The Once Over Twice: Absolute Beginners

(1986) Directed by Julien Temple; Written by Richard Burridge, Christopher Wicking and Don MacPherson; Based on the novel by Colin MacInnes; Starring: Patsy Kensit, Eddie O’Connell, David Bowie, James Fox, Ray Davies, Eve Ferret and Sade; Available on Blu-ray (region B) and DVD (Out of Print)

Rating: ****

“The time I grew up was an incredible time in London, in terms of music… each week in the mid-60s you had these great bands putting out a new single each week, but another band would seem to top that, and as a kid in London (school kid) you felt they were talking directly to you, shaping ways to see the world, which your school and your parents weren’t necessarily doing… so I was trying to make a film that captured some of that energy and some of that universality…” – Julien Temple (from the documentary Absolute Ambition)

Julien Temple’s vibrant musical Absolute Beginners seemed to have so much going for it that it couldn’t possibly lose. Boasting a terrific cast, spirited performances, superb cinematography, and a diverse assortment of songs, it should have been a big hit. It’s too bad no one wanted to see a musical about the late-50s London teen scene in 1986. Absolute Beginners performed well at the box office in England, but vanished quickly in the U.S. (despite reviews that were more favorable than its country of origin). Over the years, the film faded into undeserved obscurity, but it’s time to re-examine its considerable charms.

Julien Temple was the ideal director to bring the frenzied story, based on a novel by Colin MacInnes, to life. He was no stranger to music, as the veteran director of multiple music videos, as well as the notorious Sex Pistols documentary The Great Rock ‘n’ Roll Swindle. Temple took these rock and roll sensibilities, splicing them with DNA borrowed from classic Hollywood musicals to make a unique mixture.

Colin* (Eddie O’Connell) is a teen from the wrong side of the tracks, who spends his days in his dilapidated neighborhood and nights photographing the colorful London nightlife. His key ambition is to make a name for himself, to keep the affections of his ambitious, fickle girlfriend Crepe Suzette (Patsy Kensit). The only problem is Suzette has other plans. She begins to leave Colin behind, as she climbs the ladder in the fashion world. Colin’s dreams are crushed when Suzette’s marries her middle-aged boss, but he plans to win her back.

* Fun fact: Temple considered Tim Roth for the role of Colin, but Roth wasn’t considered “handsome enough” by the producers. Although O’Connell did a fine job, Roth would have been an inspired casting choice, and almost certainly would have taken the role in a different direction.

David Bowie lights up the screen with his presence as slick ad man Vendice Partners. He schemes with fashion mogul Henley of Mayfair (James Fox) to re-shape Colin’s crumbling Notting Hill neighborhood to pave the way for a gleaming new (and exclusively white) future. It’s interesting to note that David Bowie starred in two very different musicals in 1986, but in both he played a Mephistophelean character, who presents the protagonist with a Faustian bargain. Jareth in Labyrinth and Vendice Partners share common traits: seductive and charismatic, but with a dark side brewing just beneath the surface. In the case of Partners, he promises Colin fame and wealth, but he’ll stop at nothing to drive the Notting Hill residents out at any cost.

A musical stands or falls by its songs, which are intended to drive the story. In the case of Absolute Beginners, each song builds on the next to propel the mood and tone. With “Having It All,” Colin is taunted by his girlfriend’s sultry serenade, as he watches his relationship slip through his fingers. But if the previous song was about a dying relationship, then “Killer Blow,” sung by Sade, represents its death. One of my favorite songs, “Selling Out,” is about finding a way to win back Suzette, by hook or crook. “That’s Motivation” by David Bowie (he also wrote the movie’s title song) is an ode to the superficial joys of materialism. Colin’s father Arthur, played by Ray Davies of The Kinks sings “Quiet Life,” a tribute to domestic ennui. He turns a blind eye to everything falling apart in his dysfunctional household (“No ambition to rock the boat, when I can simply stay afloat.”).

A pervasive sense of energy runs throughout the film. Action, color and music meld together to make the opening scene come alive. A Steadicam tracking shot immerses us in Colin’s world, as we wind through the stylized, neon-drenched streets of London’s red-light district, circa 1958. Cinematographer Oliver Stapleton employed tricks, such as colored gels, to make the colors pop. The overall effect mimics the look of Technicolor musicals, which served as a template for Temple. The set pieces are also impressive. In one of the signature scenes, Bowie tap dances* on an enormous typewriter. In the “Quiet Life” number, we’re treated to a cutaway of a run-down apartment building, so we can view the simultaneous goings-on of the tenants. The funky London jazz club “Chez Nobody” takes on its own life, with its skeleton motif.  

* Another Fun Fact: According to Temple, Bowie didn’t have previous tap dancing experience, but when he learned about the requirements of his part, he returned for filming two weeks later, ready to dance.

