soybomb89 Reviews

Bitter Jester (2003)

Illuminating, if Uneven Tragicomedy

[27 September 2004]

Noteworthy for so many reasons, (not the least of which being a heartbreaking cameo from Richard Pryor,) Bitter Jester ostensibly delves into the highs and lows of struggling along the comedy circuit. Beautiful and outrageously talented Maija experiences a crisis of conscience

and seeks to find center again by making a documentary of (in roughly this

order) her youth, parents, rise on the comedy scene, implosion on said scene, psychotherapy, meeting her homicidal boyfriend, using his contacts to talk to other comedians about their experiences, feuding with Jerry Seinfeld, cross

country trips, her boyfriends potential gay lover, etc. Needless to say, it feels a bit scattered. But amidst the clutter, there is a beautiful film in here. If only the filmmakers had been able to polish and edit the material down and stick to the heart of the issue. The access they had to notable comedians (and comediennes) is staggering

and worth watching for that reason alone. And Maija's journey from shattered

ego to eventual rebirth is inspiring for any artist. It is mostly Ken Simmons that seems to derail this particular train, physically, emotionally, verbally. The man is a juggernaut, barreling through life like the minotaur. Admirable in its way, I mean, he is the reason we even get to see

Richard Pryor in all his decimated glory, but truly the film spends to much time dealing with him, his ego, and his exploits. Inspiring if a little flawed, Bitter Jester is a film you must see if you are an aspiring comedian, an artist, or just a caring, feeling human being.

Cube (1997)

Superb production design do not make up for the acting.

[3 April 2000]

Cube is a visually brilliant movie, unfortunately rendered nearly unwatchable by the hackneyed and syrupy over-acting. The one genuine performance in the entire piece is the man who says the least. Worth, the so called nihilist, provides the film with a quiet center while everyone else resorts to predictable, often laughable acting by rote. The most offensive onslaught over "acting" comes from a man portraying an idiot savant type, and he basically pulls out of his bag of tricks every movement and nuance that you could learn on a school yard amidst several cruel eighth-graders in an afternoon. I hate to say it, but I cared so little for any of the characters, that I didn't really want any of them to get out of the cube. With that in mind, I do think that it would be worth watching if you could get the DVD version of it and watch the film with the director's commentary on.