MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND
A Film Review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1994 James Berardinelli
Rating (0 to 10): 8.0
Date Released: 7/15/94 Running Length: 1:25 Rated: R (Explicit language, brief nudity)
Starring: Eric Schaeffer, Donal Lardner Ward, Dana Wheeler- Nicholson, Lisa Gerstein, Debra Clein Directors: Eric Schaeffer and Donal Lardner Ward Producer: Daniel Einfield Screenplay: Eric Schaeffer and Donal Lardner Ward Music: Red Hays Released by Arrow Releasing
"Turnaround", as used in Hollywood, refers to a project in develop- ment that gets shelved until and unless someone agrees to pick it up.
MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND is a case of art imitating life imitating art imitating life - or something like that. This movie chronicles its own genesis and making in a fictional-that's-almost-documentary-like fashion. Weird? To say the least. Funny and insightful? Without a doubt. A success? That depends on what you enjoy in a movie. For me, it is.
The story behind MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND is fascinating, and that's one of the reasons why the film is so entertaining. Eric Schaeffer, a New York City cab driver, and Donny Ward, his bartender friend and room- mate, spontaneously decided to make a film. The problem was that they didn't have a script - or even the idea for a script ("I think this whole idea thing is overrated") - nor did they know the first thing about production, direction, or camerawork. They were also nearly broke. But through determination borne of ignorance and stubbornness, and aided with unbelievably good luck, this movie was made.
The price tag was $22 thousand, with the photography done on 16 mm film. Half the involved people were convinced, even after the production wasunderway, that the project would not be finished. However, months later, MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND has been snapped up by Arrow Releasing, is opening the Seattle Film Festival, and has gotten the co-directors a $10 million picture deal with TriStar.
I laughed a lot more during this film than during any of this year's so-called comedies out of Hollywood. Sure, most of those pictures have a few laughs to offer, but none match the level of constant hilarity attained by MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND. From wit to zaniness, the movie spans the comic spectrum, with few - if any - of its jokes falling flat. Quite an achievement for a pair of first-timers.
The dramatic side of the story, which admittedly is neither deep nor profound, presents an interesting character study. Both protagonists are bizarre loners who gravitate towards each other, and practically no one else. Their own words probably best describe them: "We're not going to meet anyone. We're just going to die weird and dumb."
By now, the anti-Hollywood brand of satire is no longer original, but MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND still has a few things to say in this area. Most of these coalesce in a scene featuring John Sayles as a big-time producer who catalogues the five different categories of commercially viable movies, then goes into a towering rage when he discovers that he's being pitched either an art film or a documentary. Sayles is magnificent here, at his over-the-top best.
Also making cameos are the likes of Phoebe Cates and Martha Plimpton, playing themselves. Not surprisingly, both met the directors in a manner similar to what's portrayed on screen. Plimpton's raunchy scene with Schaeffer and Ward is, like the Sayles sequence, a definite highlight.
One of the problems with really funny movies is that they tend to tire the audience out, and this is evident with MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND. As the film draws to a close, the humor is still bubbling, but those watching are close to being "laughed out."
Those familiar with recursion may get the feeling that they are watching the cinematic equivalent here. There's something inherently odd about viewing a picture doing a fictional chronicle of its own pro- duction. Nevertheless, that is one - and only one - of the many charms of MY LIFE'S IN TURNAROUND, a unique and surprising motion picture from two delightfully offbeat filmmakers.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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