Country:
USA
Starring:
Joel Murray
Tara Lynne Barr
Mackenzie Brooke Smith
Directed By:
Bobcat Goldthwaith
Synopsis:
Depressed and terminally ill, Frank finally loses it while watching television one night. He decides on a whim to kill a young reality television star who became popular from being spoiled, cruel and obnoxious. While doing the deed, he meets young Roxy, a smart but troubled youth with vision. If you have the balls to kill one person, why stop at one? You've already passed the point of no-return and there is a whole nation that needs cleansing.
Comedian Bobcat Goldthwait directorial debut in 2009, WORLD'S GREATEST DAD, was everything but stellar. It was evident Goldthwait had a knack for writing, but the movie didn't know what tone to take around serious questions and it ended up being more infuriating than anything. Second time's a charm for Mr. Goldthwait. He swung hard at his first try and struck out, but this time, he cracks it out of the park. GOD BLESS AMERICA might not be CITIZEN KANE visually speaking, but it's a powerhouse that goes deep into the problems of American culture. It's not an adversarial, anti-USA rant like it may appear to be at first glance, but rather a serious examination of contemporary entertainment. You don't need to be American to feel targeted by this movie. It's a wrecking ball. Its intention is to destroy to recreate. Needless to say, I love every goddamned minute of GOD BLESS AMERICA.
One of the most important aspect of Bobcat Goldthwaith's film is the distinct separation between what's on television and what's not. The colorful, obnoxious and absurd is absent. People are at work, in lifeless places and they transcend their condition by talking about what happened last night on television. There is no middle ground to this. Or you live in the "television world" or you're bound to a grey cubicle farm. As soon as Frank decides he wants no part of both fates, he begins drifting and living outside the law. My favorite scene of the movie (I think) is when Frank confesses his loathing of what America has become to his co-worker, who's not interested in what Frank has to say because he thinks differently. This scene also exposes the hijacking of intellectual discourse that's been a problem since the Bush years. The co-worker keeps grabbing key expressions Frank uses and turns them against him with no regards for the point Frank was making. Captivating scene, very well crafted by Bobcat Goldthwaith.
There were so many ways where GOD BLESS AMERICA could have went wrong, but this time, Mr. Goldthwaith manages to take every right exit. The worst case scenario would have been for Frank to kidnap the reality T.V movie star at the beginning and have him realize she's just a human being like her, after putting her through the exhausting but life-affirming ordeal that is kidnapping. It's what I would have expected after WORLD'S GREATEST DAD. But don't worry. I assure you the young reality T.V star gets her share of lead to the face within five minutes of their encounter and it is awesome. GOD BLESS AMERICA is unapologetic. It doesn't try to make everybody happy. It's a movie that points fingers and make a stand against the mediocre state of contemporary entertainment. There is hyperbole made, but it's depicting reality with eerie accuracy most of the time.
GOD BLESS AMERICA is a hard movie. It's not difficult, but it aims to hurt and it does. That's what great art does. It crushes your perception of something and redefines it. Entertainment in America (well, in Occidental society) is getting cheaper and dumber and it leaves out people who still link to think for themselves. Popular art and entertainment doesn't engage people's mind and it's a problem for Bobcat Goldthwaith. I happen to share his view and think he did a tremendous job at exposing the problem. GOD BLESS AMERICA is 100% iconoclast. It has been made to expose a problem, to destroy icons and not to propose solutions. It's a nuclear missile aimed at your soul. The visual aspect is left aside, but the script is so strong, it doesn't matter. You won't walk away in one piece.
SCORE: 86%
One of the most important aspect of Bobcat Goldthwaith's film is the distinct separation between what's on television and what's not. The colorful, obnoxious and absurd is absent. People are at work, in lifeless places and they transcend their condition by talking about what happened last night on television. There is no middle ground to this. Or you live in the "television world" or you're bound to a grey cubicle farm. As soon as Frank decides he wants no part of both fates, he begins drifting and living outside the law. My favorite scene of the movie (I think) is when Frank confesses his loathing of what America has become to his co-worker, who's not interested in what Frank has to say because he thinks differently. This scene also exposes the hijacking of intellectual discourse that's been a problem since the Bush years. The co-worker keeps grabbing key expressions Frank uses and turns them against him with no regards for the point Frank was making. Captivating scene, very well crafted by Bobcat Goldthwaith.
There were so many ways where GOD BLESS AMERICA could have went wrong, but this time, Mr. Goldthwaith manages to take every right exit. The worst case scenario would have been for Frank to kidnap the reality T.V movie star at the beginning and have him realize she's just a human being like her, after putting her through the exhausting but life-affirming ordeal that is kidnapping. It's what I would have expected after WORLD'S GREATEST DAD. But don't worry. I assure you the young reality T.V star gets her share of lead to the face within five minutes of their encounter and it is awesome. GOD BLESS AMERICA is unapologetic. It doesn't try to make everybody happy. It's a movie that points fingers and make a stand against the mediocre state of contemporary entertainment. There is hyperbole made, but it's depicting reality with eerie accuracy most of the time.
GOD BLESS AMERICA is a hard movie. It's not difficult, but it aims to hurt and it does. That's what great art does. It crushes your perception of something and redefines it. Entertainment in America (well, in Occidental society) is getting cheaper and dumber and it leaves out people who still link to think for themselves. Popular art and entertainment doesn't engage people's mind and it's a problem for Bobcat Goldthwaith. I happen to share his view and think he did a tremendous job at exposing the problem. GOD BLESS AMERICA is 100% iconoclast. It has been made to expose a problem, to destroy icons and not to propose solutions. It's a nuclear missile aimed at your soul. The visual aspect is left aside, but the script is so strong, it doesn't matter. You won't walk away in one piece.
SCORE: 86%