DVD The Big Sleaze

Inspired lunacy from the demented brain pan that is Michael Fredianelli and Wild Dogs Productions. The familiar ensemble of weirdos–many of them refugees from the punishing yet curiously satisfying "The Minstrel Killer"–return here in a comedy so packed full of indecent elements, one blurb can hardly contain all of the depravity.

Chuck Peterson (Fredianelli) contributes his most intriguing performance, playing here a bipolar, bottom-feeding scam artist who endures the worst that Los Angeles has to offer: a trenchant bevy of flamboyant, Asian pornographers, assorted thugs, insensitive females, and bad actors. Being cornered into a terrorist plot to decimate Disneyland almost pales in comparison to Chuck Peterson's more human conflicts–or should I say less human than human conflicts?–like dealing with an effeminate, smirking children's artist, or one encounter with one horrendous, doo-doo-spattering toilet.

Most of the actors deliver their performances with proper emphasis on behavior, which is to say they play their characters straight with little sitcom smarm or Ellen DeGeneres mugging. Timothy Jahn's Burt Young-esquire scumbag, as well as Michael Martinez's "Hopeless Actor" are hilarious, with Martinez selling one breakdown scene as harrowing as it is truthful about the world's most flag-carrying poster children to low self-esteem: Los Angeles actors. A luckless parolee (Lisa Cortez) is equally memorable for her monologue with a poorly Foley'ed landlord and the horrifically violent death-by-coffee-table demise that follows. Not since "Omen II" have I experienced a screen death of such raw power. Unfortunately, some of the movie's lesser actors appear in scenes further hindered by a cutesy, Guy Ritchie sense of montage, plus they drag out their lines in the all-too-familiar Tarantino style of acting, which involves lots of annoying "street" dialect and absurd expressions.

Movie's visuals are mostly impressive except for some dodgy focus and irritating, wandering, hand-held camera-work. One slow-motion sequence of Peterson kicking the hell out of a fence (and later demonstrating the same on an unfortunate girl) looks positively David Lynch. Bad matching on locations is only a minor complaint, as anybody unfamiliar with the ugly, pea-green hills of San Jose will probably fail to notice their lack of resemblance to the smoggy lumps that make up the Hollywood mountainside. Groggy, gaseous, and often gastrointestinal original soundtrack by Aaron Stielstra packs plenty of funk to complement its more sinister synth melodies and dirges, though some songs seem to become smothered or aborted altogether to make way for the rest of the movie's contributors. But considering this includes dudes like Miles Davis, Roy Budd, and Bernard Hermann, the man is in excellent company. Plus, the movie features an appropriate amount of metal, as well. Rousing gunfight in a train-yard is undeniably slick, and a nice homage to James Van Bebber's "Deadbeat At Dawn". Still, despite being ridiculously violent, it is surprisingly lacking in catharsis. Maybe this is because Chuck Peterson comes across as a man far less capable of defeating an army of ethnic commandos than he is a dumbass who simply robs little children.

Nonetheless, there's a lot to recommend here, and the pacing during the film's solid moments of comedy and atrocity outweigh those featured in far too many commercial market comedies, ones that wouldn't dream of going as far as this movie does–regardless of the amount of discharge and graphic sex they offer. Actress Sabrina Machado is as beautiful and capable in her sadistic scenes of dressing down Peterson as she is in spewing copious fountains of blood. Chad Kaplan's animation is extremely stylish and amusing, with his opening credits sequence prompting one to ask: "Is it the visuals I find so breathtaking, or the metal? Or both?" And this is a dilemma no viewer is confronted by in today's mainstream comedies, let alone the "indie" ones, and especially not in yuppie-pandering hobo excreta like "He's Just Not That Into You". Disneyland finale is powerful

While not as good as the previous Wild Dogs flick ('The Minstrel Killer'), Michael Fredianelli's latest film does not disappoint. On the whole this comedy is highly entertaining and fast paced. The cinematography looks great for the most part and a variety of interesting locations (including Disneyland itself) are showcased throughout. Furthermore, the production is enhanced by some nicely utilized visual effects by Mike Martinez and some good original music by Aaron Stielstra and others. Additionally, the movie's editing and sound design (though mostly comprised of stock sound effects) also stand out as being particularly good.

Performances in the film are overall quite good. Fredianelli is great in the lead as is Robert Amstler ('Terminator 3', 'Hierarchy') as a fierce "freelance rouster". Actor Eddie Napolilo ('Frost/Nixon', 'The Aviator') also turns in a great performance as artist/police cadet Rick Adams (unfortunately though he is given only a small amount of screen time). In addition, many Wild Dogs regulars receive memorable cameo roles throughout while some new faces also grace the screen.

The film is great fun for its entire running time and is filled with a variety of great set pieces including a superb shootout, a shopping cart chase, and an explosive terrorist attack on Disneyland. On the negative side, the film turned out to be less funny than I had expected. Sure, there are many great/clever scenes, but nothing really stood out as being laugh-out-loud hilarious. The only other real complaints I have would be an ultra fake looking gunshot wound or two and the somewhat stupid and tacked on Obama bit at the end. The movie probably could have benefited from some more Stielstra tunes as well. The guy should be to Michael Fredianelli what Ennio Morricone was to Sergio Leone. While not quite a masterpiece, 'The Big Sleaze' is an extremely fun filled flick not to be missed.