

77 minutes, 2016 / 2017

www.cleopatrarecords.com

www.mvdvisual.com

It’s always nice to occasionally get the chance to review a straight-out action flick, especially if there’s some chop-chop added in. But first some very quick background… Mukkammed-Ali is from Kazakhstan, part of the former Soviet Bloc. He started out as lead singer of a Kazakh rock band called Enoch, and then segued his way into television production, and then finally into film.

His first film, from 2015, was called The Whole World at Their Feet. This was then re-edited and is now being shown in the West as Diamond Cartel, a much more palatable name for a violence-focused part of the world (ours).

Armand Assante

One aspect that makes this stand out is the sheer star power behind it in front of the camera, with the likes of Armand Assante, Peter O’Toole (his last film as he passed in 2013; here he looks feeble and older than his 81 years), Michael Masden, Bolo Yeung (aka “Chinese Hercules,” who has aged phenomenally well for his 70 years), ex-basketballer Tommy Lister, and Don “The Dragon” Wilson, among others. All but two are basically cameos, but still. Assante is one that lasts throughout the feature.

                                                                                            

Nearly all of the dialog is dubbed into English, including the English speaking actors, but actually it is usually done quite well in the foreign-to-English actors, though sometimes dodgy in the English-to-English, such as Masden and Assante. Lister is given a bit of a stereotypical “Black slang” voice, which feels odd on so many levels (I almost expected him to say, “Yo mama!”).

The plot is both simple and complex. An international criminal named Mussa (Assante, often wearing a jacket with bare chest underneath, ironically appears and sounds a bit like Sylvester Stallone, as they played brothers in 1995’s Judge Dredd). He’s ready to pay $30 million for the Star of East diamond, in US$10,000 bills, no less.

Kadygash Mukkamedzhanova

After double- and triple-crosses, young lovers Aliya (Karlygash Mukkamedzhanova) and Ruslan (Aleksey Frandetti, dropping a young Keanu Reeves vibe complete with whoa-period hairstyle) are on the run from both ruthless sides of the diamond sale equation, having absconded with the diamond and the cash, as they drive through Kazakhstan with the others in pursuit. But it’s Nurlan Altaev as enforcer Arman, who is a childhood friend of the two runaways and is now one of the parties chasing them, that steals the film in his cool clothes and mostly stoic stance; he plays his emotions very subtly here.

The story is a bit convoluted, and the dialogue is quite overwrought, but all-in-all, it was pretty enjoyable. There is lots of primary references throughout the film, such as Scarface (1983), I, Claudius (1976), Sergio Leone westerns, and a subtle nod to Bruce Lee’s The Way of the Dragon (aka Return of the Dragon,1971), but especially True Romance (1993).

Nurlan Altaev

There is a lot of action going on including some martial arts, but mostly it’s gun play of various calibers, with people getting blown up good, real good, from a variety of weapons. Most of the blood and gore is digital, and it certainly looks digi, but there is a fair amount that is unexpected, pretty graphic, and made me smile.

The physical artistry of the film is nicely handled, such as the camerawork, the lighting, the editing, and the framing of shots. There are also some nice visual, digital effects used to warp the image at times, or change hues. But I do have a multi-fold complaint and that is mainly with the sound. There is a segment in which the sound is reverbed and hard to make out, and even though the dubbing is well handled relatively speaking, the tone of the dialog is flattened so everyone sounds like they’re at the same level, whether close to the camera or not. This took me a bit out of the story, especially the echoing segment.

Most the acting is pretty typical for Asian dramas: lots of wide eyes showing emotion, or cool-as-ice anger. Aleksey and especially Mukkamedzhanova fall into the former, and Altaev excels in the later. O’Toole looks like he’s just barely conscious about what is going on around him, but the over-acting award definitely goes to Assante who looks like he is trying to top Pacino at his most manic as Tony Montana. Often it comes across as clownish, but part of that may be the overdubbing of his voice, which at the very least contributes quite a bit.

Even when holding back, a lot of the high drama acting of most of the characters is kind of like horses straining at the rein, but again, that’s pretty common in many Asian action films. This story plays more like something out of China or Japan than from Soviet influences that I’ve seen elsewhere, which tends to be more towards the understated.

There is a nice and varied soundtrack that runs through, from metal and punk, to noise and more soothing, background type stuff. Some of the bands included are Christian Death and Anti-Nowhere League (Animal was actually quite nice when I met him in the ‘80s, but so what, I digress…).

The extras are a noisy kind of black metal/rap-ish thingy by DMX and Blackburner, a 2:43 slideshow of clips, and the trailer. Oh, and chapter breaks, of course.

So, you may be asking yourself if this worth the investment of your time? Well, if you like crime and/or action films, yeah, it is. There are at least two nice shoot-em-up set scenes and some cool car chases and crashes. But the real violence is held for the guns, which is done kind of imaginatively, even though shooting from a motorcycle sailing overhead has been done to – err – death.

Not as gritty as some of the Japanese crime dramas, but there is a level of glee that you can share with the action. In other words, if you don’t cringe at Assante’s emoting, then you most certainly will get a good contact buzz off whatever it is he seems to be on.

