No. 127 : Wild Things (1998)

Wild Things at the IMDb

Here’s a saucy number that you’ve probably seen but I feel these things are best examined closely. For the subtle nuances in the detective case you understand, not the lithe young bodies sweatily gyrating around. Hardly noticed that at all.

The film is set at a Florida school and sees Matt Dillon’s PE teacher rather unwisely allow Denise Richards to wash his jeep. We don’t see what goes on but she cries rape and the case is investigated by Kevin Bacon’s cynical detective. The case looks shaky until skuzzy local Neve Campbell says he raped her too and even used the same dirty talk - how lazy is that?!

As Richards’ family are local royalty the case is high profile but it all goes awry when under cross examination from Bill Murray’s sleazy lawyer, Campbell breaks down and admits it was all a set up. Clearly wronged Dillon gets a massive pay off from Richards’ family but far from being over the shocks and bodies come thick and fast as layer upon layer of conspiracy is revealed and pretty soon we’ve no idea who’s doing what to whom and for what.

This plot summary is only a brief recap as any more would spoil a few surprises, most of which I’d forgotten since my last viewing which must have been a decade ago. In truth some of the twists are ridiculous and the planning and timing necessary to pull off some of the schemes would have NASA’s computer buzzing for weeks. The scheme isn’t really the thing of course and when you have various combinations of sexy young people getting it on it seems churlish even to mention it.

The film maintains a fast pace and despite a few incredulous moments I was happy to stay the course through wrong foot after misdirection. The excellent cast keep a straight face throughout and I imagine Dillon asked how much he’d have to pay to secure the role. I liked Theresa Russell as the slutty Mom and she was ably assisted with Robert ’Number Two’ Wagner as her attorney. I also liked Denise Richards who can deliver a ’Fuck Off’ like no one else and Campbell was fine despite being a bit shyer than the others.

The film also has a nice touch during the credits where we get a few unseen scenes from the film which demonstrate how things actually went down behind closed doors.

Given the fate of most of the cast it is a surprise that this film spawned two sequels which no doubt maintained the successful recipe of sex and violence. As a detective tale it’s a bit daft but as a sexy thriller with a few laughs it can’t be knockers. Er, knocked.

Best Bit : Hotel Reunion
‘W’ Rating : 16/23

No.75 : Where the Buffalo Roam (1980)

 Where the Buffalo Roam at the IMDb

Bill Murray stars as gonzo writer Hunter S. Thompson in this bio-pic that focuses on three episodes from his times as a journalist for Life magazine.

The film has a predictable book ending device that sees Murray at his desk with a deadline looming. Short of inspiration he thinks back to his past and the three episodes follow. We fist meet him in San Francisco in the 1960’s where he recalls the exploits of Lazlo, his lawyer, who turns up in each subsequent part. Bill sits in the courtroom as his friend defends some hippy pot smokers, unsuccessfully.

We then move to the 1972 Superbowl where Bill has a hotel suite and is fully abusing the expenses tab. He doesn’t go to the game and trades his tickets for a hat before joining Lazlo at his militia training camp.

The last part sees Bill on the campaign trail with nominee Richard Nixon. He is refused an interview but manages to get some prize quotes when he gets Odo off ‘Deep Space Nine’ high and nicks his credentials.

As the last story fades we rejoin Bill in the present with his dog and his assignment complete.

I didn’t really like this film much mainly because I didn’t like Bill Murray’s character at all. He was constantly being wacky and obstinate but came across as a total prick. You never got the impression that he was anything other than Bill Murray doing an impression, and that distraction undermined the whole film.

For a gonzo writer like Thompson the lazy framing method for the stories must have been an embarrassment and I doubt he liked being portrayed as a laconic douche bag either. Peter Boyle as Lazlo was a bit better and at least the mania from him didn’t seem forced. The other main player was an underused Bruno Kirby as Thompson’s editor who spent the whole film getting angry at missed deadlines.

The three episode format for the film did make it more digestible, but I don’t think anything was learned or developed from section to section. Lazlo was the only real connection and his part was more comic relief than essential to the stories. Of the three sections the last was best and the actor who played Richard Nixon did a pretty good job - better than Anthony Hopkins at least! This was the most fun too and saw Bill relegated form the journalist plane to the zoo plane where all the hangers on got high. And flew on it too. Boom Boom.

The opening episode was the worst with an interminable 30 minutes spent on some students getting tried for pot possession. I know it was to show how bad ‘the man’ was but it seemed a real waste of time as we joined Bill sitting casually by, watching events unfold. The middle part was ranked as such and had a few funny bits; but this was were Bill was at his most wasteful and annoying and some poor maid will have to clean that up.

I hadn’t heard of this film before, and it was a lot more accessible than the other Hunter bio-pic ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’, but it’s poor lead performance let it down along with the dull predictable script.

Best Bit Tricky Dickie in the toilet
‘W’ Score 11/23

No.70 : What About Bob? (1991)

What About Bob? at the IMDb

Richard Dreyfuss plays Dr Leo Marvin a successful psychologist who is about to depart for his month long holiday. He’s feeling good as his book ‘Baby Steps’ is doing well and a crew from ‘Good Morning America’ is going to interview him for their show. As he’s about to leave a colleague calls and asks if he’ll take a patient for him as he’s about to retire, somewhat prematurely. Leo agrees and is surprised to find that the client has already scheduled an appointment in the next 5 minutes.

The client, Bob, played by Bill Murray, is a nightmare with every phobia and fixation in the book vying for his manic attention. Leo uses his tried and tested methods and quickly ejects Bob with a copy of his book and a few tips. Clearly he hasn’t read Bob’s notes, or indeed the script, as the rest of the film is basically Bob annoying the good doctor.

Leo gets away with his family but Bob, displaying some out of character smarts and bravery, tracks him down and begins to weasel his way into the family. We soon learn that Dr Leo’s life isn’t as ordered as he’d like to think and he has issues with his wife, children and neighbours. Of course Bob’s innocent charm wins them over and they are at a loss to see why Leo hates his guts. After Bob salvages the interview when Leo chokes the doctor cracks and has Bob committed, only to have him sent home in time for dinner.

With the family loving Bob and his reputation in tatters Leo begins to get a bit mental himself and plots to kill Bob. As the dramatic climax approaches and the bomb countdown started can it all come together in a happy ending for all or maybe just some of the cast?

I didn’t really like this film much and I think it was because I was meant to like Bob and dislike Leo but failed to do either. Bob’s character is meant to be obsessive and annoying but he just grates and you want to punch him in the throat after 5 minutes. Leo on the other hand is meant to be uptight and stuffy but I thought he showed remarkable restraint when dealing with this total prick who was spoiling his holiday.






There were a couple of funny scenes, mostly involving Bob coming through again with his innocent charm as another of Leo’s schemes went awry, but they were few and far between. The less good bits involved Bob winning over the family, with him successfully teaching the son to dive where dad had failed. Thanks a lot, you show off twat!



Towards the end the film got a whole lot darker and although Bob’s mask was never shown to slip I’m sure the implication was that he was an evil cuckoo trying to steal the nest. The finale was unbelievable on all counts and finished with my least favourite ending - the ‘funny’ captions telling you how things panned out in the future. For us to care about their futures we need to be somewhat invested in their present situation and I wasn’t. Poor old Dreyfuss deserved better, as did the viewer who got an uneven and largely unfunny prescription doled out.

Best Bit : Bob gets uncommitted

‘W’ Score 12/23