Absolute Beginners packs quite a few serious themes in a jaunty package. One of the more prevalent themes is teenagers as a marketing device. The younger generation was asserting itself in unprecedented ways, reflecting the post-war boom. As a result, some enterprising entrepreneurs viewed the teen as a marketable commodity, with a growing younger demographic to cater to. It’s a cynical pursuit, however, favoring money over ideals, the things we want take precedence over the things we need. The film also reminds us the phenomenon of gentrification isn’t a new thing. The efforts of unscrupulous businessmen to whitewash Colin’s neighborhood seem all too relevant today. The anti-immigrant, anti-ethnic rhetoric spouted by the hired thugs demonstrates our baser natures where money is concerned.

The film loses some steam in the final third, when it runs out of songs and focuses on the drama of the street riots, but it’s only a minor quibble. Some might also take issue with the diverse group of songs, which might not accurately represent the music from the era, but Temple was never going for stark realism. It’s an impressionistic interpretation, which occupies its own reality. Absolute Beginners is a maddening example of a movie that should have been big, yet somehow wasn’t. Maybe it was before its time, or after, but thanks to home video we can always give it a second chance. The Region B Blu-ray brings the movie a restored vitality. No matter which way you choose to see it, it’s an infectious blend of kitsch and social relevance, wrapped up in a pseudo-technicolor package, and it merits serious re-evaluation.

Cannibal! The Musical

(1993) Written and directed by Trey Parker; Starring: Trey Parker, Dian Bachar, Toddy Walters, Robert Muratore, Matt Stone and Jon Hegel; Available on DVD.

Rating: ****

“I think the biggest influence for Cannibal was just the musicals, like Rodgers and Hammerstein-style musicals like Oklahoma and stuff like that… that was the joke to me. Let’s do an Oklahoma, but about a cannibal.” – Trey Parker (from 2007 interview)

For the past 7 ½ years of this blog’s existence, I’ve been harboring a dark secret: I enjoy a good musical now and then. Judging by my body of reviews to date, however, this genre has been woefully underrepresented. This month I intend to set the record straight with some notable examples, but since this is Cinematic Catharsis after all, you wouldn’t expect me to look at The Sound of Music or Singin’ in the Rain, would you? With my blog’s mission in mind, to discuss the unloved, the unwanted, underrated and otherwise overlooked movies, I’m taking a look at some titles that slipped through the cracks. My first selection for Musical May is none other than Trey Parker’s pseudo-historical extravaganza, Cannibal! The Musical.

Some of the best things are spawned from adversity, and Cannibal! The Musical is no exception. Writer/director/star Trey Parker based the subplot, about the main character losing his horse, on his recent breakup with his fiancée, with a dash of Homer’s Odyssey (watch for a cyclops) thrown into the mix. The central story is based on the notorious exploits of miner Alferd Packer,* who was accused of murdering and eating five of his companions during an ill-fated trek to Colorado. Shot in 16 mm on a budget of roughly $125,000, it was essentially a student film, with Parker enlisting the aid of University of Colorado Boulder** students, friends and family including his fellow (future) South Park co-creator Matt Stone. Filming was on location, featuring many of the same historical sites, including the courthouse (with Trey Parker’s father Randy presiding as judge) where Packer’s trial occurred. Likewise, the courtroom dialogue was pulled from the transcripts of the actual legal proceedings.  

* Fun Fact #1: There is some debate about the spelling of Mr. Packer’s first name. Official documents list it as “Alfred,” but in popular circles, he was known as “Alferd,” which may or may not have been an intentional misspelling. Read more here.

** Fun Fact #2: Packer has gained status as a sort of folk hero in Colorado. Visitors to the University of Colorado Boulder can dine at the Alferd Packer Grill. 

After the cartoonishly gory opening sequence, we’re introduced to Alferd Packer (Trey Parker, under the pseudonym Juan Schwartz) in jail, as he awaits his sentence from the jury. Polly Pry (Toddy Walters), an enterprising young journalist, listens to his tale, told in flashback, which begins in Utah. A group of miners, tired of their situation, decide to pull up stakes and move east, to Colorado territory, with dreams of untold riches. The only problem is their guide, Lucky Larry, just perished in a freak accident. The intrepid prospectors promptly elect Packer to be their new guide, based on the information that he’s from Colorado, and they set off on a circuitous path to what they hope will be greener (or golder) pastures. Unfortunately for the group, it turns out he’s not as familiar with the territory as they were led to believe, and they take a few too many wrong turns, encountering hostile trappers and ersatz Native Americans* along the way. As the weather turns from bad to worse and the food supply runs out, Packer and his band come to the grim realization that they must resort to cannibalism to survive.

* Fun Fact #3: As a dual major in Film and Japanese, Trey Parker made sure to put his knowledge to good use in the production, when Alferd Packer and his travelers meet the Nihonjin Tribe (“nihonjin” means “Japanese people”). According to Parker, the Japanese dialogue for the tribe members includes lines such as: “This is a really stupid movie.”

