Will Smith and Martin Lawrence star in Columbia Pictures BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE. Photo by: Frank Masi
This Summer, the world’s favorite Bad Boys are back with their iconic mix of edge-of-your seat action and outrageous comedy but this time with a twist: Miami’s finest are now on the run.
Watch the final trailer for BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE.
In theaters on June 7th, The Bad Boys franchise has grossed over $840 million worldwide. The first film, released in 1995, made $15.5 million in its opening weekend, and the second, Bad Boys II, made $46.5 million in 2003. The third film, Bad Boys for Life, released in 2020, made $426.5 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film in the franchise and the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2020.
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence star in Columbia Pictures BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE. Photo by: Frank Masi
The cast includes Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Nuñez, Eric Dane, Ioan Gruffudd, Jacob Scipio, Melanie Liburd, Tasha Smith with Tiffany Haddish and Joe Pantoliano.
Directors of Bad Boys for Life, Adil & Bilall, are back to helm the latest chapter. The film is written by Chris Bremner and Will Beall, based on characters created by George Gallo.
The score is from composer Lorne Balfe (Argylle, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, Tetris, Top Gun: Maverick).
This film is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for the following reasons: strong violence, language throughout and some sexual references.
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence star in Columbia Pictures BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE. Photo by: Frank Masi
Check out the new title and first teaser for BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE.
This Summer, the world’s favorite Bad Boys are back with their iconic mix of edge-of-your seat action and outrageous comedy but this time with a twist: Miami’s finest are now on the run.
The star studded cast includes Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, Paola Nuñez, Eric Dane, Ioan Gruffudd, Jacob Scipio, Melanie Liburd, Tasha Smith with Tiffany Haddish and Joe Pantoliano.
Adil & Bilall helm the action comedy. Their films include Image (2014), Black (2015), and Gangsta (2018), as well as directing Bad Boys for Life (2020). The duo also directed 2 episodes of the fantastic Ms. Marvel (miniseries) for Disney+.
See BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE in theaters on June 7.
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence star in Columbia Pictures BAD BOYS: RIDE OR DIE. Photo by: Frank Masi
The “invisible hand of the marketplace” is a favorite term of laissez-faire globalized economics, but LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND is a dark comedy science fiction tale about a teen-aged artist living on a near-future Earth transformed by twenty years of occupation by creatures from another planet. We expect invaders from space to be scary monster with big weapons but what if the space aliens who came to conquer the Earth weren’t monsters with ray guns but annoying, harmless-looking bureaucrats who used economic soft power and brought advanced technology which made most human jobs obsolete?
The aliens, called the Vuvv, met resistance from ordinary people and governments when they first arrived but then were aided by human capitalists who saw a golden economic opportunity. The impact of the “invisible hand of the marketplace” brought by colonization by the Vuvv certainly was good for the aliens and some people, but it has left most humans unemployed and impoverished. That is the near-future world where high school student Adam Campbell creates his colorful paintings, in Cory Finley’s smart, funny, satiric science fiction comedy-drama LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND.
Adam’s colorful paints are sprinkled throughout the film, as director Cory Finley uses absurdist humor crossed with social satire and mixed with surprisingly realistic human relationships and insights, in his hilarious, smart and clever film. Finley, whose previous films include BAD EDUCATION and THOROUGHBREDS, wrote the screenplay based on the 2017 novel of same name by M. T. Anderson, a National Book Award winner who writes thought-provoking children’s and young adult novels.
Income inequality, class and race are among the issues touched on in this funny but thought-provoking absurdist comedy. Even though this is science fiction, much of it is set in a more ordinary Earth landscape which actually adds to the humor of the absurd situations.
This delightful, creative film centers on teen-aged artist, Adam Campbell (a winning Asante Blackk), and it is filled with Adam’s colorful, naive art paintings, as he tries to figure out his place in this strange world. The planet his parents grew up on has been transformed by twenty years of rule by the bureaucratic Vuvv, coffee table-shaped beings from outer space, who thanks to their advanced technology now run everything.
Adam, his younger sister Natalie (Brooklynn MacKinzie) and lawyer mother Beth Campbell (Tiffany Haddish) live in their big, once-nice, suburban house, which is now falling into disrepair. Adam creates his paintings, while his sister grows tomatoes and other produce in what was their swimming pool and his attorney mother searches desperately for any menial job she can find.
