THE BIG TEASE
Reviewed by Harvey Karten Warner Bros. Director: Kevin Allen Writer: Sacha Gervasi & Craig Ferguson Cast: Craig Ferguson, Frances Fisher, Chris Langham, Mary McCormack, Donal Logue, Larry Miller, David Rasche
Americans can't get enough movies about sports competitions. We'll take movies "Any Given Sunday" and we'll "Play It to the Bone." We'll even cheer for "The Waterboy" if we can't get "Bull Durham" every year. If the competition does not involve a ball, heck, we'll make up a tournament, and we'll make sure the picture has the usual, predictable victory for the good guys in the final seconds (or a draw if both guys are good). We'll send the former champs home in bad spirits showing them for the bad sports they acted like throughout. While Scotland displays its own regional craze for soccer, the large, autonomous block of land north of England is not globally known for any special game, so Kevin Allen, using the scripting talents of Sacha Gervasi and Craig Ferguson, came up with a bright idea. If tough men don't wear plaid, there's still an area in which they can fiercely compete, and that's hair dressing.
"The Big Tease" is a comedy about a worldwide freestyle hair dressing competition that's as fluffy and forgettable as last season's fashions at Beverly Hills. This is the kind of film that has you rooting for the underdog throughout knowing full well that he has victory in the bag once he overcomes the usual obstacles that a villainous competitor puts in his way. Featuring a number of cameos by people playing themselves, "The Big Tease" stars Craig Ferguson as gay, Scottish hair dresser Crawford Mackenzie, a clueless but gutsy and determined professional playing the scissors game with some of the biggest names in tresses and locks. He's the sort of fellow that those in the audience wholly unimpressed with sports can relate to: a celebrated frog in his own little pond ignored and laughed at when trying to play the role of the prince when he lands in the big time. Watch this guy go for the gold--the platinum scissors in this case--and you might be inspired to push harder the next time you find yourself brushed off by the folks you're trying to influence.
Filmed by Kevin Allen as a mockumentary, "The Big Tease" follows the misadventures of Scotland's well-known hair stylist Crawford Mackenzie (Craig Ferguson) who never quite understands that well known in his province does not necessarily translate to the status of global celebrity. Invited by the annual L.A. Freestyle Hairdressing Contest people to sit in on its annual competition, he mistakes the letter for an invitation actually to participate. Flying from Glasgow to L.A. with a team of film makers led by actual documentarian Chris Langham in the role of his friend, Martin Samuels, Crawford runs up large bills under the misguided assumption that his expenses are covered. When the contest's coordinator, Monique (Mary McCormack), sets him straight and refuses to enter his name in the contest, Crawford is about to fly home. But he instead turns on his charm with Sean Connery's publicist, Candy Harper (Frances Fisher), and prepares to connive his way into the competition against the formidable past champ, Stig Ludwigssen (David Rasche).
Ferguson, who is popular in Scotland for his role on the Drew Carrey TV show, evokes occasional laughter, principally by his figurative pratfalls. Since we're ahead of him each step of the way, we simply sit back and wait for the sitcomish scenes to produce their mild laughter. One of the best involves Crawford's discussion with the manager of the posh L.A. hotel (Larry Miller) who pretends to interview The Famous Guest but instead--after describing how "I thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that I have not had a drink for five days"--pressures him to keep his account up-to-date despite a maxed-out credit card. Much of the fun comes from watching Crawford work on Sean Connery's publicist, getting nowhere with her at first but casting a spell after doing a number on her hair. David Rasche is appropriately villainous as the full-of-himself Norwegian-born champ who at first dismisses the Scot as laughable but then plots to get Crawford disqualified through duplicitous tampering with the materials. The one series of shticks that does not work involves limo driver Eamonn (Donal Logue), who like everyone else in L.A. is working a day job only until he breaks out with the next Oscar-winning screenplay.
"The Big Tease" is one comedy that does not deserve its R rating despite the suggestions of homosexuality. It takes a pleasant break from the teen gross-out comedies that have plied their wares with varying degrees of success. If there is such a thing as a Scottish sense of humor, "The Big Tease" probably appeals to just that. For an American audience, the movie is not unpleasant but awfully predictable and weightless.
Rated R. Running Time: 88 minutes. (C) 2000 Harvey Karten, film_critic@compuserve.com
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