Trees Lounge (1996)
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 1996 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): * 1/2
The TREES LOUNGE is populated with all of the locals from a working class district in one of the Boroughs of New York. Everyone shows up at one time or another, but the regulars are the alcoholics, albeit never regarded as such in the show even if one of them does drop dead.
Prolific second fiddle actor Steve Buscemi takes his first turn as a writer and director in this fictional tale inspired by his life. Not autobiographical exactly, but realistic. He says in the press kit that he was inspired by the films of John Cassavetes whose "films weren't heavy on plot; any story that was told was done through characters and relationships."
Steve Buscemi plays Tommy, a charter member of the Trees Lounge drinking establishment. His lost his job as a mechanic when he "borrowed" money from the garage and spent it gambling. Since he is a terrible mechanic, this is no big loss to the community.
Of the other regulars at the bar, perhaps the best is quintessential boozer Bill (Bronson Dudley). He is a sullen and grizzled old man who rarely speaks and keeps a stack of bills in front of him to make sure his glass is constantly full. Think of him as the mirror image of Nicolas Cage's happy inebriate in LEAVING LAS VEGAS, but they both face the same destiny.
Actually, TREES LOUNGE is not about alcoholism or drug abuse, of which there is a lot of smoking and snorting, but about the camaraderie of the lounge's entourage much like that of the Brooklyn smoke shop in wonderful film SMOKE. Since Buscemi has been in forty films, he seems to have a lot of famous acting friends - most of whom show up with some part in the film. These include, but are not limited to: Anthony LaPaglia, Carol Kane, Debi Mazar, Samuel L. Jackson, Seymour Cassel, and Mimi Rogers.
Although this is an ensemble cast, the show works or not depending on how well you like Buscemi's acting. Buscemi has a unique style as evidenced in ESCAPE FROM L. A. and FARGO. For me his best, and only completely satisfying picture, was FARGO where he played a vicious but incompetent killer and lowlife. In TREES LOUNGE he certainly looks the part, down to bad teeth, thinning hair, and clothes right off the rack from Goodwill.
There is no narrative drive in TREES LOUNGE, but rather a stream of little incidents. In one scene Tommy engages Crystal (Debi Mazar) in a drinking contest to see if can get to take her home to bed. He resorts to tricks to win, but loses in the end when she passes out.
When his old Uncle Al (Seymour Cassel) dies behind the wheel of his ice cream truck, Tommy finally finds a job. Tommy takes his seventeen year old girlfriend Debbie (Chloe Sevigny from KIDS) and drives around selling Good Humor ice cream to the local kids. Good humor, of course, being an antonym for Tommy's mood.
Another bar regular, Mike (Mark Boone Jr.), has a full-time job running a trucking business, but as his wife Marie (Eszter Balint) says, "You don't go to work every day. You go to a bar every day."
Some of the best scenes in the show are pure ad lib. In one, Tommy does a snippet of a Munchkin imitation from THE WIZARD OF OZ to impress his girlfriend. In a reoccurring sequence, a small boy keeps trying, without much luck, to get the ice cream truck to stop and take his dollar.
Some small touches are worth noting. I liked the way they drank a lowbrow brew like Pabst Blue Ribbon. I also thought the clothes by Mari-An Ceo were suitably tacky without being ridiculous. My favorite line comes after Rob's (Anthony LaPaglia) wife Theresa (Elizabeth Bracco) gives birth. Tommy comments on her baby, "He's a little old man. Can't you take some of the wrinkles out? You've given birth to Mr. Magoo."
All of this having been said, there is little compelling in the picture. The characters although quirky are unsympathetically drawn. Yes, I spent almost a couple of hours with these people, but why did I pay them a visit?
TREES LOUNGE runs 1:39. It is rated R for strong language, a little violence, and heavy drinking and drug abuse. There is no sex or nudity. I do not think this film is inappropriate for kids other than perhaps older and mature teenagers. I know of no reason to see the movie so I give it a thumbs down and award it * 1/2.
**** = One of the top few films of this or any year. A must see film. *** = Excellent show. Look for it. ** = Average movie. Kind of enjoyable. * = Poor show. Don't waste your money. 0 = One of the worst films of this or any year. Totally unbearable.
REVIEW WRITTEN ON: October 14, 1996
Opinions expressed are mine and not meant to reflect my employer's.
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews