KINGPIN
A film review by Julian Lim
Copyright 1996 The Flying Inkpot
Directed by: Peter Farrelly and Bob Farrelly Written by: Barry Fanaro and Mort Nathan Cast : Bill Murray, Woody Harrelson, Randy Quaid, Vanessa Angel Produced by : Brad Krevoy, Steve Stabler and Bradley Thomas Rating : * out of ***** Theatres: Shaw Cinemas
According to the publicity material, with this movie the directors "hope to restore good old-fashioned bowling to its rightful place in the mainstream of American consciousness." Hmm. You never know, they just might be on to something. What with the rise of geek chic, lounge music and Seventies fashion, the ever-contrary kids of the nineties might just latch on to bowling as another terminally unhip bastion of Tackyana to claim as their own. But then, I doubt if KINGPIN will have anything to do with it. It's cheesy all right, but connoisseurs of bad taste will find this film exudes that bland smell of stale jokes rather than the invigorating stink of true kitsch.
That's a shame, because, in the first ten minutes or so the film promises to be a lot more. Woody Harrelson plays the hotshot bowler on the rise, Roy Munson. The movie opens in the Fifties with Roy's Dad dishing out the Reader's Digest/Gumpian wisdom in scoopfuls, shifting to the 70s for a hilarious spoof of Saturday Night Fever.
The sardonic tone of the proceedings is much enhanced by the presence of Bill Murray, as the delectably slimy Big Ern Mcracken. It's thanks to Murray that the first quarter of KINGPIN seems so good - he gives the wry, derisive edge to this otherwise rather unfocused comedy.
McCracken dupes Munson into a hustling job, then abandons him to an angry mob who mangle Roy's hand. Then it's fast forward 17 years later when Munson is a fat, balding loser with a prosthetic rubber hand. He's hopeless until he meets Ishmael (Randy Quaid), an Amish amateur bowler that Munson takes on as protege. So together they set out for the million dollar bowling tournament in Reno, picking up pretty hustler Claudia (Vanessa Angel) on the way.
With the exit of Bill Murray, the filmmakers seem to have only one direction to go, and that's ... DUMB AND DUMBER. Yes, indeed, KINGPIN is brought to you by those modern proponents of laxative humour, Peter and Bobby Farrelly, the directors of the aforementioned Jim Carrey vehicle. So, prepare for much slaparound comedy with flying rubber hands, distended nipples, ridiculous hair and bull semen. Get set for stock fish-out-of-water situations when city-boy Roy puts on a beard and tries to blend in with the Amish community, or when suaku straitlaced Ishmael takes on smoking, striptease and unChristian neighbour-socking.
Now, don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with cheap humour, and I had my fair share of lavatorial laughs with Woody and Randy. The trouble is that these jokes aren't bold or funny enough to drive a movie that bumbles along without much sense of direction. It lurches from sports movie to Amish-mocking to road-trip to sentimental melodrama, (pausing for a broadside spoof of INDECENT PROPOSAL, and many shameless plugs for the accompanying pop soundtrack), never quite getting it all together. Some gags fall flat from a lack of build-up, while there are bits and pieces in the movie that simply don't do anything. Why the long, unfunny fight in the car park? Why TWO of these? Why does that guy wear mascara, or that guy have a glass bowling ball with a rose in it? The film is full of these half-thought-through ideas that give the impression of any old gaffer, grip or makeup artist throwing in random stuff and saying, "wouldn't that be funny?". Well, no, actually.
The actors don't do the movie much favours either. Woody Harrelson comes off okay, plausibly acting dumb, smart, cynical or innocent when the implausible script calls for it, but Randy Quaid is a ceaseless ham, and Vanessa Angel has no talent (like Schwarzenegger, she seems more convincing playing a computer-creation than a human -- take the TV series Weird Science...please ). Even Murray hams it up when he reappears in the movie's climax.
All in all, a fairly useless attempt at comedy, and a certified no-hoper at kickstarting the Bowling Renaissance. We'll have to look to a reinspired John Waters, or perhaps somebody from Down Under ("Strictly Bowling", anyone?) for the definitive bowling comedy.
THE FLYING INKPOT's rating system: * Wait for the video. ** A little creaky, but still better than staying at home with Gotcha! *** Pretty good, bring a friend. **** Amazing, potent stuff. ***** Perfection. See it twice.
___________________________________ This review was written for THE FLYING INKPOT <http://bizdir.com.sg/inkpot/>. We're inkier! We're pottier! We're wordy! All flying bricks welcome. Leave your penguin at the door.
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