Dad left sometime ago, going to California in search of work (the only place you can make a living, he said) with promises to send money and return for them. But it has been a long time since they have heard anything from him and they assume he has abandoned him for his new life in California. The family eat meals of unappetizing food cubes made in Vuvv factories. Real food is scarce, and so is hope.
At Adam’s high school, the one of the last human teachers just has been replaced by “educational” broadcasts produced by the Vuvv, focused mostly on touting the how “wonderful” their rule has been. But Adam is more interested in the new girl who has just arrived, Chloe Marsh (Kylie Rogers). After kind-hearted Adam learns her family is living in their car, he impulsively invites her and her family, an unemployed accountant father (Josh Hamilton) and sullen older brother Hunter (Michael Gandolfini), to stay at his family’s house. Adam’s worried mother resists the idea but reluctantly agrees to let them move in – temporarily. Like Adam’s family, the Marshes were once affluent but with the adults unable to find work, funds are tight to non-existent.
Kylie comes up with a wild idea to earn money: she and Adam will live-streaming their budding romance – or what seems to be a budding romance, as they barely know each other. Human love, particularly romantic love, fascinates the Vuvv, who reproduce by budding and having nothing like it in their world. And the Vuvv are willing to pay big money to watch unfolding romantic relationships, like between Adam and Chloe.
The live-stream program takes off with the Vuvv, and soon Adam and Chloe are supporting both their families in much more comfort. But with success comes pressures on both of them, and their relationship.
Absurd comedy abounds, starting with the alien overlords themselves. The Vuvv are wonderfully ridiculous-looking creatures, who one character describes as resembling “gooey coffee tables,” moist, brown, rectangular and squat, with the personality of rigid bureaucrats. Further, tThe Vuvv communicate by rubbing together their fin-like paddles, which they have in place of hands, producing a sound like someone in corduroy pants walking quickly. The Vuvv expect people to be able to learn to speak this language but realistically, an automatic translating machine is needed.
Absurd comedy is a big feature of this movie but so is surprisingly realistic human interactions. Living in close proximity brings conflicts between the families and the weird economic situation warps a lot. The fact that the Campbells are Black and their house-guests the Marshes are white adds to the complexity.
The cast is splendid, starting with the appealing Asante Blackk as Adam, a sweet, kind-hearted teen confused by the harsh world he’s living in and who expresses himself and his feelings through his paintings. He is excellent in this lead role, which might be a star-making turn for the young actor. Tiffany Haddish also is excellent as Adam’s strong mother Beth, a smart woman who is determined to do what is best for her family and with little patience for whining from her live-in white guests. Josh Hamilton is very good as Mr. Marsh, Chloe’s anxious, insecure father, who is defensive, privileged, and clueless, and inclined to echoing pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps platitudes (like insisting that learning to speak Vuvv is the key to success) while having no real insight. Kylie Rogers is touching as a girl who is devoted to her family and trying hard to do what is best for them but who doesn’t always see the big picture.
Twelve-year-old Brooklynn MacKinzie is cute and funny as Natalie Campbell, Adam’s precocious younger sister, who seems wise beyond her years but sometimes drops the facade to be just a kid. Michael Gandolfini gives a strong, often unsettling performance as Hunter Marsh, a confused young man seething with resentment that covers his fears for the future.
Weird things happen as this plot unfolds, leading to plenty of dark comedy and also to insights on human life and our own society, as all good science fiction does. LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND is an outstanding dark comedy with both a head and a heart, and one you should not miss.
LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND opens Friday, Aug. 18, in theaters.
Get an inside first look at Cory Finley’s new sci-fi drama LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND – starring Asante Blackk, Kylie Rogers and Tiffany Haddish. The film opens in theaters August 18.
Years into a benevolent alien occupation of Earth, the human race is still adjusting to the new world order and its quirky coffee table-sized overlords called the Vuvv. Their flashy advanced technology initially held promise for global prosperity, but rendered most human jobs – and steady income – obsolete. When 17-year-old artist Adam Campbell (Asante Blackk) and new girlfriend Chloe Marsh (Kylie Rogers) discover the Vuvv are particularly fascinated with human love and will pay for access to it, they decide to livestream their budding romance to make extra cash for themselves and their families. Life is good, for a while, until the flame of their teenage love fizzles out and they’re forced to make very different, absurdly life-altering sacrifices for their families.
Written for the screen and directed by Cory Finley, LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND is based on the book by M.T. Anderson. The film is produced by Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner and executive produced by Brad Pitt, Gabby Shepard, David Kern, M.T. Anderson, Megan Ellison, Tiffany Haddish.
