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"'DeMented'
Forever"
by Scott Mantz
"Cecil B. DeMented"
Melanie Griffith, Stephen
Dorff Directed by John Waters
Ever since the
release of his trashy cinematic classic "Pink Flamingos" in 1974,
director John Waters has been notorious for making films outside
the Hollywood studio system. Though he's never quite had a mainstream
hit, he's maintained a loyal and devoted legion of fans who continue
to embrace his trashy and twisted cinematic style. With his latest
release, Waters sends up the very industry in which he has made
his name, and while "Cecil B DeMented" certainly has its moments
of zany hysteria, it is unlikely that it will find an audience outside
Water's circle of fans. Then again, who's complaining?
Hollywood screen
diva Honey Whitlock (Melanie Griffith) is in Baltimore to promote
the release of her latest film "Some Kind of Happiness." In front
of a stunned audience at the black-tie premiere, she is kidnapped
by a group of guerrilla filmmakers, led by the deranged Cecil B.
DeMented (Stephen Dorff), who are intent on using her in their film.
At first, Honey refuses to comply with their demands, but she gives
in when she sees the back-stabbing Hollywood system for what it
really is. DeMented, Whitlock, and their band of filmmakers go on
a terrorist spree around town all in the name of art, and they are
determined to finish their film even if it kills them (or anyone
else who gets in their way).
In a summer
filled with giant hamsters shooting projectile turds, killer dildos,
and live chickens stuck up people's rectal areas, some people would
argue that John Water's type of trashy humor has gone out of style.
On the other hand, where would the Farrelly brothers, those reigning
kings of gross-out comedy, be had it not been for Divine's stomach-churning
feast at the climax of "Pink Flamingos?" Waters may not always come
through, but there's no doubt that his best films, especially "Hairspray,"
"Polyester," "Cry Baby," and 1998's underrated "Pecker," hit their
mark for their sheer no-holds-barred look at white trash suburbia.
"Cecil B. DeMented"
is more of the same for Waters. Even though he once again uses his
home town of Baltimore for his setting, he may just as well have
shot the film right in the heart of Hollywood. Actually, shot through
the heart is more like it. Waters pulls no punches in his disdain
for mainstream filmmaking, with the film's biggest jokes coming
at the expense of notorious director's cuts, lame sequels, and English
dubbing of foreign films. But it's the more inside jokes at the
expense of the Screen Actor's Guild and MPAA President Jack Valente
that may fall on deaf ears.
Mainstream Hollywood
takes a real beating, but the independent scene doesn't get off
so easily either. Stephen Dorff is perfectly cast as the enthusiastic
filmmaker who will stop at nothing to get his film made, which is
undoubtedly a nudge to obsessive filmmakers who have yet to learn
that it's only a movie. Melanie Griffith has not made the best career
choices lately ("Crazy in Alabama" anyone? Ugh!), but she digs deep
into her role as a screen diva who becomes victim to the Patty Hearst-style
kidnapping. Maybe it's just a case of art imitating life, but it's
still fun to watch Griffith poke fun at her own image.
"Cecil B. DeMented"
may tear apart the whole guerrilla filmmaking mentality as much
as it pays homage to it, but Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy covered
similar ground with better results in last year's "Bowfinger." In
that sense, "Cecil B. DeMented" comes across as "Bowfinger" on acid.
The film makes it point early on, but after the first 20 minutes,
the jokes become repetitive, and the film falls apart into a mess
of mass confusion. There's enough zaniness, craziness, and trashiness
going on to ensure its cult status in the John Waters film canon,
but if this particular style doesn't do anything for you, neither
will the film.
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