Duct Tape Forever

This movie is very easy to review: if you already like "The Red Green Show", then you'll like this film -- if you don't like Red Green, this movie isn't for you.

Writer and star, Steve Smith, stays true to his TV show's premise with this movie, determined to give his fans exactly what they expect from him. Call this movie "Possum Lodge Goes On a Road Trip" and you've pretty much nailed the short description.

So it's slapstick, absurd humour, a dash of dry wit, and general goofiness all around, with Smith ably assisted by all of Possum Lodge's usual suspects. Patrick McKenna (as nerdy cousin Harold) tops the most-wanted list, with Graham Greene as explosion-happy Edgar stealing a few scenes as well. Bob Bainborough is solid as Dalton, Peter Keleghan is hilariously demented as Ranger Gord -- and Melissa DiMarco manages to make what could've been just the "I'm the movie's recurrent sexy girl" role into something more, something with a comedic payoff -- something I won't spoil here.

Honestly, there are a lot of talented people here, supporting what is essentially a very light, goofy entertainment. If you're okay with this style of comedy, you'll appreciate what they do.

Canadian viewers will no doubt have fun spotting various Canadian entertainers in often-clever cameo roles throughout the film.

The movie even dips into a little bit of character development in the last act, shedding some light on the reason behind Red's constant repartee with his manic nephew Harold. This segment is well-played, and it adds a bit of unexpected depth to the movie -- but it doesn't divert from the film's comedic momentum for very long, so Red Green fans needn't worry overmuch.

"Duct Tape Forever" is a good film for what it is -- it plays out exactly the way a fan of "The Red Green Show" would expect. If you like Red Green, then you'll like this film. If you don't "get" Red, then chances are, you won't "get" this movie either. I'm sure there's a Peter Greenaway retrospective playing at a rep house somewhere for you ... :-)

Being this never came to my local theater, I figured that I would have to wait for it to come out on video. As luck would have it, out local PBS station played it, and I loved it.

Red, and his buddies are trying to save Possum Lodge by winning third place in a duct tape contest. Of course, the fun was getting to the contest. I was a little disappointed though that some of the characters that I like weren't in it, like Hap, the ferry boat captain who is the biggest liar one could meet, or Douggie, the guy who thought his monster truck is a symbol of his manhood.

That aside, I enjoyed it very much. Like the t.v. show, it is a good poke of fun of the male ego.

I was not familiar with "The Red Green Show", a long-running Canadian TV series, right when it started out in 1991, since I was only around five years old at the time, but became familiar with it a few years later, and watched it quite a bit for a while. However, I'm sure I haven't seen the vast majority of the episodes, and I didn't know about this movie based on the show until a few years after its release. I have finally watched it after six years, and since I hadn't seen any episodes of the show in a while, I wasn't sure what I would currently think of the Red Green humour. Also, looking at its rating here, I wasn't expecting much, but was pleasantly surprised!

Robert Stiles is a big-shot executive who comes to Possum Lodge in his limousine, but when he arrives on the property, his vehicle gets stuck in a sinkhole! With some effort, the lodge members manage to get the limo out of that hole, but it goes right from there into the lake! Stiles sues Possum Lodge for the damage, and the members are found guilty by the judge! They will have to pay $10,000 within the next ten days, or else the lodge will be shut down! The lodge members then think of ways they could make that much money, and Red Green's nephew, Harold, informs the others about a duct tape sculpture contest taking place in the United States, where whoever comes in third will win the exact amount of money they need! After the lodge members are finished making a duct tape goose sculpture, Red, Harold, and Dalton Humphrey set out with it. However, Stiles is determined to have Possum Lodge shut down, and he has Sheriff Tompkins and Deputy Dawn on his side! So, on the way to the contest, the Sheriff and Deputy will make the trip more difficult, as they try to stop them from making it in time!

"The Red Green Show" is partially sketch comedy and partially a sitcom, and I wondered how turning the formula from that to a full-length story would work out. Movies based on TV shows sometimes don't work out too well, and I wouldn't have been surprised if "Duct Tape Forever" turned out to be an example of that. Fortunately, it didn't. The characters may not be able to carry the humour consistently throughout, but they usually do, and it's usually quite amusing, sometimes even hilarious! The main characters here are usually a big part of the humour, especially Harold with his usual goofy antics. The film also features a lot of slapstick to add laughs, and the bizarre things the characters from Possum Lodge on the road do to try and outsmart their enemies are sometimes very funny! Personally, I found that the film gets better after a while, eventually goes downhill a bit a while after that, but then picks up again.

Some may think "Duct Tape Forever" was a poor attempt to bring the characters from "The Red Green Show" to the movie format, but if you ask me, it worked, and this 2002 Canadian comedy is underrated. Yes, it is pretty silly, maybe more so than the show, but it's silly in a fun way. The premise may not be the greatest ever written, but this is a comedy, and there are plenty of laughs make up for it. The next thing I will say may not mean anything to most people, but for me it was interesting hearing Harold talk about James Bond, just after I watched a bunch of early Bond films! Anyway, if you're not a "Red Green Show" fan, then I doubt there's anything for you in this movie, but if you are a fan, you may still find "Duct Tape Forever" inferior, and that it doesn't work as well as a movie, but I can't see why you wouldn't find any amusement in it at all.

This is a Canadian movie. Canadians will understand this comment, no other nationality will. They're striving for Third Prize in the duct tape contest because Third prize absolutely suits their needs. This has been the canadian credo in countless Olympics and other international convocations. The script is banal because, well, ever seen the Red Green Show?...comedy thrives on the banal. While the TV show is often hilarious, the movie is kind of in the Bob and Ray tradition: "If this gets any funnier I might actually laugh out loud." As Canadians we don't understand why other countries find our humour funny. But, witness SCTV; the overwhelming Canadian content of Saturday Night Live, plus the fact that there is not a single sitcom without a Canadian star or Writer and you see what I mean. This is a Canadian movie.

This is a good film, but not great. Like I said, this is exactly what to expect from Red Green. I'm a fan of his show and basically his whole cast shows up for the film. I'm not one to explain everything but if you have a spare two hours rent this film!!! I guarantee if you sit back, all critical things aside, you will enjoy yourselves and the film for what it is worth.