Waiting for Guffman
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Movie Reviews of Waiting for Guffman
Movie Review: Parody as Art
Summary: 5 Stars
I wrestled with whether "Waiting for Guffman" is caricature, parody, or burlesque. I settled on parody, but really "Guffman" is simply an intelligent, warm, funny film with very strong performances. Granted, to truly enjoy this film, you have to bond to the "mockumentary" format and style. I loved "Best in Show", so it was a real treat to see much of the same cast with different characters.
In my opinion, what makes it all work is the kindness of the film and the sincerity of the performances. The subject matter and setting of this film could encourage a mean-spirited style. The setting is the fictional small town of Blaine, Missouri, but it could be Anywhere, USA. The subject is the staging of a musical celebrating the town's sesquicentennial and using local talent. So, the film could skewer small town folks, and poke mean fun at amateur theatre. But it doesn't, and that's what makes it good.
There are some wonderful individual performances here. My favorite character is the smokin' hot Parker Posey as Libby Mae Brown, a DQ employee cum actress. Her gum-chewing monlogues are great. Then there are the local "stars" of community theatre, Sheila and Ron Albertson. The Robertsons are well played by Catherine O'Hara and Fred Willard. Their audition scene (a choreographed rendition of "Midnight at the Oasis") was brilliant. Eugene Levy turns in a charming performance as town dentist, Dr. Pearl, who finds his performer within. Christopher Guest does a good turn as Corky St. Clair, a gay director hidden in the closet, complete with fictional wife. His divo-style temper tantrums show me that he's observed quite a few tempermental artists in his day.
There are many good scenes in this film. The details and touches matter. I liked the work of Bob Balaban (Russell from "Seinfeld") as the conductor and usual director of the pageant, Lloyd Miller. He was aghast at the auditions, he was miffed at being under Corky's direction, he was alarmed at the lack of singing rehearsal. When he stepped in as director after Corky pulled a divo and left the production, he felt vindicated and assertively took charge. The scene where Corky is asking the town council for additional funding is wonderful. Very nice touches were provided by Don Lake as town historian Phil Burgess. He helps us bond to the town by telling us the town history; how Blaine is the stool capital of the world, about the UFO encounter, and the whistlestop visit of President McKinley. This makes us care about the town, and the actors make us care about the people, so naturally, we care about the production that follows.
And what a production it was! The production was called "Red, White, and Blaine", and it covered the history of Blaine, complete with alien (played by a half-blind Dr. Pearl). The tension and excitement backstage is palpable. Part of the tension arises from the anticipated visit of Guffman, who will ostensibly evaluate the suitability of the show for Broadway. The overture to this spectacular, conducted by Balaban's Miller was a lot of fun. Check out the trumpet player doubling as tympanist. There are great audience details; the pride of Dr. Pearl's wife, played by a seriously made up Linda Kash, was touching. The emotional response of Councilman Steve Stark, played by Michael Hitchcock, was genuine. His response was driven by the fact that he couldn't be in the show.
Kudos to Lewis Arquette, Christopher Guest, all the crew, and this wonderful ensemble of actors. It is a piece of work they can all be proud of.
Highly recommended.
Movie Review: Red State Hilarity Spills Out of Broadway Bound Dreams
Summary: 5 Stars
I remember very well Corky St. Clair's first appearance on "Saturday Night Live" in the late eighties when he was providing ballet lessons to Martin Short and Harry Shearer, who were playing brothers training to be the first male synchronized swimming team to enter the Olympics. Christopher Guest has resuscitated his character, a rather effete and somewhat flamboyant choreographer/stage director, for this monumentally funny 1997 satire on small-town theatre productions. As the master of his own film genre, the mockumentary, Guest brings his keen observational skills to a first-person interview movie, pre-dating the current glut of reality shows and capturing that strangely compelling feeling when life starts to feel more real when it's lived on-camera. Along with co-star Eugene Levy, he has written a surprisingly revealing character study of a group of people living predictable existences in the mythical town of Blaine, Missouri, the stool capital of the world. Thanks to Corky's skewed eye for raw talent and his infectious ambition, they are chosen for a musical history pageant about the town, "Red, White and Blaine", and slowly start to harbor dreams of stardom. The title refers to an influential New York theater critic that Guest is hoping will come and see the show, so they can all make it to Broadway. Far-fetched? You bet.