Finley is a Saint Louis native and has previously helmed THOROUGHBREDS and BAD EDUCATION.
The score is from Michael Abels (GET OUT, US, and NOPE).
And the Summer of product adaptations and remakes continues! Last weekend BARBIE just about blew the doors off the box office and the multiplex in a virtual tsunami of pink perfection. Hey, if a toy can revive the ticket sale doldrums, why not a flick based on a ride from the Disney theme parks? After all, those Caribbean Pirates spurred quite a profitable “tentpole” for the studio. But then there were costly flops like TOMORROWLAND and who remembers THE COUNTRY BEARS (maybe they just needed that “nose candy”). Well, this concept was exploited nearly twenty years ago, so this is also, technically, a remake (without any of the main human characters from the first time). Perhaps the modest success of the other remake a few months ago, THE LITTLE MERMAID, is lifting the “ahem” spirits of the mouse house. So, even though Halloween is months away, are filmgoers in the mood for some scares and laughs in a return stay at the HAUNTED MANSION?
This time out, the story starts with a flashback as we’re on hand for a “meet cute” between research scientist Ben (LaKeith Stanfield) and Alyssa (Charity Jordan) at a New Orleans house party. Then the tale returns to the present day as a now single, and boozy Ben makes a meager living by guiding Big Easy visitors on paranormal tours of the town. Meanwhile, way out of town, a single mother, Gabbie (Rosario Dawson), and her skittish, awkward pre-teen son Travis (Chase Dillon) have taken possession of a big dusty old mansion, hoping to transform it into a quaint “bed and breakfast”. Ah, but it seems that the current undead occupants will have none of that. The duo races to a nearby motel, but the ghosts are “attached” (like gum on the bottom of a shoe). Back in the city, Ben is approached by a local priest named Kent (Owen Wilson). He’s heard that Ben had invented a special camera that captures spectral images when he worked at a big tech lab. With the promise of quick cash, Ben agrees to visit the place. After dismissing their claims, the spirits convince him. To “cleanse” the place, Ben will need “back-up. He and Kent assemble a “dream time”, enlisting a local psychic, Harriet (Tiffany Hadish), and a loopy college historian. Professor Davis (Danny DeVito). But can their combined talents thwart the supernatural forces tormenting the mother and her son?
Unlike the 2003 edition, which seemed to be fashioned as a “star vehicle” for the now (at the time) “family-friendly” Eddie Murphy, the studio has “spread the wealth’ to give us an all-star cast, even tossing in a couple of Oscar-winners (one very recent). Stanfield has opted to try some lighter fare, and he tries to get us invested in the now burnt-out Ben. He puts in an effort, but his story arc is too downbeat. It seems the writers wanted to spark a romance with Dawson’s Gabby, but the dynamic genre staple is giving less to do and spends most of the story looking for his son while fleeing the whispy creeps. Wilson is always entertaining as a motor-mouthed hustler, though the motivations for Keith aren’t too clear. Ditto for the ever-entrancing DeVito who is a cannonball of history trivia bouncing from room to room in panic over meeting his “research subjects”. Haddish conveys a haughty regal demeanor as Harriet when she’s not throwing in a bit of sassy shade as she calculates her cut of this “job”. Oh, the awarded actors include a confined (we mostly just see her face) Jamie Lee Curtis as Madame Leota, the guide in the globe, connecting her to “this side”. And the other pal of Oscar, well I don’t want to spoil it, but as the “hatbox Ghost”, you can barely recognize this “joker” (hint).
Rather than going with an “effects” filmmaker, or an Animator (like Rob Minkoff who helmed the first one), the studio has handed the reins (after “flirting” with Guillermo del Toro) to social satirist Justin Simien (DEAR WHITE PEOPLE, the feature and series), who scores with a couple of nifty spook-filled set pieces, even evoking moments from classic paranormal tales. Unfortunately, even with these comic vets, many of the jokes fall flat. dragging down the pace making the end result a very long wait between the clever nods to the enduring ride (my favorite in the Florida locale). Despite the talented screenwriter behind the 2016 GHOSTBUSTERS all-women reboot (which I will continue to defend), it only inspires a few chuckles as it slowly marches to the big otherworldly “throw-down”. It may be due to some odd choices, especially in the early first meeting between Ben and Gabby, witching from wonky profile close-ups to a truly awkward “hand-held” ending. Plus it’s set in modern times, so why does Gabby dress like an early 60s office clerk while her son could be playing one of Andy Hardy’s school buddies? It just takes us out of the story, True, the scary stuff is toned down for the ‘wee ones, but they may be fast asleep long before many of them appear. I enjoy old creeky houses, but not creeky storytelling which is the real downfall of this HAUNTED MANSION.
