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A waste of time
by Richard McDonald
There is a tradition of Saturday Night Live cast members making the switch
to feature films. Several have done it very well. Mike Meyers, Eddie
Murphy, and Bill Murray are probably the most successful. Sadly, their
successes have paved the way for the production of films like Dirty Work.
With comic originality that rivals the 'pull my finger' gag, and
performances which make Gumby look like an Actor's Studio graduate, Dirty
Work has significantly lowered the standard.
Dirty Work is about two friends who are losers at life. Mitch (Norm
MacDonald) moves from job to job and relationship to relationship, screwing
up each one in turn. His best friend and co-loser Sam (Artie Lange) cares
for an ailing father (Jack Warden) who needs a heart transplant. When the
two become tired of "taking crap" from everybody and must raise money for
the old man's transplant operation, they decide to cash in on Mitch's
talent for revenge and open their own business of revenge for hire.
With a solid cast of pros, a lively soundtrack and some great stunts,
Dirty Work is still a dreadful film completely without laughs and a blot on
the careers of all who contributed. Co- scripted by Norm MacDonald, the
humour seems to have originated in the mind of a ten year old. Potty jokes
and hooker jokes are the order of the day and both are taken to new and
tasteless lows by its director, Bob Saget (Full House, America's Funniest
Home Videos).
It is embarrassing to see an actor like Jack Warden (Bulworth) in such
drivel. He does his best with the terrible role of an aging and sexually
obsessed former prize fighter. Chris Farley appears in a supporting role as
a man who lost his nose to...you guessed it, a Saigon hooker. Chevy Chase's
career is still afloat, miraculously, but he seems to be circling the bowl
while Hollywood jiggles the handle. In Dirty Work he appears as a doctor
with a gambling addiction who owes money to loan sharks. There are several
awkward cameo appearances by Adam Sandler (The Wedding Singer), John
Goodman (The Big Lebowski), and Don Rickles. What could Norm possibly be
threatening to reveal that would compel them to appear in his stinking movie?
The film spirals steadily downward to climax where a gang of skunks are
released into a crowded opera house. Comic originality on the level of the
knock-knock joke. The funniest part of the film is the showing of out-takes
while the end credits roll.
That a film this bad is ever produced is evidence of the low regard in
which audiences are held by the studios. Using demographics, surveys and TV
ratings, executives can predict the size of an audience that will allow a
film to open. Dirty Work was barely advertised, probably did not cost much
to make and quality can be a secondary consideration when the black art of
studio economics comes into play. Clearly, MacDonald needed a vehicle
picture to sustain his floundering career. Unfortunately, this one is an
inauspicious feature film beginning for Norm and possibly an end for many
others.
Richard McDonald, 1998
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