"Thou movie which art on screen, hallowed by thy name. The time has come. Thou will be shown, in theaters as well as home. Give us this day our daily film, and forgive our bad choices as we forgive those whose movies were so bad to choose. And lead us not into television, but deliver us from that evil, for movies are the picture and the sound and the greatest thing in the whole wide world, forever and ever. Movies rule."
2006 turned out to be a surprisingly fruitful year for thoughtful cinema. From the existential crisis of Stranger Than Fiction to A Prairie Home Companion's reflections on life, last year served up quite a bit more introspective fare than usual. But flying in under the radar was a little ditty called The Movie Hero, a flick that played the festival circuit for a few years before making its way onto DVD. Fear not, dear readers, for this is a straight-to-DVD release with plenty of merit to spare, a funky and original comedy that left me with a poop-eating grin on my face from beginning to end.
Meet Blake (Jeremy Sisto), the nicest guy to have ever gone off the deep end. While some people wish that their lives were more like movies, Blake has taken things one step further and made it happen. Playing out to an audience that only he can see, Blake lives his life as if it were a movie (with himself as the leading man, of course).
Unfortunately, not everyone shares Blake's offbeat outlook on things, as his attempts to single out a Suspicious Character (Peter Stormare) to spice up the "story" land him right in the office of a pretty but skeptical psychiatrist (Dina Meyer). But both we and Blake know that in the film that is his life, she's virtually destined to become his Love Interest, and he thusly sets about wooing her into his arms with each session.
Meanwhile, the great story that Blake's been looking for presents itself when it turns out that the Suspicious Character really is up to no good, inspiring Blake to hire a Sidekick (Brian White) and get the lowdown on what this bad guy is up to, continuing his constant quest to give his audience the most exciting movie that he can.
The Movie Hero is a tad difficult to describe. Its storytelling approach is as odd as they come, and even if people do check this low-profile release out, I have a hunch that it'll seriously divide the viewers at home. But if you have an idealistic outlook and a love for the movies, then The Movie Hero will prove to be quite the groovalicious treat.
Writer/director Brad T. Gottfred takes what could have easily been a sad story about a pretty pathetic dude and turns it into a rather sunny comedy that has a ball exploring its own premise. Gottfred skillfully maintains a sense of balance, covering virtually all possible bases in looking at Blake's life from both his perspective and that of those around him. Instead of a one-note gimmick struggling to carry an entire film, Blake emerges as a surprisingly complex and fleshed-out character, depicted as both a bright movie lover who sees a world of stories before his eyes and as someone who is more than likely nuttier than a fruitcake.
It's Gottfred's clever script that makes everything click in the end. Although pretty repetitive at times, especially in a good chunk of Blake's self-narration, The Movie Hero comes across as a funky mixture of self-referential humor and philosophical ideas that manage to slip in without bashing viewers over the head with a distinct lack of subtley. From Blake's awareness that his movie (which, as we're the audience he plays to, really is a movie, in a way) is littered with cliches and plot threads that he can spot a mile away to learning why our intrepid hero is the way he is, The Movie Hero shows little difficulty in keeping its audience laughing and thinking at the same time. A big boost to the film's overall success is Jeremy Sisto's earnest and dedicated performance as Blake. A guy who's mostly stuck to supporting roles and B-movie work (I doubt Paranoia: 1.0 is going to ring too many bells), Sisto takes this part by the horns and brings out every weird and sympathetic trait there is to be found. Meyer does well as someone who's going to end up as the movie's Love Interest whether she wants to or not, Stormare serves up one of the more offbeat villains in recent history, and although he's not onscreen much, White has a couple clever scenes as Blake's reluctant Sidekick (a bit where he proves himself to be more than the obligatory "funny black guy" is one of the flick's highlights).
The Movie Hero is definitely not for the cynical of heart or those who have a hard time suspending their disbelief at movies. In fact, this movie pretty much demands that it take your disbelief away and skip rope with it. But if you've got enough room in your soul to allow a gonzo little comedy to mess you up while putting a smile on your face, then The Movie Hero is a definite bet to do just that.
MY RATING: *** (out of ****)
Back to THE MOVIE HERO
Email
THE MOVIE HERO