Drowning Mona
(2000)
Okay, let me get this out of the way - Casey Affleck
is so damn cute. He goes around through much of this
film smiling his crooked smile and twitching his cute
little mouth. He's got his hair dyed blonde and he looks
so damn cute. I'm in love like crazy.
Whew. Now. That's out of the way. I can get to the
film. Affleck is really the star here. He probably has
more screen time than anyone else. But he has a plethora
of great actors at his side to help him make this film
one of the most cool and amusing black comedies in eons.
Danny Devito, Bette Midler, Jamie Lee Curtis, Neve Campbell,
and a handful of reckognizable character actors work
together in humorous harmony to create a wonderful and
quirky little film.
The script seems almost an homage to the Farrelly
brothers. Sure, it's nowhere near as hilarious, crazy
and ingenous as a Farrelly film, but it's similar in
style and comedy. Midler plays a mean bitch who is found
floating dead in a local river. When Police chief Devito
begins to investigate what seems like an accident he
finds everyone in town had a motive to off the offensive
Mona. It's funny and clever stuff as a web is weaved
to make us try and guess whodunnit.
Midler is hilarious in what amounts to almost a cameo
role. Her death begins the film so we only see her in
flashbacks. She's so nasty that we begin to see why
everyone would want to off her. Devito plays it pretty
straight but he doesn't try and be showy here and that's
a great an important asset to the film. Curtis is a
bit toio overboard for my tastes but she keeps it down
most of the time to an acceptable level. And Campbell
is actually funny and cute here. A tiny little sideline
plot she shares with another female in the film is actually
quite interesting and well done. Affleck, of course,
in my book he can do no wrong. I thought he was awesome
here. I'm probably a bit biased but I don't see how
anybody could find fault with his choices.
The film loses some steam when the killer is revealed
a bit too early. From there, everything falls a little
flat and tying up the loose end of the film isn't nearly
as much fun as it should be. Still, the ride has been
clever and kooky, so it's still a good film. You have
to like that kind of off- kilter black comedy though.
To put it on a scale: It's funnier than Curtis' "A Fish
Called Wanda" but not as amusing as "Outside Providence."
There are a lot of jokes that will go over some folks
heads as well. For example, Devito and Campbell have
a phone conversation about Broadway musicals that includes
refrences to "Starlight Express." That's a pretty obscure
mention for the uninitiated.
"Drowning Mona" had me laughing out loud throughout.
Sometimes, though, I was the only one laughing. Just
like I'm probably one of the few going goo-goo eyed
over Affleck. Sometimes my tastes are pretty ecclectic.
If yours are as well, this is a comedy for you too.
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