Happy, Texas **
rated PG-13 Miramax Films 95 minutes starring Jeremy Northam, Steve Zahn, William H. Macy, Ally Walker, Illeana Douglas written by Ed Stone, Mark Illsley and Phil Reeves directed by Mark Illsley
Did I miss something? Along with the sleeper hit `The Blair Witch Project', Mark Illsley's `Happy, Texas' was the most talked about film at 1999's Sundance Film Festival. It was picked up by Miramax for a hefty sum, and is now being released to critical acclaim. Disappointingly, the `Happy, Texas' which I saw is nothing more than a dumb attempt at quirky humor that never finds its footing.
Jeremy Northam and Steve Zahn portray, respectively, Harry Sawyer and Wayne Wayne Wayne, Jr., two jailbirds who are freed when the van which is carrying them crashes. The wanted criminals then rob an RV and head for the nearest town, which happens to be Happy, Texas, `the town without a frown.' Once they arrive, they are mistaken for a couple of gay beauty pageant producers who are supposed to help the town qualify for the statewide pageant. Fish out of water `comedy' ensues.
Harry has his eye on the town's bank, which is run by Jo McLintock (Ally Walker). She, like the rest of the town, believes that he is gay, and they quickly become close friends. Harry, however, just wants access to the bank's safe.
Meanwhile, Wayne gets stuck with the job of training the town's girls. Along with a lady named Ms. Schaefer (Illeana Douglas), Wayne eventually figures out how to teach singing and dancing, through rather unconventional methods. Soon he and Ms. Schaefer are a couple, even though he's `gay'.
But the only sporadically funny bit of the film occurs when Harry catches the eye of Chappy (William H. Macy), the town sheriff. Chappy, a closeted homosexual, works up the courage to ask Harry out on a date, and Harry reluctantly agrees. Being the typical movie small town sheriff, Chappy is too dumb to realize that these two men are the fugitives which he has been notified of in numerous notices.
`Happy, Texas' basically focuses on the four key relationships: Harry and Chappy, Harry and Jo, Wayne and Ms. Schaefer, and Harry and Wayne. Aside from the comic fireworks that William H. Macy brings to the proceedings, these main characters are rather dull creations.
The film, which does not live up to quirky small town gems like `Cookie's Fortune', may have been more successful without some unprecedented miscasting. The prospect of seeing Steve Zahn, who has grown on me through his portrayals of stoners in `SubUrbia' and `Out Of Sight', and Jeremy Northam, who has done fine dramatic work in `The Winslow Boy' and `An Ideal Husband', together in a comedy initially seemed exciting. But Northam can't handle this type of comedy, and Zahn's characters have somehow become similar and annoying. William H. Macy, who is almost as good here as in `Fargo', should have been the one carrying `Happy, Texas'.
The film has supposedly been edited since its premiere at Sundance, and it shows. `Happy, Texas' can't be the same film that people were raving about in Park City, because it just isn't very good. The screenplay, written by Ed Stone, Phil Reeves, and director Mark Illsley just isn't very funny, and there isn't much that is fresh or new. `Happy, Texas' is like `Some Like It Hot' crossed with `In and Out', except with nowhere near as many laughs or smarts as either of the two.
I guess good buzz can either be real (in the case of `The Blair Witch Project') or way off (as in `Happy, Texas'). This instantly forgettable trifle should be taken off Northam and Zahn's resumes because both of them are fine actors, but `Happy, Texas' proves that an actor is only as good as his role.
a review by Akiva Gottlieb akiva@excite.com http://cinemania.8m.com
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