2 Out of 4
HAUNTED MANSION is now playing in theatres everywhere
WAMG has your passes to see early Disney’s frighteningly fun adventure “Haunted Mansion.” The film opens in theaters on July 28.
Directed by Justin Simien, the film features an all-star cast ensemble cast including LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rosario Dawson, Chase W. Dillon and Daniel Levy, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Jared Leto as The Hatbox Ghost.
Inspired by the classic theme park attraction, “Haunted Mansion” is about a woman and her son who enlist a motley crew of so-called spiritual experts to help rid their home of supernatural squatters. The film’s producers are Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich, with Nick Reynolds and Tom Peitzman serving as executive producers.
Look alive, foolish mortals! WAMG is dying for you to view the teaser trailer and poster for Disney’s comically creepy adventure “Haunted Mansion,” which will appear in theaters on July 28.
Directed by award-winning filmmaker Justin Simien, the film features an all-star ensemble cast including LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rosario Dawson, Chase W. Dillon and Dan Levy, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Jared Leto as The Hatbox Ghost.
Director Simien says, “As a lifelong fan of the Haunted Mansion attraction, I’m beyond excited to share the teaser trailer for our new film adaptation featuring an incredible cast. Our team has worked tirelessly to create a scary, funny and cinematic otherworldly adventure for both new and die-hard fans to enjoy! I can’t wait for audiences to experience this big screen version of the iconic Disney attraction.”
Inspired by the classic theme park attraction, “Haunted Mansion” is about a woman and her son who enlist a motley crew of so-called spiritual experts to help rid their home of supernatural squatters. The film’s producers are Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich, with Nick Reynolds and Tom Peitzman serving as executive producers
(from left) Tito Manny (Joey Guila), Regina (Elena Juatco), Eugene (Eugene Cordero), Joe Valencia (Jo Koy), Tita Teresa (Tia Carrere), Tita Yvonne (Melody Butiu) and Susan (Lydia Gaston) in Easter Sunday, directed by Jay Chandrasekhar.
So, when’s the perfect time to release a big family comedy about a big family event that happens in the Spring? Why, the “dog days” of Summer, naturally. Or at least that’s the thinking behind this weekend’s answer to the big star-fueled “action-on-the-rails” blockbuster. But what was the question, again? Yeah, so when will another “stand-up” superstar branch into the movies (most go right to TV) with an “all ages” funny flick loosely based on his life, and his sell-out comedy concerts? Move over Amy Schumer, Pete Davidson, and Kevin Hart, here comes some competition with a unique, often spicy ethnic voice. So, strap in for one wild and raucous EASTER SUNDAY.
An opening title montage introduces us to the hectic world of rising stand-up comic Joe Valencia (Jo Koy). When he’s not hustling from one club stage to the next, he tries to spend some quality time with his almost-out-of-high-school son Junior (Brandon Wardell), when he can wrangle him away from his ex. Almost preventing that is a big audition for a supporting role in a network TV sitcom pilot, though they want him to “hit up the accent” he uses in his act while talking about his Filipino family. Speaking of, his matriarch, single mom Susan (Lydia Gaston) “blows up” his phone with her concern about his arrival in time for the Easter Sunday family festivities. Thankfully Joe and Jr. hit the road, leaving LA for Daly City, just south of ‘Frisco. As soon as they arrive the duo are plunged into lots of “drama”. Mama is feuding with sister Tita Theresa (Tia Carrere), over…it’s unclear, but she threatens to boycott her post-church service lunch. Then there’s cousin Eugene (Eugene Cordero) who has taken Joe’s investment money for a taco truck and has instead diverted it to a “hype-truck”, selling designer labels “doodads”. Unfortunately, he’s gotten his inventory from a swaggering “wannabe” gangster named Dev Deluxe (Asif Ali), who wants his 40 grand today. At least Jr. has met a cool local girl named Ruth (Eva Nobelzada), while Joe has been pelted with calls from his aggressive LA agent (Jay Chandrasekhar) who wants him to fly back for a post-holiday dinner “re-audition”. But while outrunning Dev’s goons, acquiring some “hot” sports memorabilia, and hooking up with an old flame and a local celeb, will he be able to enjoy the massive feast his mom has “slaved over” or will he put career before “family time”?
