MADE review

I have to be honest… I was nervous about this screening tonight of MADE. The ticket price was all headed to two charities… But it was a bit pricey and really… there hasn’t been much word of mouth on MADE other than a couple of reviews that came in from test screenings.

It was a film by a first time feature director… THAT IS MAJOR! Now just because Favreau is a screenwriter… well it could mean he’s a visual idiot in terms of placing images together… It could have been paced like a metronome set on 4/4 time… I knew Jon was a solid writer and actor… but there is more to the game than that.

My confidence was only really in place because ARTISAN is taking the film around to various College Campuses and SHOWING THE MOVIE to people months in advance, all for the purpose of getting advance buzz. A policy that served BLAIR WITCH PROJECT well… but this film didn’t have the buzz BWP did when it went on that tour… the online cult of people entranced by the mythology of that character.

But generally I like the screenings I throw to be fun times for the audience. Make them feel like they got their money’s worth and this time… well, this cost more than the BUTT-NUMB-A-THON tickets and I was just showing one film (of course they knew what the film was and that Favreau would be there and at BNAT, nobody knows the schedule in advance.

Well, Dad and I were on our way to the Drafthouse, set to grab some spaghetti before the thing started… and I gave Dad my order and ran something up to Tim (Alamo Drafthouse Owner) and there had been a press screening early that morning and some of the Drafthouse waiters and waitresses and the local critics were apparently not too enthused with the film.

Well… This did wonders for my confidence in the event. Heh, So I eat my dinner, learn that the strike has been averted and a few details from Moriarty about his mangina operation’s success… And just trying to feel good about this whole thing.

I get to the Drafthouse and sit down in the Lobby to greet folks as they arrive… the good folks that really are helping out The Saturday Morning Film Club’s budget and the Austin Film Society’s as well… I’m talking with friends when I see Jon arrive… and standing next to him was…. PETER BILLINGSLEY!!!!! And ya know what? He looks just like a grown up Ralphie! Seriously. Well, I see Tim, point out Peter to him and Tim says, "MAN! I have the A CHRISTMAS STORY trailer up in the booth… I’ve got to put it on the print!" and like a big ball of iron out of the cannon he was off!

The event was sold out and I had to get up there and introduce Jon and the film… but my confidence was shaken in the film, so I did it low key… No big hype, no "This will kick SWINGERS’ ASS" rap. Nope, I didn’t want to over sell this one as it could be uncool.

I mean, I know Favreau can write and act, but what if his direction sucks? So I was quite nervous.

I handed the microphone over to Jon and watched as he cracked sarcastically about how he was so happy that this theater served their audience alcohol, as he was sure they would all enjoy the film! Apparently the Drafthouse reminded Jon of a Comedy Theater he performed in up in Chicago (and later in the evening Vince Vaughn mentioned the same thing). Quickly though, he got to his seat… the lights were dimmed and the flicker of the screen came to life.

After the Drafthouse Coming Attractions, the CHRISTMAS STORY trailer came on to GIGANTIC CHEERS… HOOTS and HOLLARS!!! After all, everyone knew that Peter Billingsley was in the house! This trailer got everyone very very very charged up!

Then came the film…

I can’t compare the film to SWINGERS, because I have not seen SWINGERS.

WHAT???

Well, you see… When SWINGERS came out, everyone that recommended the movie to me was a bit of an ass about it…. Slobbering all these hipper than hip phrases at me… I felt they were so artificial that I unfortunately missed the initial run of the film. NOW, of course I know the error of my ways, but I’m waiting for the Drafthouse or some other venue to screen it big so I can see it on a big screen.

So this review is coming from one that does not know the ‘magic’ of SWINGERS.

First off, I’ll say right now there will be critics of this film that will not like the movie much at all… I’m safe in this assumption as the morning critics didn’t care for it, BUT… Well, these same critics didn’t particularly care for FEAR & LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS or THE BIG LEBOWSKI.

Both of those films, traditional film critics were way way waaaaaaaay out to lunch on. Not that I don’t go out on those excursions myself some days, but FEAR & LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS and THE BIG LEBOWSKI were seemingly attacked by the Critics at Large.

One critic that hated FEAR & LOATHING, I decided to corner one day and find some things out. First I asked this person if they had read the book. They said that they had and that they loved the book. Upon my statement that the film was a wonderful adaptation, there was great whining followed by, "Welll… yeah, but ya know, I just didn’t want to spend anytime with that character on screen."

You see… For some strange reason, Johnny Depp’s Hunter S Thompson annoyed the hell out of critics… Jeff Bridges’ The Dude or El Duderino or His Dudeness… Well, he was also ‘annoying’ to these folks.

Well, Vince Vaughn’s Ricky is a character very much in the tradition of Depp’s Hunter and Bridges’ Dude… He is a force of nature… A character that can be loved by a friend in small doses… but as the evening wears on… it ceases to be funny and becomes an annoyance. He’s that friend that you love… but just can’t be around all the time.

He’s annoying as all hell, but ya know what, his character is just speaking his mind, trying as best he can to simply make the boat sail smoother, but… He just isn’t cut out for the work he’s being pushed into.

I’d say about 40 minutes into the film I got a real real bad feeling. I just knew this was all going to end real bad… I mean real bad. And I got this kinda sick feeling in the pit of my stomach because these were good guys, but dear God… Ricky just needed to chill, but he isn’t wired for chill… You can’t CHILL Ricky. That can’t happen… unless a few ounces of lead injected 3 times in the head in quick succession commences… EVERYONE IS GONNA DIE! I just knew it.

Now, while I was sick to my stomach about what I knew was going to happen… I also couldn’t stop laughing and smiling at what was happening… But I really wanted to hop on screen and help Favreau’s Bobby out.

