Other than the presence of Martin Scorsese and longtime associate Barbara De Fina on the production credits, there's nothing very impressive about "Kicked in the Head", the latest in a seemingly endless series of indistinguishable slacker comedies in which the theme of aimlessness carries over to the writing and direction.
Populated by the usual assortment of quirk-laden misfits (this time James Woods, Linda Fiorentino, Michael Rapaport, Lili Taylor and Burt Young), the patience-testing production won't be kicking up much in the way of moviegoing business.
Kevin Corrigan, who also co-wrote the self-indulgent script, stars as the wide-eyed Redmond, an out-of-work, out-of-touch twentysomething New Yorker on a spiritual quest for truth.
His little voyage of self-discovery gets somewhat sidetracked thanks to his Uncle Sam (Woods), a fast-talking petty criminal who talks Redmond into doing a little drug-running errand for him that ends up going seriously awry.
Finding himself in "deep doo-doo" (one of the film's pet expressions), Redmond crashes at the apartment of his buddy Stretch (Rapaport), an upstart beer distributor who has sparked a nasty turf war.
Between dodging various bad guys and writing bad poetry, Redmond attempts to find salvation in the person of Megan (Fiorentino), a jaded flight attendant who'd prefer to be left alone.
With the exception of the always-interesting Fiorentino and a bemused Young as a benevolent thug, the rest of the assembled cast has a weakness for individual shtick that is continually at odds with the picture's intended ensemble spirit.
Director and co-writer Matthew Harrison -- whose "Rhythm Thief" earned him the 1995 Jury Prize for best director at Sundance -- has a jumpy, very New York style that has its moments, particularly during an extended sequence between Corrigan and Fiorentino. But his fondness for long, meaningful pauses only serves to underscore the tediousness of the story line.
There's some fine camerawork from John Thomas ("Metropolitan") and Howard Krupa as well as a suitably anxious score by Stephen Endelman ("Flirting With Disaster"), coupled with the kind of eccentric mix of oldies and alternative cuts that has been a trademark of Scorsese's own films.
KICKED IN THE HEAD
October Films
Director Matthew Harrison
Screenplay Kevin Corrigan, Matthew Harrison
Producer Barbara De Fina
Executive producer Martin Scorsese
Directors of photography John Thomas,
Howard Krupa
Production designer Kevin Thompson
Editor Michael Berenbaum
Costume designer Nina Canter
Music Stephen Endelman
Color/stereo
Cast:
Redmond Kevin Corrigan
Megan Linda Fiorentino
Stretch Michael Rapaport
Uncle Sam James Woods
Jack Burt Young
Happy Lili Taylor
Running time -- 86 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
Populated by the usual assortment of quirk-laden misfits (this time James Woods, Linda Fiorentino, Michael Rapaport, Lili Taylor and Burt Young), the patience-testing production won't be kicking up much in the way of moviegoing business.
Kevin Corrigan, who also co-wrote the self-indulgent script, stars as the wide-eyed Redmond, an out-of-work, out-of-touch twentysomething New Yorker on a spiritual quest for truth.
His little voyage of self-discovery gets somewhat sidetracked thanks to his Uncle Sam (Woods), a fast-talking petty criminal who talks Redmond into doing a little drug-running errand for him that ends up going seriously awry.
Finding himself in "deep doo-doo" (one of the film's pet expressions), Redmond crashes at the apartment of his buddy Stretch (Rapaport), an upstart beer distributor who has sparked a nasty turf war.
Between dodging various bad guys and writing bad poetry, Redmond attempts to find salvation in the person of Megan (Fiorentino), a jaded flight attendant who'd prefer to be left alone.
With the exception of the always-interesting Fiorentino and a bemused Young as a benevolent thug, the rest of the assembled cast has a weakness for individual shtick that is continually at odds with the picture's intended ensemble spirit.
Director and co-writer Matthew Harrison -- whose "Rhythm Thief" earned him the 1995 Jury Prize for best director at Sundance -- has a jumpy, very New York style that has its moments, particularly during an extended sequence between Corrigan and Fiorentino. But his fondness for long, meaningful pauses only serves to underscore the tediousness of the story line.
There's some fine camerawork from John Thomas ("Metropolitan") and Howard Krupa as well as a suitably anxious score by Stephen Endelman ("Flirting With Disaster"), coupled with the kind of eccentric mix of oldies and alternative cuts that has been a trademark of Scorsese's own films.
KICKED IN THE HEAD
October Films
Director Matthew Harrison
Screenplay Kevin Corrigan, Matthew Harrison
Producer Barbara De Fina
Executive producer Martin Scorsese
Directors of photography John Thomas,
Howard Krupa
Production designer Kevin Thompson
Editor Michael Berenbaum
Costume designer Nina Canter
Music Stephen Endelman
Color/stereo
Cast:
Redmond Kevin Corrigan
Megan Linda Fiorentino
Stretch Michael Rapaport
Uncle Sam James Woods
Jack Burt Young
Happy Lili Taylor
Running time -- 86 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 9/26/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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