The songs are uniformly catchy, which shouldn’t be too much of a surprise for anyone familiar with some of Trey Parker’s other work. In a moment reminiscent of Oklahoma, Alferd Packer sings the opening song, “Shpadoinkle,”* establishing a time, place and mood. Unfortunately, the boundless optimism of the song is short-lived for Packer and his beloved horse Liane (named after Parker’s ex fiancée). Some other favorites are “Trapper Song,” “Let’s Build a Snowman,” (sung by the insufferably chipper Isreal Swan, played by Jon Hegel) “This Side of Me,” and “Hang the Bastard.”

** Fun Fact #4 In his drunken (no, really) DVD commentary, Parker and colleagues recalled the origin of the nonsense word “shpadoinkle.” Apparently, while writing the opening song, Parker inserted a nonsense word, with the hope of replacing it with a suitable adjective. Everyone liked the song so much, along with the temporary word that he decided to leave it in.

Cannibal! The Musical’s many gags range from sophomoric to clever, but it’s hard not to laugh. In the DVD commentary, Parker and friends discuss all the things that are wrong with the movie, pointing out instances when they did something they would never do now, but this is one of the movie’s charms, and arguably the reason it works. If it had been a polished film, it might not have gone as well. Cannibal! The Musical is consistently silly, full of memorable lines and infectious songs. It’s one of a select few movies guaranteed to drag me out of the doldrums. If you haven’t seen this particular slice of lunacy, you owe it to yourself to check it out. I have a feeling you’ll have a shpadoinkle day.

April Quick Picks and Pans

 

Long Dream (2000) Director Higuchinsky’s adaptation of a horror manga by Junji Ito is only 59 minutes long, but it packs a potent wallop. A seasoned doctor (Masami Horiuchi) and his young protégé observe an unusual patient with a strange affliction. Each night, the patient experiences dreams that incrementally increase in duration (one night equals a month, then one year, etc…). As his mental state erodes, and his subjective perception of time progresses, his physical appearance undergoes a radical transformation. The changes in his patient seem to trigger a reaction in the elder doctor, who experiences vivid flashbacks to his past

Long Dream (aka: Nagai Yume) was produced for Japanese TV, so the production values are accordingly lo-fi (although the makeup effects are quite effective). Once you keep your expectations in check, and allow the film’s implications to sink in, it gets under your skin. The film illustrates how we enter another world in the dream state, which amplifies our pleasures and pain. As with his earlier film adaptation of Ito’s manga Uzumaki, Higuchinsky demonstrates his affinity for capturing the author/illustrator’s uniquely unnerving visuals and tone. The conclusion only contributes to our mounting sense of unease. Our next foray into sleep is a potential plunge into the abyss.

Rating: ***½. Available on DVD

Prevenge (2016) Writer/director/star Alice Lowe’s (Sightseers) unconventional comedy evokes squirms more frequently than laughs, as it explores the fears and angst of pregnancy. After her partner dies in a rock climbing accident, Ruth (Alice Lowe) is forced to face the prospects of single parenthood. Her life continues to slide into upheaval when the fetus instructs her to murder anyone who’s slighted her. Lowe, who was very pregnant at the time, lends an extra level of veracity to her role, as someone whose body is no longer her own. Ruth’s attempts to cater to her unborn infant’s homicidal demands only lead to further strife. Prevenge has some funny moments, but Ruth’s mental anguish is a little too immediate to take lightly. The film deserves merit, however, for Lowe’s raw portrayal, which makes her film at once personal and universal.

Rating: ***. Available on Blu-ray (Region B) and DVD (Region 2)

The New York Ripper (1982) Lucio Fulci’s sleazy gore-fest is often difficult to watch, but hard to ignore. A killer with a Donald Duck voice roams the streets of New York in search of his next victim (which include sex workers and an adventurous socialite).

A grizzled detective (Jack Hedley) and a cocky college professor create an uneasy alliance to outwit the murderer. Fulci keeps you guessing until the end, throwing one red herring after another into the mix. With few likeable characters, it’s not an easy watch, but it’s never boring. It works as an imperfect portrait of New York’s seamy underbelly, or at least a version of the city that Fulci wants us to see. While I can’t quite bring myself to recommend it, I can’t quite condemn it.  

Rating: ***. Available on Blu-ray, DVD and Amazon Prime

Lady Terminator (aka: Nasty Hunter) (1988) Director H. Tjut Djalil takes more than a few cues from James Cameron’s seminal killer android film, but with an Indonesian twist. Based (loosely) on the legend of the South Sea Queen, the film’s prologue introduces us to a lustful queen who lives in an undersea palace. An American anthropology student goes scuba diving, and suddenly falls under the queen’s spell. Using the student’s body as a host, the vengeful queen embarks on a bloody quest for a jade amulet, luring horny men to their deaths along the way. As the body count rises, the cops, led by a plucky American (why he’s in charge, I’ll never know), attempt to stop her one-woman killing spree. Lady Terminator knows what it is, and never makes any pretenses about being anything else. It’s silly, trashy, and irredeemably amateurish, but sometimes that’s all we want from this sort of movie.

Rating: ***. Available on DVD