Flexing with Monty

Pretty sure this is a movie you'd either outright hate or love if ever there was one... Well I sure loved it a lot the first time I saw it, mostly because in a good way I'd never seen anything like it, still haven't since, and I really clicked strongly with this movie and it worked for me a lot. There's just something very magnetic and even engrossing about its wonderfully offbeat quirky tone to me and the uncanny way that the scenes are directed and even the dialogue, none of it fits into any set genre and it's a very bizarre viewing experience indeed, it doesn't even really feel like it takes place in the world as we know it! It's a bit of a movie anomaly for sure. I guess you could say it's sort of artsy, but I mainly found it to be very funny, and just a consistently compelling and very weird watch. It's such a unique blend of low key homoeroticism and aggressive male energy and the poetic, having a kind of focus and mixture of the pure physical brawn and the brain as the interesting juxtaposition between the two 'brothers', with Monty living entirely for the physical and his more quiet sensitive younger brother the mental, and the main focus of the film is the terminally messed up codependency between Monty and his no less twisted younger bro, and there's a definite weird 'tension' between the two that adds an extra bit of an ick factor to the movie! Trevor Goddard, may he rest in peace, wasn't much of an actor, but he had his strengths and he was really good in this and he made the movie work and it played up to what he was good at, his physicality and intimidation and he was also quite good at being funny as a fairly moronic lunkhead who is very over the top and strange, but he was the best character and a lot of fun to watch. I felt a bit sorry for how Monty ended up, he was an obscenely vain abusive jerk but in a movie full of less than reputable characters he didn't seem that bad, he didn't deserve to be betrayed and poisoned and have his head planted in a cabbage patch! When the insane nun showed up an already crazy movie really flies off the rails! Oh my goodness, Sally Kirkland was very fearless in this movie, shaving her head and getting completely nude for her role. When I figured out where I'd seen her before I couldn't believe it was the same actress who played the sweet wholesome mother in 1991's Haunted! She was awesome and more than a match for Goddard and Davis, she stole the movie! The rather anticlimactic ending isn't really befitting the rest of the film's trashy grungy craziness, but I put that to the flick's very complicated production history, plus the movie is so damn nuts anyway who really cares by that point if you're onboard and you're having fun with it? It's not about how it ends or even coherence of the story in this case, it's about the overall experience and to me, the whole thing is a real trip, don't try to make sense of it, just get lost in it! It's kind of the only way to really love a movie this freaking bizarre! I'd say to seek out this gleefully absurd, twisted and saucy gem if you have a keen interest in the truly out there and different kind of independent movie that you've never heard of, but go into it blind! Because that way you'll enjoy the balls-to-the-wall insane experience of this picture if it's a surprise. I love this sexy crazy goddamn movie. X.

I like odd movies, unique movies, movies that try to tell stories in new ways. That part of me loved this movie. But the other part of me wants to know what I just did with the past 90 minutes of my life.

I'm not sure if the film was trying to say something deep or just be campy. The dialogue was silly, but the actors delivered their lines with full dedication. Trevor Goddard was perfect for his role. He's always been fun when I've seen him in different guest spots, and he brought all that personality to this part. He's a great physical actor, too, really using his space well. Rudi Davis, as his brother, held his own, and I thought they played off of each other really well. I've never seen him before, but he was a joy to watch.

But still, in the end, maybe the film was just trying a little too hard. Or maybe not hard enough. It's really a tough call because I was entertained for sure, but I'm not sure who I would ever recommend this movie to. Please watch it if you have time to waste, if you enjoy something different, if you are not easily offended and if you're stoned. I wasn't, but I think it might have been a lot more fun if I was. You just need to let yourself get lost in it.