Verrückt in Alabama

Crazy in Alabama is one of those films that slipped through the cracks right before the new century, but it does have some assured direction from Antonio Banderas and a great performance by this then wife, Melanie Griffith.

Griffith plays her usual semi-ditz with a heart of gold, but with a southern accent this time. She's just murdered her husband, left her entire litter of children with her mother, and, in turn, forced out her two nephews from living under that roof. The film follows her journey to L.A. to become a movie star as her husband's decapitated head (which she carries in a hat box) taunts her from beyond the grave and her nephews get mixed up in southern, small town police brutality and race relations in the 1960s.

Because Crazy in Alabama is about two very different storylines, it can sometimes feel a bit tonally bizarre. One minute, you're watching Griffith nab a role on Bewitched as her husband's decapitated head taunts her and the next, you're seeing a young black boy murdered in cold blood by a crooked cop. It's an uneasy mix of comedy and drama that don't always go well together, but there are enough interesting ideas, good performances, and directorial flair to keep it entertaining.

One doesn't tend to expect much from an actor's directorial debut, especially from a relatively young actor and especially from one who seemed to have risen to fame at least partially by being, um, well, a studmuffin. One also typically expects a movie in which a husband directs his wife in a lead role to be fairly shallow or at least unbalanced. I crossed this movie off my list pretty early, expecting a forgettable Griffith-overload creation and little more.

Wrong! It's well-acted, engrossing, funny, and uplifting without feeling schmaltzy or (despite its farfetched plot) artificial. Every so often you want to rewind a bit, to hear some extra-cute bit of dialog again, or savor an especially well-done shot. (The camera work and sets, both indoor and outdoor, show unusual care, flash, and detail; this didn't dawn on me for most of the first hour but a rewind made it obvious.) Overall, 9 stars out of ten. But:

I wouldn't urge anyone to see this movie for Melanie Griffith. She does a fine job, but she's not what puts it over the top. As with quite a few recent films, I found that the performances of the extremely well-chosen supporting actors were a big part of what held the film together and made it so much more than it might have been. Most notable here is Rod Steiger as the judge, who captivates utterly; John Beasley as Nehemiah -- though his character could have stood a lot more development; and the perpetually underrated Meat Loaf as the slimy sheriff. Performances like Steiger's make you want to ransack the video store to rent all his older films.

Finally, I believe Lucas Black is destined for greatness. I couldn't watch him without remembering River Phoenix as Chris in "Stand By Me."

Why this film doesn't even rate a Maltin summary is beyond me.

Antonio Banderas has really shown that he can bring out the best in his actors. Both Melanie Griffith and Rod Steiger gave the most controlled performances I've seen from them in years. Lucas Black, who is still new, was terrific.

There was a lot of humor in this picture. But it had nothing to do with the civil rights issue. All of the humor had to do with a bizarre aspect of the murder.

I highly recommend this film. It makes you cry and it makes you laugh. And it's for all members of the family over 12.

CRAZY IN ALABAMA / (1999) **1/2 (out of four)

By Blake French:

"Crazy in Alabama" is actually very well constructed; with good performances by a strong supporting cast, including David Morse ("The Green Mile"), Rod Steiger ("End of Days")" Meat Loaf Aday ("Fight Club"), and a compelling leading performance by director Antonio Banderas' wife, Melanie Griffith. Based on the novel by Mark Childress, who also wrote the screenplay, the movie suffers not from poor quality of filmmaking, but from the filmmakers trying to cram way to much material in the 111 minute movie.

The performers are hard at work here, but they can not possibly conquer the problems the production experiences due to the overcrowded script, which actually includes three separate stories of equal importance. The first details a woman named Lucille (Melanie Griffith), who dreams of becoming a famous actress in Hollywood after chopping off her cruel husband's head. She commits the murderous act to escape his overbearing clutches. "There are a lot of ways you can kill a person. There are fast ways, and there are slow ways. Chester was killin' me the slow way for thirteen years." Obviously Lucille preferred the fast way when it came to putting an end to her spouse.

The next story revolves around a civil right movement in Alabama. A young black teenager, Taylor Jackson (Louis Miller) is killed by a local prejudice sheriff named John Doggett (Meat Loaf Aday), who angrily pulls the innocent victim off a fence after he and his friends protest against the prohibition of swimming in the city pool. The late boy's parents attempt to lead a civil right crusade while trying to build a case to make Doggett pay for his crime.

Through another story is where these stories are linked. We see these events through the point of view of a young man's realization of life in the South without parents. This character, named Peejoe (Lucas Black), is the nephew of Lucille. She trustingly reveals all her secrets to Peejoe before she heads for Hollywood. He is also the only witness the violent act of Sheriff Doggett, placing him in the middle of the civil rights movement. Peejoe is not the center of the movie, however, and his character is completely unneeded and only adds additional complexity to the screenplay. He is simply an excuse to interlock the other two plots, and the attempt does not work.

The stories by themselves are very interesting, with inventive and original ideas and some thought-provoking messages. The film feels convincing in its development of the setting and atmosphere; the 1960's are captured with intrigue. Although it is his first feature film, Antonio Banderas, also a well-known actor starring 1999's Viking drama "The 13th Warrior," he should have realized the complexity of the plot as a negative contribution. There are movies in which multiple stories make the production unique and innovative, like "Traffic," "Magnolia," and "Pulp Fiction," but those movies blended their narratives together carefully, "Crazy in Alabama" only makes excuses for its actions.

Crazy In alabama is one of the best movies of the year. Antonio Banderas did an awesome job as a director and Melanie Griffith is outrageous. It truly reveals the feelings of the 50s, the quest for freedom , and the insanity of racism.