Parents
0.5/4
Starring: Bryan Madorsky, Randy Quaid, Mary Beth Hurt, Sandy Dennis, Juno Mills-Cocknell
Rated R (probably for Pervasive Aberrant Violent Content involving Cannibalism and Related Gore and for Scenes of a Child in Peril)
Has anyone noticed that the selection of movies is highly democratized? The biggest hits are widely available (although so is low-budget crap, upon whose reliance partially led to the bankruptcy of Blockbuster) and the not so beloved stuff isn't. This is a generalization, of course. There will always be a steady supply of "Neighbors 2" DVDs and Blu Rays, much as I would like Hollywood to follow the lead of Atari and dump them in a landfill. And there are good movies that are hard to find, like "Fun" or "Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl." Still, if a movie is hard to find, you can be sure there's probably a reason for it.
"Parents" is such a movie. This movie is so bad, so confused yet so banal, so bizarre that it makes you wonder what director Bob Balaban was thinking when he made this movie. This movie wasn't made with creative drive. Or even financial, since the premise is DOA. No, this movie was made because the people behind it were threatened with injury and death if they didn't. There is no other possible reason why a movie so batshit insane was committed to film.
The movie's premise, that a boy in the 1950's, begins to realize that his parents are cannibals, is twisted and limiting. It would need a special kind of weird writer and filmmaker to make it. Like David Lynch. Unfortunately, we have nebbish character actor Bob Balaban making his feature film debut behind the camera. Based on the evidence, he should never be allowed to do so again. Even if he's poking around on a film set. The risks are too great.
In order to work, this movie would need a delicate touch. That statement would imply that this movie could work at all, which I'm not sure is possible. The things that Michael (Madorsky) sees and does are deeply disturbing, to the point where I'm wondering if anyone showed concern for the young actor's mental health. I'm guessing no, since no one bothered to make sure he gave a good performance. Veteran character actors Randy Quaid and Mary Beth Hurt are effective as the weirdly creepy parents. But effective at what exactly? They're performing perfectly in a movie that no one else was aware of. Least of all Balaban.
Aside from the creepy (in a bad way) things that happen by and to a child, the movie sucks on its own level. There's no actual plot; it's just this one idea repeated over and over again. The film's pace makes "A Separation" look like "Speed." And on the rare occasions the plot makes any sense, I wish it didn't so my brain didn't want to implode at the sheer idiocy of the proceedings.
It goes without saying that "Parents" doesn't work. At all. It misses the mark so badly that it's impossible to tell what they are trying to do. If Andy Warhol satirized "Father Knows Best," it might turn out to be like "Parents." Only with more quality even if you don't like modern art.
Starring: Bryan Madorsky, Randy Quaid, Mary Beth Hurt, Sandy Dennis, Juno Mills-Cocknell
Rated R (probably for Pervasive Aberrant Violent Content involving Cannibalism and Related Gore and for Scenes of a Child in Peril)
Has anyone noticed that the selection of movies is highly democratized? The biggest hits are widely available (although so is low-budget crap, upon whose reliance partially led to the bankruptcy of Blockbuster) and the not so beloved stuff isn't. This is a generalization, of course. There will always be a steady supply of "Neighbors 2" DVDs and Blu Rays, much as I would like Hollywood to follow the lead of Atari and dump them in a landfill. And there are good movies that are hard to find, like "Fun" or "Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl." Still, if a movie is hard to find, you can be sure there's probably a reason for it.
"Parents" is such a movie. This movie is so bad, so confused yet so banal, so bizarre that it makes you wonder what director Bob Balaban was thinking when he made this movie. This movie wasn't made with creative drive. Or even financial, since the premise is DOA. No, this movie was made because the people behind it were threatened with injury and death if they didn't. There is no other possible reason why a movie so batshit insane was committed to film.
The movie's premise, that a boy in the 1950's, begins to realize that his parents are cannibals, is twisted and limiting. It would need a special kind of weird writer and filmmaker to make it. Like David Lynch. Unfortunately, we have nebbish character actor Bob Balaban making his feature film debut behind the camera. Based on the evidence, he should never be allowed to do so again. Even if he's poking around on a film set. The risks are too great.
In order to work, this movie would need a delicate touch. That statement would imply that this movie could work at all, which I'm not sure is possible. The things that Michael (Madorsky) sees and does are deeply disturbing, to the point where I'm wondering if anyone showed concern for the young actor's mental health. I'm guessing no, since no one bothered to make sure he gave a good performance. Veteran character actors Randy Quaid and Mary Beth Hurt are effective as the weirdly creepy parents. But effective at what exactly? They're performing perfectly in a movie that no one else was aware of. Least of all Balaban.
Aside from the creepy (in a bad way) things that happen by and to a child, the movie sucks on its own level. There's no actual plot; it's just this one idea repeated over and over again. The film's pace makes "A Separation" look like "Speed." And on the rare occasions the plot makes any sense, I wish it didn't so my brain didn't want to implode at the sheer idiocy of the proceedings.
It goes without saying that "Parents" doesn't work. At all. It misses the mark so badly that it's impossible to tell what they are trying to do. If Andy Warhol satirized "Father Knows Best," it might turn out to be like "Parents." Only with more quality even if you don't like modern art.
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