So, how’s Koy as the lead of a feature film? Pretty decent, though he relies a bit too much on reprising some stand-up bits in certain scenes (at the church…oookay). But he conveys the idea of a man literally being pulled by all sides, or a variation of the old variety show “plate-spinner”, though one of them’s gonna’ crash to the floor. It helps that he’s willing to be the “straight man” to many of the terrific “scene-stealers” ready to nab the spotlight. Primary is the always grinning Cordero who doesn’t fully understand his dire straights thinking he can charm his way out of anything since it seems to work with most of his family, except the frustrated Joe. Gaston is endearing as the sweet “noodge” who doesn’t “get” her son’s life but tries to be his anchor. Ali’s a very funny comic villain using his manic bluster to puff up his petite frame. Carrere is in full “diva mode” as the fussy competitive sister. But really shaking things up is Koy’s BFF from the “club days”, Tiffany Haddish, who’s a comic “stealth missile” destroying everything and everyone in sight during her two sequences (if she could find a lead role that showcases her like this). Another comic, Jimmy O. Yang scores some laughs as a reclusive retail hustler. And Lou Diamond Phillips seems to be having a blast as he satirizes his screen persona. Perhaps the biggest laughs come from Chandrasekhar as the agent who needs to talk right away but loses interest quickly (“Oops, going through a tunnel, losing you…”).
Wouldn’t you know that the director gave himself a plum comic role (in the tradition of Sydney Pollack and Mel Brooks)? But then Chandrasekhar has honed his comedy skills as part of the Broken Lizard crew, at the helm of many of their film projects, along with countless TV shows and a few other features. This may be the reason why his digs at “Tinsel-Town” feels so right and have the spark that most of the final act concerning the family dynamic lacks. At times the script recalls another funny franchise (it’s a wonder this was titled “My Big Fat Filipino Holiday”), or a “stitched together” compilation of the first three or four episodes of a TV sitcom. It’s often a tad exhausting to think of all the hijinks occurring over a single day, culminating in a bit of gunplay that feels out of sync with the bickering relatives. And all these conflicts get compressed and churned into a “feel good finale” that seems too “pat”. Still, it’s great to take a tour through a culture that Hollywood hasn’t explored and the fans of Koy’s comedy specials should find EASTER SUNDAY a pleasant bit of family fluff. Here’s hoping that his next screen effort offers more bite to the “bits”.
2.5 Out of 4
EASTER SUNDAY is now playing in theatres everywhere
Oscar Isaac stars as William Tell in THE CARD COUNTER, a Focus Features release. Credit: Courtesy of Focus Features
Redemption is the long game in Paul Schrader’s THE CARD COUNTER. Told with Schrader’s trademark cinematic intensity, the revenge thriller tells the story of an ex-military interrogator turned gambler haunted by the ghosts of his past decisions, and features riveting performances from stars Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan and Willem Dafoe.
Watch the trailer now.
The film will have its world premiere at this year’s Venice Film Festival.
Focus Features will release THE CARD COUNTER in theaters on September 10, 2021.
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Oscar Isaac stars as William Tell in THE CARD COUNTER, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Courtesy of Focus Features00781_FP_CARDCOUNTER
Oscar Isaac stars as William Tell and Tiffany Haddish as La Linda in THE CARD COUNTER, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Courtesy of Focus Features
So, Spring Break has officially…sprung, I suppose. Time for a road trip, if only virtually for many of us. And that’s what this new streaming comedy adventure is all about. Well, mostly since it’s got a few unique twists. First, rather than making Florida the final destination, the “sunshine state” is the starting point. Plus we’re dealing with a couple of thirty-something slackers, not frisky high-schoolers or “single and ready to mingle” collegians. Oh, and here’s a biggie: it’s all improvised, though the four actors are working from an outline as sort of a “plot map” similar to the Christopher Guest “mockumentaries” or HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm”. Wait a sec, I said just four actors. Correct, because this is also a “prank” film, a new comedy designation popularized by the TV and feature film work of Johnny Knoxville (BAD GRANDPA) and Sasha Baron Cohen (last Fall’s BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM). In short, it means that the players are truly “keeping on their toes” by having to deal with real people who may have wildly unexpected reactions to their antics. So, buckle up for an East Coast trek that might take a few odd, out-of-the-way turns during what hopefully will not be recalled as a BAD TRIP.
