I keep a running tally of all the movies I see every year, and _Suckerfish_ was my best movie for the year 2000. However, let me say that it's "just" a very good move (I gave it an 8/10), not a great movie -- it's wasn't a very good year for movies. Nonetheless, it's a very enjoyable movie. I took two other people with me -- one of whom had never seen an independent movie -- and they both enjoyed it quite a bit. I get asked about it a lot -- due to it being at the top of my 2000 list -- and I usually describe it as "a black comedy about the high-stakes world of pet supplies."
5 Reviews
Dadaist symphony of de(con)struction
asmith4210 July 2000
This movie has three things going for it: improvised dialogue, big-fish-eats-little-fish scenes straight outta some of the more violent Discovery programs and industrial strength puns. (The pet supplies company whose product is being peddled by one of the main character is named Bowhouse). Given the budget constraints the result hits home far more often than not on the grotesque tip with absurd schemes of pet store supplies and cutthroat competition for the marketshare.
Glengarry Glenross it's not
merklekranz17 March 2007
Being in sales, I was naturally attracted to "Suckerfish". Certain elements of the movie ring true, such as the sales pitches, demanding boss, and the "street feel" due to the improvisation. The customers were representative of their type, and the tie in with goldfish gulping was a nice touch. The movie just sort of drifts along, adding story elements along the way. There is no real tension, very little, if any, feeling for the characters, and the ending was just sort of there. I can't say I was disappointed, but neither was I inspired by "Suckerfish". A much better film, along with "Glengarry Glenross" is "Suckers", a truly great cutthroat auto sales movie. - MERK
John Waters eat your heart out!
Branden15 April 1999
Brien Burroughs and team have done an amazing job of finding a niche of weirdness that has something for everyone. The film, done on an impressively low budget, takes the audience to new realms of mind, place and heart...not that there's lots of heart in this film...which is part of its attractiveness. Stay tuned for a real twist at the film's conclusion at the end of an entertaining and carnalistic ride.
This film is in a genre all it's own.
GregFromOakland30 October 2007
I thoroughly enjoyed this film and found it very engaging and funny. However the timing and pacing of this film most likely will throw off most viewers.
The story revolves around some highly unscrupulous sales reps for pet store products who find creative, humorous ways to shaft their competitors. It appears that Tim Orr must either have life experience being a sales rep or has done his homework on the topic because he exudes an instinct for the dark side of the trade.
There's also a subplot with Gerri Lawlor's character who is married to Tim Orr's character with a secret extramarital affair, which the actors manage to skillfully weave into the main plot.
The plot could have been about almost anything.
I had known that all the dialog and acting in this movie were improvised - no scripts. But instead of a series of vignettes that are comedic ("About Last Night" comes to mind) the structure of this movie is long form improv, or a series of improv scenes connected by a story thread which is also improvised, made up on the fly. With this form of improv everything which happens in any of the scenes must become part of the plot including mistakes.
In the theater, long form improv requires the actors to keep the story "straight" while it is evolving - and at the same time adapt to any new wrinkles that might show up. I'm not sure if that's how this film was made or not. But my experience was very similar to watching long form improv in the theater.
If you watch this like a "normal" Hollywood movie it could seem very disjunct. There should be a genre called "Long Form Improv" but I don't know of any movies but this that would fit.
The story revolves around some highly unscrupulous sales reps for pet store products who find creative, humorous ways to shaft their competitors. It appears that Tim Orr must either have life experience being a sales rep or has done his homework on the topic because he exudes an instinct for the dark side of the trade.
There's also a subplot with Gerri Lawlor's character who is married to Tim Orr's character with a secret extramarital affair, which the actors manage to skillfully weave into the main plot.
The plot could have been about almost anything.
I had known that all the dialog and acting in this movie were improvised - no scripts. But instead of a series of vignettes that are comedic ("About Last Night" comes to mind) the structure of this movie is long form improv, or a series of improv scenes connected by a story thread which is also improvised, made up on the fly. With this form of improv everything which happens in any of the scenes must become part of the plot including mistakes.
In the theater, long form improv requires the actors to keep the story "straight" while it is evolving - and at the same time adapt to any new wrinkles that might show up. I'm not sure if that's how this film was made or not. But my experience was very similar to watching long form improv in the theater.
If you watch this like a "normal" Hollywood movie it could seem very disjunct. There should be a genre called "Long Form Improv" but I don't know of any movies but this that would fit.
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