Guest has assembled a cast of brilliant comic actors to bring these rural, red-state characters to life. Levy plays enthusiastic newcomer, Dr. Allan Pearl, a tone-deaf dentist with coke-bottle glasses, who quickly comes out of his self-imposed shell with his stage debut. He captures all the pride and humiliation of his character with an untimely knack for borscht-belt-style humor. Indie-film princess Parker Posey portrays Libby Mae Brown, a Dairy Queen counter girl who wins her role by performing a saucy version of Doris Day's "Teacher's Pet". She especially shines when she talks about her idea of low-calorie "blizzards" or about "meeting guys" in New York. As Ron and Sheila Albertson, the showbiz-savvy couple who run a local travel agency, Fred Willard and Catherine O'Hara bring their familiar brio to two souls that have an unsuspecting dark side. In particular, in the midst of exposing Ron's penile reduction surgery to the Pearls, O'Hara has a drunken scene in a Chinese restaurant that is as devastating as it is hilarious. There are lots of wonderful actors in smaller roles like Larry Miller as the clueless mayor; Bob Balaban as the put-upon music teacher at creative odds with Corky; and Michael Hitchcock as a Streisand-loving town council member dying to be in the show. Guest himself manages to transcend the obvious stereotype of his character by injecting an oddly affecting warmth that makes Corky ironically empathetic to the viewer, especially as his dreams seem to slip away near the end. But the humor is never lost, and the coda, where Corky shows off his movie memorabilia in his novelty store, is hysterical.
The movie is only 84 minutes, so the DVD contains loads of deleted scenes - a couple of interesting scenes that show the darker elements behind the Albertsons' hapless façade; Libby using some anachronistic Actors' Studio-like Method techniques in her audition; an extended production number called "Bulging River" which actually shows off the musical talents of the cast; and a meandering driving scene that shows Corky telling each of the cast that they won parts in his show. This movie is a complete delight worthy of repeat viewings.
Movie Review: The Best of the Mockumentaries
Summary: 5 Stars
The "Mockumentary" was first created by Christopher Guest and director Rob Reiner in "This Is Spinal Tap", perhaps the funniest movie ever made about Hard Rock(This includes unintentionally funny films like "Rock Star"). In "Waiting for Guffman", which Guest also directed along with sharing writing duties with Eugene Levy, Guest turns up the satire to 11 and perfects what he created back in the 80's. "Guffman" is of course the first of now three mockumentary films directed by guest and co-written with Levy. I consider "Waiting for Guffman" to be the best, because, as funny as "Best in Show" and "A Mighty Wind" are, they don't quite get into the full character development that Guest and his stable of improv comedy geniuses achieve in "Guffman". They story is simple: Guest plays Corky St. Clair, alleged former Broadway type, who now lives in the small town of Blaine, Missouri. Corky has become a local celebrity for his small theater productions, which are of course awful, but seem like Shakespere to the small-town residents of Blaine(Corky's most notroious production was a musical version of "Backdraft" that went terribly awry). Anyway, Corky is hired by the town fathers to produce a musical history of Blaine for the town's 150th anniversary. He jumps into it, and what follows is the hilarious journey he and his cast take while putting the play together. The title "Waiting for Guffman", obviously a takeof of "Waiting for Godot", refers to a New York theater reviewer whom Corky has convinced to come see the play. Having no real eye for talent himself, Corky convinces his cast and himself that their musical is good enough to get them to Broadway. And so they throw all of their less than considerable talent into it.
The genius of Guest And Levy's writing is that the only thing they actually write are teh basic storyline and sketches for each character, which explains why the actors in these films are as good as they are. They literally invent most of the details of their lives for the camera, and with master improvists like Levy, Guest, Parker Posey, Catherine O'Hara and Fred Willard on their usual list of suspects, it's no wonder why their films are so funny. Even so, "Guffman" is funniest, with the most satisfying and appropriate ending of all three films and with the funniest musical ever put on camera, "Red, White, & Blaine". They town itself becomes a character and it is a testimony to all the smaller players that the whole movie brims with humor from one scene to the next. The fact that the characters are the only ones not in on th joke also makes this movie a delight. "Best in Show" is slicker, and "A Mighty Wind" has more emotional resonance, but "Waiting for Guffman" is the gold standard by which all future Mockumentaries must be judged.
Movie Review: Waiting, but not in vain (or is it "Blaine"?)
Summary: 5 Stars
"Waiting for Guffman" is generally considered the follow-up to the now-legendary rockumentary "This is Spinal Tap." Despite having a different director (this gem is directed by its star, Christopher Guest), iut has the same brand of straight-faced hilarity from one hysterical moment to the next. It's one of the funniest and most underrated films of the 1990s.The dinky but proud town of Blaine Missouri (the "footstool capitol" of the world) is celebrating its 150th anniversary with a (for them) major celebration of civic pride. Self-exiled theatrical producer Corky St. Claire (Guest) happens to be living in this town, after the failure of his last New York show (he almost burned it down). Corky sees this as an opportunity to get back to Broadway, by creating the historical musical "Red, White and Blaine." In theory, the musical will outline the town's history (complete with a visit by President McKinley and UFOs... on different occasions, of course).