Somehow this trip begins in reverse, a flashback actually to a year ago in a sleepy small Florida retiree town. That’s the home of Chris (Eric Andre) who is barely making ends meet while working his latest job at a car wash. His day’s drudgery is disrupted by the unexpected arrival of his high school crush Maria Li (Michaela Conlin). Chris is too scared to approach (and a bit humiliated by a work..uh..accident), but he vows to connect with her again someday. Meanwhile, his best pal Bud (Lil Rel Howery) is behind the counter at a computer supply/repair shop when his bullying ex-con sister Trina (Tiffany Haddish) bursts in demanding his “spare change”. After this bit of family drama, the story flashes forward to the present day and Chris’s present gig at a smoothie shop. And in walks Maria! But this time he musters the courage to speak to her, even asking her out for a coffee or cocktail. She demurely declines, telling him that she’s heading back to NYC for the opening of a big exhibit at her art gallery. And she gives him her card, in case he ever is in the area. Chris takes the card as a sign and an invite. He’s got to make his way north in the next 10 days for the gallery event. Chris convinces Bud to join him on the quest, although neither can afford a flight. If only they had a car, or could borrow one. After much pleading, Chris convinces Bud to get Trina’s car out of a long-term parking garage, since she’s away at a “long-term” correctional facility. But wouldn’t you know it, just as the guys hit the road, Trina busts out of the slammer. And where’s the first place she goes? The garage to retrieve her pink car, the “Bad Bitch”, naturally. And so begins an East Coast odyssey with Trina in hot pursuit of Chris and Bud as they embark on a series of misadventures along the way to Chris’ romantic ideal. But can they get to Maria before Trina gets to them?
If there were an acting award for bravery or at least fearlessness, then Mr. Andre would certainly be in the running for it, right alongside the BORAT duo. As Chris, he gives a performance mixing current tech savvy with a knowing wink to the slapstick clowns of a century ago. The guy simply and completely commits, hurtling toward the concrete at one point or enduring nightmare nakedness at another, well several points. And that’s not to mention the added “skeez” factor of bodily …fluids. And yet, in the middle of the chaos, Andre projects a child-like spirit, often evoking the optimism of an incurable romantic (I thought of Jim Carey’s “So I got a chance” from the original DUMB AND DUMBER). He’s great in the big action set pieces but really shines when plowing ahead in quiet scenes of humiliation especially when a quiet conversation turns into a wonky musical number. And though often needed as the “grounded” “straight man” Howery takes a near equal number of comedic risks as the picked upon Bud. He’s at his best when Bud frantically tries to hold on to his dignity as Chris seemingly “leaves the planet”. But he’s not a complete “doormat” as he emphatically insists that the plot of the movie WHITE GIRLS could really work. Still, Howery is the perfect “patsy” when dealing with the constantly furious Haddish, eschewing her talk show glamour to make Trina a truly endearing and hilarious villain. She’s a true “force of nature”, a whirling dervish of prison “tatts”, gold chains, and a beeping ankle monitor. And we can almost see the glee from her eyes as she intimidates and emasculates nearly everyone unlucky to cross her path (though her instant attraction to an officer is quite touching). Kudos also to Conlin who brings a real sweetness and surprising toughness to the role of the “fantasy girl” who knows when to give Chris a much-needed “wake up call”.
Reminding of the old “plate spinner” acts of classic TV variety shows, director Kitao Sakurai barely breaks any dinnerware as he captures the real reactions of the bystanders “on the fly”. Somehow he’s at just the right angle getting the most of “John and Jane Q. Public”. Of course, praise must also be given to the editing team who had to comb through hours of the same gags from different camera set-ups. Yes, the film has an episodic feel as though it was the best of a cable “candid camera” (with more “raunch”), but the actors never lose track of their characters’ established desires and dreams. That’s a tribute to the five writers (including Sakurai and Andre) who have carefully crafted the story’s structure, using great set pieces in the different cities and states. Complimenting the amazing actors, and often enhancing their performances, are the craftspeople and artisans, who had to fashion and control the on-camera effects (curtain and CGI don’t work in the “real”). Their efforts are nothing short of astounding, from the mechanical tricks to the makeups, and even some deft puppetry. If you stick around for the end credits, you’ll get a hint of their wizardry (most deserving of a home video bonus feature or two). And sure there are bloopers, but you’ll also see the same gags done with different “citizens” who didn’t react as hoped (one bar patron is seconds from throttling Andre). At 84 minutes it’s a sprightly quick trip and because of the many inspired talents involved, it’s far from a BAD TRIP. And it may make you think twice about taking that “selfie” at the zoo.
3 out of 4
BAD TRIP streams exclusively on Netflix beginning Friday, March 26, 2021
