Cabin Boy

When I first saw this, I didn't particularly dislike, let alone vehemently dislike it like so many others did. I thought it was humorous.

I have been thinking about Cabin Boy ( I last saw it some months ago), and in a way, Chris Elliotts brand of humour was ahead of its time. As I write this, I had the idea that this is the exact reason why the Farrelly's cast him in Something About Mary. Look at the humour that has come out the last 10 years. Much of it is about idiots. Idiots doing the stupidest things, saying the stupidest things, and reveling in it. And my generation (bitter end of Gen X, very beginning of Y) grew up being stupid. What I mean is that my friends and I joke around, but by being stupid for our own amusement. We lower ourselves. WHy so many 24+ year olds love Jackass is because so many of us were like that in late 90's early 00's..

And Elliot was one of the first. Handsome Boy modeling school (Get a Life)? Gotta love it. Spewey(also Get a Life)? This isn't high comedy. It is about an un-innocent moron. No one has any love for this guy. He is a loser. How many comedies were before this about unlikable losers? The Jerk was an innocent. Laurel and Hardy, Abbott and Costello? Always innocents.

One of Elliot's problems is that he's a bad actor. But he was onto something. Come one, it not that bad!

No, not in the 'it's so bad it's good' way. I truly think it's one of the funnier comedies of the last 20 years or so. Perhaps a lot of it depends on how you feel about Chris Elliot to begin with. I think he's priceless. Used to love his old show Get A Life and have followed him ever since. The plot of this, kind of a twisted version of Captains Courageous, really doesn't matter. What's fun are the numerous sight gags, Elliot's constant barrage of sarcastic one-liners and the generally anything goes attitude of the whole enterprise. The ship's crew, filled with a number of character actors we're not used to seeing in this kind of thing, are a wonderfully sleazy bunch. David Letterman's hysterically amateurish cameo at the beginning is the stuff of legend. "Wanna buy a monkey?" Ha! OK Citizen Kane it ain't. I own that on DVD btw. Right next to it is Cabin Boy.

While a number of critics have discussed at length "Cabin Boy"'s allusions to earlier sea epics, such as "Mutiny on the Bounty", "Moby Dick" and "Humanoids of the Deep", surprisingly little attention has been devoted to it's social commentary. Although it may, perhaps, be an overstatement to call Chris Elliot's script "revolutionary", its message has a decidedly socialist bent. In fact, I would venture to say that none of Elliot's other work, prior to OR since "Cabin Boy" has had a comparable impact on the way ship captains treat their crew - or for that matter, on the labor movement in general in this country. It's safe to say that the success of "Cabin Boy" is a product not only of Elliot's vision, but also a fortunate case of being "the right film at the right time", so to speak.

Additionally, the cast must be credited. Brian Doyle-Murray, Russ Tamblyn and many others give the performances of their careers. The stand-out, of course, was Ritch Brinkley in a magnificent portrayal of Captain Greybar, captain of "The Filthy Whore." Far from the stereotypical old salt sea captain, Brinkley's Greybar is hard, harsh, irritable and irrascible, and yet even-handed and even sensitive, giving a textured character which is so clearly missing from many other sea films. Particularly touching is the scene when Elliot's character, Nathanial Mayweather, serves "fish-stick kitties" for the crew's lunch. Words cannot describe the emotion that Brinkley's face conveys. It's so touching because it's true!

While "Cabin Boy" has its flaws, I have no doubt that it will be greatly appreciated by landlubbers and sea captains alike, particularly those who, like myself, started their careers as lowly cabin boys.

Going into this movie, I thought it might get popped out of my VCR after about 15 minutes of viewing. I was not expecting to enjoy this choice my wife had made at the video store.

To my surprise, the movie is pretty funny and some of the ocean going scenes have a strong surrealistic feel to the cinematography that make the movie unique.

Chris Elliot's sun-induced bout of hallucinations alone is worth the price to rent this movie.

I've been a Chris Elliot fan since watching him on his old television series "Get a Life." I think he is the precursor to comedians such as Tom Green, and the modern gross-out comedy. The image of Elliot licking the boat with soapy water comes to mind.

Lots of people would label this movie as one of the worst movies of all time, but it's consciously absurd (or "wacky" as Christ Elliot's character might say). "Worst" movies are ones that think they are legit, like The Order, or Batman and Robin.

That being said, Cabin Boy is not the best comedy of all time. The crazy-funny parts are laugh out loud funny, but spread too far apart. I think this movie should have been wall-to-wall laughs. But it's worth it for the good parts, and Chris Elliot deserves our attention.

Watch some night alongside Freddy Got Fingered and Clifford.