God Bless America (2012)
Directed by Bobcat Goldthwait
Fed up with the cruelty and stupidity of American culture, an unlikely duo goes on a killing spree, killing reality TV stars, bigots and others they find repugnant.
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5 films that influenced God Bless America
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What follows is a cross-country kill-for-thrill jaunt (equal parts “Paper Moon” and “Falling Down”) that ends on the set of an “Idol”-like singing show.
In some ways, "God Bless America" is faintly reminiscent of Michael Douglas' 1993 film "Falling Down" -- with a little "Natural Born Killers" thrown in, since Frank, by accident more than anything, ends up with a bloodthirsty teenage accomplice named Roxy (ebullient newcomer Tara Lynne Barr) riding shotgun with him on his road trip from hell.
With rudeness, cruelty and self-absorption now universally heralded American attributes, with cynical political opportunists, unworthy “talents” and lowlifes dominating reality TV, the time is certainly right for a “Falling Down” remake.
Genetically akin to “Falling Down” and “Natural Born Killers,” with a twist out of “The Professional,” “God Bless America” is what’s known in Yiddish as a geschrei or in French a (ital) cri de couer: (ital) an impassioned outburst, a shout to the heavens, a cry from the heart.
Bobcat Goldthwait, directing yet another hilariously inappropriate film rooted in appropriate points, does it again with a Falling Down-esque tale of two people's revenge on stupidity.
It sounds like a funny idea, a sort of satirical Falling Down, but somehow the shoddiness of the film-making and the flatness of the writing dilute the anger and inspire a numbing tedium.
Borrowing bits and pieces from Network, Bonnie And Clyde , and Taxi Driver , God Bless America takes off on a honey of a premise: An angry middle-aged man—divorced, recently unemployed, and just informed he has an inoperable brain tumor—decides to murder one of those whiny brats on a My Super Sweet 16-like reality show.
Goldthwait describes God Bless America as a "violent movie about kindness," and he has created a Howard Beale (of Network’s “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it any more” fame) for our debased times.
He is also smart and articulate in explaining his revulsion with aspects of current American civilization — so articulate, indeed, that sometimes he sounds like a combination of Al Franken , Rachel Maddow and the "I'm mad as hell" speech in " Network ."
Combining the pop-culture parody of Idiocracy with the mad-as-hell-and-not-going-to-take-it-anymore frustration of Network and Falling Down, God Bless America has an intriguing formula, but it’s one that’s never fully utilized.
In press throughout this film’s tour from its premiere at Toronto last year to this re-cut premiere at SXSW, Goldthwait has at times referenced Peter Finch’s speech at the end of Network as an inspiration.
The movie jokingly references Bonnie and Clyde , but a more natural touchstone might be Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers , with a passing nod to Joe vs. the Volcano .
In some ways, "God Bless America" is faintly reminiscent of Michael Douglas' 1993 film "Falling Down" -- with a little "Natural Born Killers" thrown in, since Frank, by accident more than anything, ends up with a bloodthirsty teenage accomplice named Roxy (ebullient newcomer Tara Lynne Barr) riding shotgun with him on his road trip from hell.
Genetically akin to “Falling Down” and “Natural Born Killers,” with a twist out of “The Professional,” “God Bless America” is what’s known in Yiddish as a geschrei or in French a (ital) cri de couer: (ital) an impassioned outburst, a shout to the heavens, a cry from the heart.
Natural Born Killers‘ Mickey and Mallory killed for kicks.
The movie jokingly references Bonnie and Clyde , but a more natural touchstone might be Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers , with a passing nod to Joe vs. the Volcano .
With hints of movies like Harold and Maude, Falling Down and Bonnie and Clyde lurking deep within its DNA, God Bless America is one of the most blisteringly fun blood-soaked, violently over-the-top flicks in some time that cleverly manages to not only entertain but get you thinking as well (which is a rarity).
Borrowing bits and pieces from Network, Bonnie And Clyde , and Taxi Driver , God Bless America takes off on a honey of a premise: An angry middle-aged man—divorced, recently unemployed, and just informed he has an inoperable brain tumor—decides to murder one of those whiny brats on a My Super Sweet 16-like reality show.
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And if calling her “Juno” didn’t send her into a homicidal monologue about Diablo Cody that will make even the most dedicated United States of Tara fan take up arms, it would be an apt way to describe her wit.
Goldthwait has a good old time both emulating and sending up " Juno "-esque "sassy teen" dialogue in a long exchange between Frank and Roxy's very odd couple, but I don't get the sense that the filmmaker appreciates that his own negatively idealized teen character is every bit as much a construct as Diablo Cody 's adorable pregnant waif/pixie was.
And despite Goldthwait's antipathy for the Tea Party, Roxy's kill list also includes hippies, people who wear crystals, people who buy "anarchy" T-shirts, and Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody ("the only stripper who suffers from too much self-esteem").
Later in the film, daringly, Goldthwait's script does name names, including Diablo Cody , who Frank despises for having created, in " Juno ," a heroine who is actually very much like the one in this movie.
As part of Roxy’s rant, she goes into how much she hates Diablo Cody (Oscar-winning screenwriter of Juno), and, in one of the film’s sicker jokes, disses Green Day while praising Alice Cooper and the Goth movement.