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Reviews
The Proper Care & Feeding of an American Messiah (2006)
Smart, funny comedy
This is a really funny, smart comedy by indie filmmaker Christopher Hansen featuring a brilliant performance by Dustin Olson in the lead role. In a lot of comedies like this where the lead character is supposed to be unappealing, actors still tend to play them as if, no, they're really nice guys underneath it all and really deserve the audience's sympathies.
Not so here. Not only is the "Messiah" kind of disturbing to look at, he's just a thoroughly unpleasant person. Yet, this doesn't make the film a turn-off. Olson is riveting to watch on-screen. On the one hand, you want him to finally "get it" and figure out that he's a doofus and on the other you really, really hope he gets his butt handed to him as a consequence of his behavior.
This is a very funny comedy, too, with some great set-pieces, e.g. the t-shirt debacle, the miracle of the fruit, the baptisms scheme, the guy with invisible "friends" and many others. And behind the laughs, there's a real message behind it all, which Hansen smartly doesn't bash the audience over the head with. If you want to watch it just for the jokes, there's plenty of those, but the film also raises some interesting points about the nature of faith and following false "prophets."
Animal Precinct (2001)
One of my favorite shows
I just love "Animal Precinct"! Yes, it's frequently depressing the way people treat their animals, but most episodes end happily with rehabilitated dogs, cats and everything else finding good homes with loving adoptive parents.
I lived in NYC for three years and had no idea that there were anything such as "animal cops," but I'm glad to learn that they are out there arresting people for animal abuse.
As other reviewers have noted, sometimes Annemarie appears to be the "star," but many times she doesn't even show up in an episode. And I think her partner Joanne Sandano is just as great and my real favorites are the "comic relief" team of Romano and Pentangelo. It's funny to see these tough NYC cop types get so mushy around the animals.
Michael Madsen also does a great job with the voice over narration.
The Beaver Trilogy (2000)
Genius!
THE BEAVER TRILOGY is, without a doubt, one of the most brilliant films ever made. I was lucky enough to catch it, along with a Q&A session with director Trent Harris, at the NY Video Festival a few years back and then bought a copy off of Trent's website. This movie HAS to be seen to be believed! I sincerely recommend searching for Trent's name on the web and then buying the film from his site. He's an incredibly nice guy to boot. Don't get confused: The cameraman in the fictional sections of THE BEAVER TRILOGY is NOT Trent!
After having seen the TRILOGY a few times, I do have to admit that I could probably do without the Sean Penn version. It's like a try-out version for the Crispin Glover "Orkly Kid" section and is interesting more as a curiosity item if you're a Penn fan than it being a good video. Penn is pretty funny, though, and you can see the makings of a big star in this gritty B&W video.
This is probably also one of Crispin Glover's best roles and I would just love to see an updated documentary about the original Groovin' Gary. Once you see this film, you'll never get Gary's nervous laughter out of your head ever again.
Plaster Caster (2001)
GREAT ROCK DOCUMENTARY
PLASTER CASTER is one of the most engaging and entertaining documentaries I've seen in the past couple of years. In the hands of a less gifted filmmaker, this could have been a completely tawdry and simplistic movie, but director Jessica Villines has made a classy and intelligent portrait of a unique artist.
Cynthia herself is a difficult person to figure out, but is thus endlessly fascinating. It's as if she's still stuck in the mindset of a 14-year-old rock groupie even though she's now in her mid-fifties. She also appears to give no consideration to the ramifications of her work. She's been making plaster casts of rock stars' penises for 30 years, but it's only now that she gets her first gallery showing? But you do have to give her credit for her excellent taste in music: the Buzzcocks, MC5, the Dead Kennedys, Mudhoney and Jimi Hendrix, just to name a few of the bands/people she's either casted or at least asked.
The film itself is also brilliantly constructed and avoids the many pitfalls that most documentaries fall into. Director Villines doesn't force any kind of viewpoint on her subject and treats Cynthia with tremendous respect. We learn more about Cynthia as a person rather than glorifying or just luridly focusing on her controversial artwork. The film is incredibly intelligent, but is totally unpretentious and an awful lot of fun.
Also featuring some great camerawork and a totally rockin' soundtrack, PLASTER CASTER has definitely earned a place among the greatest rock 'n' roll documentaries ever made.