Hot Rod (7/10)
posted in Movie Reviews |
This is a stupid movie. Strangely, that’s not a criticism. The primary focus of the film is to be lame. It basks gloriously in the lameness that it can achieve. The basic plot of the film is a farcical take on low-budget 80’s movies. It’s not a comedy classic, but I found it surprisingly funny. I guess you have to have the right sense of humor to really get it.
Writing: Besides figuring out how to nail the generic plot structure of the films it is feeding from, there’s not a heck of a lot for this script to need to do. The dialog is intentionally flat, for comedic purposes. Ultimately, success is left up to the cast and production teams.
Production: Most of the film is intentionally low budget, and most of it works well. There are a couple stupid choices made that come off a bit annoying (including a poor little rapid-cut music video kinda thing later in the movie), but overall the low profile production works well.
Cast: Featuring a number of modern SNL vets, the cast clearly gets what they are going for. Andy Samberg pulls off the child-like main character quite well, and is convincing as a naively unconvincing stuntman. Isla Fisher pulls off the charming but beautiful romantic interest. Will Arnet plays the total slimeball with his usual skill at such a roll. Ian McShane is fantastic and funny as the overbearing father. Sissy Spacek is amusingly cast as the stereotypical mother. Other cast members work great, from the daffy best friends to Chris Parnell as the local radio station owner. Parnell is one of the funniest of the modern SNL performers, and is drop dead hilarious in 30 Rock as Dr. Spaceman, and he works wonders with the hapless role he’s given here.
Music: The single most 80’s thing about this movie is the music. From song source usage to Trevor Rabin’s scoring, it’s all glaringly 80’s, and rather funny as a result.