Now, I won’t say how things go… I don’t want to spoil the film for anyone, but whew… This film isn’t just yucks and guffaws… there is a heart here, and sometimes it is breaking and sometimes it gives the film a soul that is incredibly endearing.

In a nutshell the story is about two hardluck half-assed boxers that have pretty shitty lives. Jon’s lady (Famke) is an exotic entertainer with a cute little kid. Jon dreams of being a boxer, Vince boxes because… well because Jon does. And they like punching one another apparently.

Peter Falk plays an indeterminate status crime lord that wants to give Favreau’s Bobby a chance at being a MADE guy… And is forced to take Vaughn’s Ricky on as well, because Bobby does nothing without Ricky. Ricky is kind of Bobby’s Lennie Small. They are both fiercely loyal to one another and would stick together through anything… But… There are times where if you could leap from your seat with the LAST ACTION HERO golden ticket and a ton of rope and a red ball gag to subdue Ricky for Bobby…. YOU WOULD!

You know in Horror films where you feel like screaming, "CONTINUE STABBING HIM!!!! HE ISN’T DEAD!!!! NO!!! DON’T PUT THE KNIFE DOWN!!!! YOU IDIOT, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!!! Well, you’re just dead, yup… Stupid idiot!"

Well, this is the crime comedy version of a suspense horror film. You feel like screaming at some characters… You just can’t help it. And there’s that sick feeling of hopelessness and doomed destiny that you see looming around them. I think it is because they are so wide eyed and scared by what they are doing, but excited to a point of idiocy… Favreau is on a slow burn throughout…

When I heard that Puffy Combs was in this, I just rolled my eyes… But ya know what? He completely underplays his character dead on right. He’s a yuppie criminal. A guy that treats it like an everyday job. This deal ain’t no biggie for him.

Faizon Love is just another poser, but unlike Favreau and Vaughn, his character knows that all he is supposed to do is look like a badass and everything is gonna be ok. Stay quiet and look mean. Laugh at their jokes, be pleasant, but DON’T ROCK THE BOAT!

Famke Jannsen doesn’t have a very large part, but you can not for a second write her character off… She and her child in the movie are at the very center of it all. She doesn’t play the exotic entertainer as a glamorous job… She looks rundown… Tired of life, but so tired that she can’t imagine doing anything else. THIS IS HER LIFE and she’ll live it. There is such sorrow in her eyes. For everyone that thinks about seeing this movie because she’s hot and she’ll get you hot… This isn’t that movie.

PETER FALK! Ok, the man is just a god in this film. I ADORE HIM! He is so good. It has just been forever since I’ve seen him in anything, and here he is just as cool as can be.

Sam Rockwell! Ok, now I haven’t seen him listed anywhere as being in this film, but Sam Rockwell is quickly becoming what I call a ‘Lucky Charm’ when I see him in a movie. Ever since GALAXY QUEST, GREEN MILE and CHARLIE’S ANGELS, I’ve been eyeing him fiercely… He’s doing a ton of character work… Small parts here and there, but building in stature and confidence on screen. He such a strong presence, that even though he has a TINY part in this film… He’s one of the very few people that appear in this movie that while onscreen… even without the lines… but by sheer body language and facial acting… Over shadows Vince Vaughn’s Ricky… even if only for a brief moment or two.

In all… For folks looking for great character work, a damn funny movie and a punch in the gut while their at it, this film works and works quite well.

Seek this one out!

Now, after the first screening, I handed the mike over to Jon, who then announced that his friend hired a private jet to fly himself to Austin just for this screening was here…. And he announced Vince Vaughn…

You should have heard the place. You could just feel a wave of a joy buzz throughout the audience. Imagine if after you saw FEAR AND LOATHING or BIG LEBOWSKI if Johnny Depp or Jeff Bridges popped out.

Jon is wonderful in the film, but he gave the showy role to Vince. And Vince is a marvel in the role. And this Alamo audience knew it. The crowd just roared. The look on Jon and Vince’s face was just bliss… They knew that if nothing else came of the film, this audience on this night loved it like it was their own child walking for the first time.

They fielded questions from the audience… We learned that the script was treated a bit like a rough outline… That there was a lot of rehearsal time, and that the actors all were given the freedom to make decisions with their characters. Like the last scene you see Sam Rockwell in… He happened to be on set, and wasn’t supposed to be in the scene… He was thrown in there and Vince and he improved the whole thing… It winds up being a classic scene… Priceless.

Then there was the A.D.D. LADY… That moment and that lady… Well she made the night eternal. And this moment, this is why you come out for special events… Why you see your filmmaker idols interact with fans… The A.D.D. LADY will inevitably end up in some Jon Favreau movie at some point… Or she’ll just stay with the 250 or so people in that room that night.

It was as if Brando sent an Indian Lady in traditional garb to accept an Academy Award… It was as if Devito was eating celery in the audience and was brought dip by Steve Martin in front of a Billion People… It was a classic moment. And for us in that room… the line, "Is She Still Talking?" well… It sends us into fits of laughter… It is a verbal shorthand to a precious memory.

After the screening, and after we introduced the second showing, I found myself in the bathroom in a stall sitting there… when Favreau, Vaughn and Billingsley all walked in.

All draining the Shiner Boch from their systems, the conversation goes…

Vince – "I have to hurry up and get in there, I don’t want to miss your trailer Peter!"

Peter – "I can’t believe they have that trailer here, I’ve never seen it before!"

Jon – "I can’t believe that not only did they have it, but they managed to in like 5 minutes, find the trailer and put it on the print! This place is amazing!"

Indeed… The Alamo Drafthouse is Amazing!