Review: Catch of the Day

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet

Catch of the Day

Written, produced, edited and directed by James Balsamo
Acid Bath Productions
137 minutes / 2014
www.acidbathproductions.com
www.mvdvisual.com

James Balsamo is a smart cookie for someone from out on the Island (Lowng’Giland, of course). You see, he knows his budget is smaller than a Republican’s heart (or penis), so what he does is he goes to horror conventions to hawk his previous, fun films (reviewed HERE) and gets to meet varied and numerous genre performers, and gets them to do a bit here and there, and then figures out how to work it into the story.

A good example is the opening of this film, which is a close-up of Jason Mewes (Kevin Smith’s “hetero life partner”) ranting about the lead character, which essentially is a fun albeit pointless moment. Still, getting him to do this was – er – cool as hell. It also explains why the cast list goes on for miles, and there are some amazing cameos throughout. Brilliant move, as far as I’m concerned, and more about that later.

Rod (as in rod and reel?) Davis, played by our intrepid director, is a cop who is a rebel, ready to shoot and then ask question, and, well, a bit of a dumb douche. Mocking the older cops, not caring about anyone but himself, and way too fond of donuts and dames, he is – for the lack of a better term – not having a good steam of luck. After screwing up an extensive police sting with the help of his partner Harry Chu (Jeff Kim), among other things, he is suspended from the police force. On top of that, he’s just been kick to the curb by his girlfriend, Buffy Flenderhawk (Jennifer Banko).

Yet despite all his woes in the first act, this film is actually quite funny, and not just because of Balsamo’s self-referential I Spill Your Guts tee, which is doubly funny because it’s a cop wearing a slasher film shirt.

To me, one of the funniest person in here and in most of Balsamo’s flicks is Frank Mullen, who plays the villainous golden-handed mobster, who makes puns that would make Egghead and Catwoman from the 1966 Batman groan. Essentially every character he plays in a Balsamo release is the same person: the hot-headed guy who fuckin’ curses like a fuckin’ horse, ya fuckin’ mook! He makes me smile.

Which is a nice segway that brings me to the next point, namely that this film is stuffed full of racial slurs (especially towards Asians and directed at Chu, mostly by Davis, e.g., referring to themselves as “the gook and the mook”), boobs, dicks (full frontal), rubbery guts and gore, just as rubbery fish masks and hands, and those previously mentioned cameos up the culo. Y’got your Johnny Legend, Nick Principe (whose performance was so strong in Collar), an absolutely hysterical turn by the amazing Ms. Debbie Rochon, Carmine Capobianco (who was also great in The Sins of Dracula), facially tattooed fighter Tim Dax (who’s moment is very funny), John Link, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, pornstar/wrestler/journalist Jasmine St. Claire, many metal musicians, and even the Candyman himself, Tony Todd. Most of these short stints are close-ups of the person telling about how bad a cop Davis is, and what he did to them.

Kara Hankard (Donna) and James Balsamo (Rod)

The story is a bit of a hodgepodge: you have your mad scientist named Ben Jackal (Edward X. Young, overacting to the nth degree in a Dr. Strangelove kind of homage, and who was also fun in Mold!) making cocaine and also turning people into murderous fish mutants, a group of mobsters (led by Mullens’ “Man with the Golden Hand” – as opposed to arm, of course) who seeks revenge against anyone associated with Davis’ murdered cop dad (a hilarious turn by Irwin Keyes), a possible upcoming marriage between Chu and Davis’ sister, Roxanne (the fun to watch Shannon Mann), and the budding relationship between Davis and Roxanne’s bestie (also the assistant for Jackal), Donna (the lovely and wide-eyed Kara Hankard).

You may think with all these goings-on, it may get a bit muddled. Well, yeah, but honestly that’s part of the fun. This film had me laughing more than some mainstream comedies, and definitely beyond anything Seth Rogan or Adam Sandler have put out in the last…well…ever. It’s crude, it’s rude, it’s juvenile and it doesn’t really start or go anywhere; but considering the relatively low budget we’re talking about here, it’s a joyride all the way through its 2-hour-plus running time. Normally, I would whine about the length, but this piece of purposeful stupidity (there is even a nod to the kings of physical clowns, the Three Stooges) just keeps going like that battery rabbit, and kept my attention all the way through.

Just when you think it can’t get any weirder, suddenly there’s a Bollywood musical scene (in my mind I heard Anna Kendricks saying “What?!”, if you get the reference). Then there is an inserted part of the New York PRIDE parade, for no other reason than Balsamo was there with his camera; oh, and I suppose so he could also say that he had then-Mayor Bloomberg in his film. And a Stanley Weiner shot while the soundtrack played a gay song about wieners? Priceless.

Speaking of the small budget, I’m a bit baffled by one thing. I’m pretty sure a lot of this is guerilla filmmaking around New York and Long Island locales, but there is also a large presence of real cops interacting with Balsamo, including a SWAT team and harbor patrol. That was super impressive!

So, with some rough edits, some questionable acting, additional dialogue that feels ad-libbed at the moment, and an interesting mostly-metal soundtrack, this silly-silly-silly film is a laugh riot of childishness that had me looking forward to Balsamo’s next release, the vampire/mafia mash-up Bite School.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKHGgo5288w