Corky is even more elated when a Broadway scout, Mr. Guffman, is supposed to arrive to gauge "Red White and Blaine's" Broadway potential. This is his ticket out of there... and ditto for the slightly odd citizens who are cast in the play: a deadpan Dairy Queen clerk (Parker Posey), a pair of bickering travel agents (Catherine O'Hara and Fred Willard), and a dentist with a lazy eye (the incomparable Eugene Levy). Despite a round of problems, cast losses, and the temporary loss of an irate Corky, the show must go on. But will Mr. Guffman arrive in time to see it?
In small relatively unknown towns, the people often dream of big things. Quite a few of them also have intense civic pride over stuff that nobody else could care less about (crop circles?). The heart of "Waiting For Guffman" is poking fun at the absurdities of middle America, but not a cruel way. You laugh with the "ship of fools," not at them.
Every scene in this movie brims with deadpan hilarity -- all the more striking because of all the ad-libbing that went on. The humor is not the fart-joke variety; it includes everything from Ron's... well, reduction surgery to "We consider ourselves bi-coastal if you consider the Mississippi River one of the coasts." It's pure brilliance from beginning to end -- especially the end, when we get to see the "Red White and Blaine" musical. Guest's comic talent is in full bloom there.
Guest is the soul of this film -- his flamboyant, arty theatrical producer is a big fish trying to get out the tiny pond. Fred Willard (in his usual grinning obnoxious dolt role) and Catherine O'Hara are hysterical as a not-so-happily married couple. And Eugene Levy -- always a treat -- is subtlely funny every time he makes his eye wander.
Underrated and brimming over with kindly satire, "Waiting for Guffman" is rivalled only by "Spinal Tap." A comedy treasure.
Movie Review: Stool Capitol Of The World
Summary: 5 Stars
How do you make something that is generally not funny to most everyone, and make it hysterical?. You get Christopher Guest to do it!. Guest is a brilliant genius who makes ordinary things(like local theater and dog shows)and makes it knee slapping funny. Well, he strikes again. Guest, the man behind "This Is Spinal Tap", and "Best In Show", co-wrote this(along with co-star Eugene Levy)and directed it. Guest plays effeminate, bowl-haired Corky St. Clair, a theater director/producer who is planning on putting together a big show celebrating the 150th anniversary of the little town, Blaine, Missouri. In his quest to cast the production, we are introduced to a number of different towns people(all played by Guest regulars). There is Dr. Allan Pearl(Eugene Levy), the town dentist. A man with big glasses, who cannot see very well without them. Sheila and Ron Albertson(Catherine 'O' Hara, Fred Willard), a couple who have had the most experience doing plays. They also run a travel agency together, although they admit to never really leaving town before. There is Libby Mae Brown(the adorable Parker Posey),a poor small town girl who works at Dairy Queen and seems to think that that is a great career. Johnny Savage(Matt Keeslar), a young kid who works at his dad's car shop. The town music teacher, Lloyd Miller(Bob Balaban), is in on it too. There are familiar faces through out the film. Larry Miller plays the mayor; Brian Doyle-Murray plays Johnny's dad; "Jeffersons" co-star Paul Benedict(who played the badly wigged hotel desk clerk in 'Spinal Tap'), and Lewis Arquette is the play's narrator. The film goes thru the entire process of putting together this play. The finale shows the finished product, as our cast awaits the presence of big time talent scout, Mort Guffman. The film, as in all of Guest's films, is shot in documentary style. This is a rare type of comedy that doesn't come along too often, but when it is done right, as in with every Guest film, it's funnier than most everything else. The songs that are in the play are all fun and catchy, and they were all written by Guest, and his fellow 'Spinal Tap' compadres, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer. Both of whom are comical geniuses in their own right. Too bad they weren't in the film. As I've said before in other reviews like this, this is a kind of comedy that doesn't get in your face and makes you laugh. It's a smart kind of comedy that seems to come just from reality. If you are in on what they are trying to do, and get the joke, you will enjoy it. There will be others that this film will be totally lost on. The DVD comes with some special features. You get audio commentary from Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy, the theatrical trailer, Cast/Crew profiles, and deleted scenes with commentary. It's a great ride that is hilarious for anyone who wants to try it. Go ahead. Give it a shot.