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A Mighty
Wind
Those
of us of a certain age may recall being in our parents' cars
on the way to school, stuck in AM radio hell. Of course, we
were young, and didn't really know better, so we thought that
Peter, Paul & Mary were a really hip act. And really, they
had good harmonies and were easy to sing along to…really.
Come on, guys!
Okay,
so nobody has been really clamoring for a revival of folk
music, which for a short time in the sixties actually dominated
the charts. Though Christopher Guest's latest "mockumentary,"
A Mighty Wind, pokes fun at the genre, it just might
accidentally trigger a real revival. Provided, of course,
that anybody actually goes to see it.
Warmer
in tone than Guest's previous two improvised projects, Waiting
For Guffman and Best in Show, this effort still
has a skewed sense of humor, with brilliant improvised moments.
Though it hits its spoofing target dead-on, it also meanders
in a way that keeps it from being truly great.
In the
wake of the death of a folk music impresario, his children
organize an impromptu tribute concert. To do so, they have
to reunite his most famous clients, Mitch and Mickey (Eugene
Levy and Catherine O'Hara), which wouldn't be a problem if
Mitch hadn't had a spectacular meltdown in the mid-70's that
left him barely functional.
Eager
to jump on board and lend support are The New Main Street
Singers, a descendant of The Main Street Singers, reduced
to singing in open areas at amusement parks (a vague echo
of Spinal Tap's spectacular freeform jazz odyssey show). Though
the group still has a founder involved (Paul Dooley), the
film quickly pushes him off to the side to focus on more outrageous
members. And therein lies a serious problem.
Unlike
Guest's previous efforts, this film is unwieldy in dealing
with its cast of characters. The nominal leaders of The Main
Street Singers Terry Bohner (John Michael Higgins) and his
ex-pornstar wife Laurie (Jane Lynch) work overtime to be quirky
and worthy of attention, while other characters pop up, barely
register and then disappear without ever resolving their subplots.
This
includes the expected main trio, The Folksmen. Played by Guest,
Michael McKean and Harry Shearer, this musical act has been
in their repertoire for almost twenty years. Yet they come
across as the most underdeveloped. We see them sing, argue,
and make peace, but we never quite understand what their group
dynamics are, perhaps for fear of coming across as wussier
incarnations of Spinal Tap.
They
do have subtle jokes played about them. All of them suffer
from hair loss, but deal with it in different ways. Unfortunately,
Shearer's character has given over to total baldness, even
makes references to it, but has obviously shaved his head
for the role. There's 1 o'clock shadow, 5 o'clock shadow,
and beyond.
On the
plus side, Guest continues proving himself to be an extremely
generous filmmaker to his fellow comedians. Collaborating
with Levy on the film's structure, he gives the most attention
to his co-writer's story arc, and it provides the real backbone.
In past
films, Levy has made his mark as an outrageous character,
but in A Mighty Wind he does a tremendous job of acting.
Though Mitch is funny, there's something a little sad about
him that the goofy punchlines just can't hide. In tandem with
the seriously underrated O'Hara, he might move you to tears.
Wisely, Guest allows the poignant moments to happen, suggesting
a wider possibility for improvisation in film beyond wacky
comedy.
Other
standouts in the cast include Bob Balaban as the impresario's
son, whose uptight upbringing quietly spins out of control
as the movie progresses. Ed Begley, Jr. scores, too, as a
Swedish public television executive desperate to prove his
non-existent Jewishness.
To be
honest, every performance is good; it's just that many end
up going nowhere. However, a saving grace of the film is its
exacting recreation of the folk movement. Some of the songs
are funny because of their earnestness, and some because they
sound like they could have played on radio in the sixties.
Only the title song has a punchline that betrays itself; there's
no way the singers could not be in on the joke.
Just
as with This Is Spinal Tap, I walked out immediately
wanting the soundtrack album. And that's not a bad reaction
to have. A Mighty Wind doesn't blow; it's just not
as strong as it might have been. Your parents, however, are
going to love it, even if they don't know it's a joke.
What's
It Worth? $6.50
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