 Cult Comedies
Five entertaining cinematic time capsules from the Swinging ‘60s—each
with a fervent cult following—make their DVD debuts.
Originally billed as “the motion picture with something
to offend everyone,” The Loved One, directed by bisexual
Tony Richardson and based on the novel by Evelyn Waugh, is
a macabre comic masterpiece about the funeral business that
may seem familiar today (it’s inconceivable that Alan
Ball didn’t have this in mind when he created Six Feet
Under), but it still lives up to the original hype. Featuring
one of the most eclectic casts ever assembled, with Robert
Morse, Jonathan Winters, Liberace (giving the film’s
most subdued performance!), Milton Berle, John Gielgud, Tab
Hunter, and James Coburn, it’s Rod Steiger who gives
the stand-out performances as Mr. Joyboy, a Mama’s
boy embalmer you won’t soon forget. A Fine Madness
stars Sean Connery in an atypical performance as a genius,
poet and carpet cleaner with Joanne Woodward as his beleagured
wife and Jean Seberg (a cult figure in her own right) as
his mistress. After eating some magic brownies, comic great
Peter Sellers goes from buttoned-up professional to buttoned-down
drop out in Paul Mazursky’s potent flower power satire
I Love You, Alice B. Toklas. Julie Christie—who’s
pretty much synonymous with the Swinging ’60s—stars
in and as Petulia, a beguiling cinematic jigsaw puzzle that
follows her pursuit of a recently divorced doctor (George
C. Scott) during summer-of-love era San Francisco. In one
of his first screen appearances, a very young Robert DeNiro
stars with Jerry Orbach in The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot
Straight , a slapstick satire about a bunch of wannabe criminals
in New York City. Bonus features: assorted new and vintage
featurettes and trailers.—Jeremy Kinser
The Betty Grable Collection Vol. 1
1940s box office queen Betty Grable starred in a number
of glittering Technicolor musicals designed to give audiences
a respite from the war overseas. With lavish production numbers,
glamorous gowns, dashing leading men like Don Ameche and
colorful supporting players like camp icon Carmen Miranda
and high-kicking Charlotte Greenwood, the films still hold
a lot of interest for gay audiences. Grable visits South
America to buy a racehorse from Ameche in 1940’s dazzling
Down Argentine Way, the first film made at the request of
President Franklin Roosevelt as an advance of his Good Neighbor
Policy toward Latin America. 1941’s Moon Over Miami,
in which she poses as an heiress to land a wealthy husband,
is one of the star’s most quintessential films. Grable
starred with June Haver (who left films to become a nun!)
in The Dolly Sisters, loosely-based on the true story of
vaudevillian sisters who were the toast of two continents
prior to WWI. My Blue Heaven paired Grable with Dan Dailey
as married entertainers making the transition to television
and introduced Mitzi Gaynor. Bonus features: audio commentaries
by film historians, the A&E bio of Grable, still photos
galleries and collectible lobby cards.—JK
The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things
Asia Argento’s The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things
follows a young boy ripped from his loving foster family
by his reckless birth mother and forced to survive a life
of non-stop chaos. The harrowing film is best-viewed as a
curio, as it’s based on the supposed fact-based story
by JT LeRoy, one of the great literary frauds of recent times
who earlier this year was exposed as a San Francisco housewife.
I guess you have to give credit to Argento, daughter of famed
horrormeister Dario, for her chutzpah in taking on this material
(she also stars as the depraved mother), but unfortunately
Heart plays like a paean to child abuse. Bizarre cameos populate
the film: Winona Ryder turns up as an inept child psychologist,
Peter Fonda as sadistic, religious fanatic grandfather, and
Marilyn Manson as a father figure who sexually abuses young
LeRoy. Bonus features: commentary by Argento, footage from
the N.Y. premiere, and a featurette on LeRoy called “JT
Undercover,” which offers video footage of the JT LeRoy
camp in action at parties, book readings, and interviews.
Also included is a 24-page booklet inserted inside the DVD
jacket containing excerpts from the many newspaper and magazine
features on the LeRoy hoax.—JK
Is It Really So Strange?
Actually it is rather strange how an enormous cult following
devoted to former Smiths front man-turned-solo artist Morrissey
developed among Southern California Latinos during the foppish
singer’s lengthy hiatus from recording. What can they
possibly relate to in the songs of the chronically depressed
Brit? Plenty, it seems, according to William E. Jones’ no-frills
documentary Is It Really So Strange?, which attempts to shed
light
on this phenomena. Jones interviews a number of the most
hard-core fans, many of whom have donned the Mozzer’s
trademark quiff hairstyle and rockabilly attire as they discuss
rumors of the singer’s ambiguous sexuality and offer
many reasons for the kinship they feel including parallels
between the Irish-descended singer who was raised in Thatcher-Britain
and the plight of Mexicans living in California—Morrissey‘s
lyrics tap into their sense of alienation. The most amusing—and
potentially illusion-shattering—is an encounter shared
by one fan, rendered almost speechless when his idol visited
his music store, took a peek at his own CD section, then
split with a “leather daddy“ in a convertible.
Bonus features: photo gallery.—JK
Los Jornaleros (The
Day Laborers)
Though not siblings, Pillo (Jose Caro), Tura (Ricardo Molina),
and Quique (Andres Salcedo) are as close as any brothers
could be. When they’re together, it seems like anything
is possible. In Los Jornaleros, the Mexican trio decides
to head to America, where they hope to line their pockets
with some serious cash as day laborers. Eventually dissatisfied
with the backbreaking, low-paying job, each begins to find
his own way of achieving the American Dream, causing their
once close-knit relationship to unravel. Will their friendship
withstand the mounting pressures they face in America? How
will Quique’s coming out be received by his amigos,
Pillo and Tura? Despite being a low budget film, Los Jornaleros
is an entertaining flick that works well because of its strong
storyline that keeps viewers engaged throughout. Though there
are times that the acting seems a bit contrived, it is completely
forgivable the minute any one of the three steamy Latino
hotties walks on screen. With day laborers this hot—I’m
sure I could wrangle up some extra work around my home. Bonus
Features: None.—John Hobbs
Strangers with Candy: The Complete Series
School may be out for the summer, but there's still plenty
of fun to be had in the halls of Flatpoint High, where 46-year-old “boozer,
user and loser”-turned-high school student Jerri Blank
(the riotous Amy Sedaris) engages herself in a series of
humiliating situations while trying to turn her life around
and get a diploma. Released to coincide with the big screen
prequel, Strangers with Candy: The Complete Series compiles
all 30 episodes of the weirdly compelling Comedy Central
cult classic (as well as several bonus features), and lovingly
packages it in a nifty Trapper-like folder that is a must-have
for rabid fans. For the uninitiated, it may take several
episodes before you begin to warm up to the show's dryly
acerbic and often cruel sense of humor, but by the time Jerri
is faced with the repercussions of ratting out a fellow student
who might be a “retard” in episode 4, you'll
be ready to sign up as a cheerleader on Jerri's pep squad.
Ahhh, good times. Bonus features: Many of the extras (including
hilarious audio commentary on nine episodes and a 44-minute
interview with the cast at the Museum of Television and Radio)
were already included on prior releases of individual seasons,
but The Trip Back, a PSA that inspired the series, never-before-seen
director's cuts of two episodes and a preview of the feature
film are sure to please diehards.—Ken Knox
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