Dill Scallion

I happened upon "Dill Scallion" late one night on one of the pay channels and have never laughed so hard. To describe it in one phrase I would call it a Country Spinal Tap. It has the same mocku-mentary style. The acting was great, but most of the songs were terrible (or was that part of the joke?) I place this film up there with "Spinal Tap" and "Fear of a Black Hat"

"Dill Scallion", with Billy Burke in the title role, tells of the rise and fall of a fictional country/western singer. Full of tongue-in-cheek humor and endless good natured spoofing of country music, this fun flick is shot as a mockumentary with the usual jiggly shoulder cams, boom mics in the shot, grainy film, etc. "DS" gets off to a slow start and it's no frills approach may turn off many viewers early on. However, those who hang in there will find some seriously clever writing and dead pan lampooning during this 1.5 hour joy ride.

This very funny parody follows the rise of the fictional Dill Scallion's country music career, including the genesis of his trademark wild on-stage dance, his first music video, and his big breakthrough at the Gingivitis Aid concert ("We must stop the madness of gum disease!" rails one character). The characters are all intentionally painted with very broad strokes, and the tongue in cheek humor keeps the movie going along at a great pace. Cameos by some country music superstars are also great fun...and even the movie's name is neat--Dill Scallion? Yeah, the guy in question is about as smart as a vegetable...and that's a big part of the fun.

I'm not sure how This is Spinal Tap can be on the Top 250 list and Dill Scallion has a rating of 4.5. Maybe the world doesn't need another 'mock-umentary' of the music business, but this one is a worthy addition to the genre.

Besides a well cast group of actors, you'll find that Sheryl Crow wrote the score for the movie (though I don't believe she was involved in writing any of Dill's songs or the Waffle Barn jingle) and there are a few country music stars who make cameos.

Plus, you have the opportunity to learn the Scallion Shuffle. Spinal Tap never taught us any sweet dance moves like that.

This kooky and funny indie mockumentary made me chuckle. If you liked Spinal Tap then you'll enjoy Dill Scallion. Billy Burke shows us that he can not only act, as he gets deep into Dill Scallion but he can sing and probably dance too. It may go on to be remembered that this film spotlighted the many talents of this "one to watch." Dill is a likable, foilable character. You are drawn into his naive sincerity easily with this terrific performance. The supporting cast is also a who's who of a spectrum of show biz as well. The concept has been played before but Burke breathes a breath of freshness into it.