CLEAN SLATE
A Film Review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1994 James Berardinelli
Rating (0 to 10): 5.1
Date Released: 5/6/94 Running Length: 1:46 Rated: PG-13 (Language, sexual situations)
Starring: Dana Carvey, Valeria Golino, James Earl Jones,
Kevin Pollak, Michael Gambon, Michael Murphy
Director: Mick Jackson
Producers: Richard D. Zanuck and Lili Fini Zanuck
Screenplay: Robert King
Music: Alan Silvestri
Released by MGM
Consider this premise: a private investigator (Dana Carvey) who's a key witness in an upcoming trial has a memory problem. Not only can't he recall the crimes of the man he's supposed to testify against, but he can't remember things from day to day. Every time he goes to sleep, his amnesia asserts itself, wiping out events, places, and people. So, every night before he goes to bed, he uses a cassette recorder to tape instructions to himself - basic facts of life to get him through the day.
Add to this a beautiful woman who is supposed to be dead (Valeria Golno), a mobster with a British accent (Michael Gambon), and a doctor who seems to know things that no one else does (Michael Murphy), and the seeds are there for a decent thriller - or a hilarious comedy. Unfortunately, CLEAN SLATE is neither. For all its promise and possibilities, this film manages to be nothing more than forgettable.
As far as featherweight entertainment goes, this isn't bad. The script is peppered with funny moments, although probably less than half the jokes actually click. CLEAN SLATE works better when its humor isn't too outrageous - the climactic trial scene is more silly than enjoyable because it's so completely over-the-top (lawyers, bailiffs, and courtroom observers pile atop each other in the middle of a free-for-all melee).
One of the most disappointing things about this film is that it could have been so much better, either as a mystery or a comedy. Only on one or two occasions is the central plot device of amnesia used to its full potential. Whichever way the filmmaker chose to play CLEAN SLATE - for laughs or thrills - it would seem they had a winner. Yet, mysteriously, the result is a unsatisfying mix of a hard-to-swallow gumshoe tale and a pedestrian comedy.
The cast is solid. Although you occasionally expect him to start imitating George Bush, Dana Carvey brings a welcome likability to Maurice Pogue, the man with no memory. Valeria Golino, known best as Charlie Sheen's girlfriend from the two HOT SHOTS films, again functions as the token female love interest. James Earl Jones enjoys himself in this comic turn, while bringing a touch of class to CLEAN SLATE. Other performers include Kevin Pollak, Michael Gambon, and Olivia D'Abo.
The first act, where the audience is finding things out along with Pogue, is the most entertaining segment of the film. For the first forty-five minutes, the script cleverly forces the viewers to identify with the main character. It's almost - albeit not quite - a first-person motion picture. Certainly, Pogue is in every early scene. Then he goes to sleep and forgets everything, but the audience remembers, and the effect is ruined. Now Pogue's memory loss seems like what it is - a device to set up jokes and move the story along.
There are some worthwhile running gags, including the local blind man's "joke of the day", a painter's continuing attempts to render a Mona Lisa likeness on the side of a building, and the misadventures of a dog with depth perception problems. None of these, however, make up for what CLEAN SLATE is missing.
This film is likeable, if not especially worthwhile. Admittedly, Dana Carvey is a more engaging screen presence than his former SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE co-star Mike Myers, but there's little in the way of breakthrough comedy in his latest feature. With CLEAN SLATE, the lackluster results speak of a wasted opportunity.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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