Rubin et Ed

imagine a young lad stumbling upon the 99 cent bin in the local video store. a movie that he had never heard of, starring crispin glover, catches his eye. "this looks pretty crappy" he thinks to himself, "but if it stars crispin glover, i suppose i could shell out a buck". the transaction was finalized and the goods were brought home. no one was around to revel in the movie that is rubin and ed, but there was never a need. the movie turned into one of the lad's favorites and he could be heard commenting "dr. scholl's never tasted so good!!!" now even his friends and brothers and brothers of friends can be heard shouting "my cat can eat a whole watermelon" and "why don't you keep your hands off of other people's ?!?" trent harris, i thank you for that young lad, was in fact, emmanuel lewis.

This movie is a story of two failures who get thrown into each other's worlds for one of the most bizarre journeys ever captured on film. As an avid lover of truly weird films, I find Rubin and Ed to be an irresistible comedy.

Crispin Glover is, as always, wonderful. He portrays Rubin, a social outcast and complete shut-in who's forced to go out into the world to prove to his mother that he is making friends, so she'll give him back his stereo.

He comes across Ed (Hessman), who is a "fraud failure" trying his hand as a member of "the organization," which is portrayed as some sort of real estate cult. The two wind up traveling into the Utah West Desert to bury Rubin's recently murdered cat, and come to hate each other entirely as they become the most unlikely pair of friends.

This movie is not for everyone, and indeed it is not easy to find even in Utah (where it is set, and from whence director Trent Harris hails). Rubin and Ed is a remarkably strange and offbeat film. It's the epitome of a cult classic, and as such will inevitably leave you thinking, "huh?" However, if you're tired of Hollywood's sanitized story lines and obvious repetition, I highly recommend trying to find a copy of this movie.

I really enjoyed Trent Harris' bizarre Mormon comedy 'Plan Ten From Outer Space' (no relation to Ed Wood by the way), so I was pleased when I finally managed to see this, his previous movie. Not available on DVD yet as far as I know, it's worth trying to find in the video racks. i can't say I enjoyed it as much as 'Plan Ten...' but it was still an amusing and quirky comedy. Extremely low key, not really belly laugh material, but funny. The more you like Crispin Glover ('River's Edge') and 60s veteran Howard Hesseman ('Billy Jack') the more you will enjoy 'Rubin And Ed', as the comedy is mainly generated from their relationship. Hesseman plays Ed, an unsuccessful salesman who latches on to a weird slacker Rubin (Glover), desperately trying to make a sale. Rubin's beloved cat has recently died and he is searching for just the right resting place. Ed reluctantly assists him on his quest, and before you know it they get lost in the desert. Then things start to go downhill. Glover and Hesseman are both in fine form throughout. The rest of the cast are largely unknowns, apart from Karen Black ('Five Easy Pieces') as Hesseman's estranged wife. (Black also appears in 'Plan Ten From Outer Space') I enjoyed seeing her again as she is a most underrated actress, and I also was amused by the movies running gag involving Andy Warhol. Humour is a very personal thing, and this movie may not appeal to everybody, but I liked it.

I presume this film to have been a "work of love" for Crispin Glover and Howard Hessman - two actors reveling in their trade just for the fun of it and for the personal challenge. The result is both hilarious (I don't use that word lightly) and gratifying, as the two never let us down, but sustain their wonderful best to the end. The budget must have been super-lean, yet the work is crafted to fit within it, resulting in a piece of comic theater that should even provide the two actors themselves with nostalgic sidesplits in years to come.

This film brought to my mind visions of "Rozmarné Léto" (Capricious Summer, by Jiri Menzel) for its humanist humor, and, less obviously, Ataque Verbal, by Albaladejo and crew, for its acting virtuosity - though by Albaladejo, I would sooner recommend Cielo Abierto to anyone unfamiliar with his work.

At first viewing, though I felt the acting good, I considered it narrow in scope. On second viewing, the depth of the characters' problems struck me: one a virtual agoraphobic recluse with little future ahead, the other a whimsical business misfit whose wife's left him. Neither has a clear view of how to escape his predicament, but both see through - or have no choice but to wrestle with - much of the phoneyness of Americana materialism and mercenary dreams.

I just wish this film were more available - and on DVD - I'd like to buy several copies to send to friends.

This was a hilarious, hilarious movie. The humor in here is very bizarre and dry and clearly isn't for everyone, but films like this are a staple in the collections of cult intelligentsia.

The premise is not unrealistic, and the characters are not unbelievable. What happens once the action starts is surreal and fantastic, but the story really does start here on Earth and I think that may be an effective hook to make the audience sit and watch the whole thing: how could such a reasonable situation go so incredibly far off course? And it's not just outlandish for the sake of seeing how weird they could possibly get, it's not just arbitrary freak-you-out material, the story is a more or less logical progression of events. Some of the jokes (especially the desperate passage of events in the desert) may churn the casual viewer's stomach, and I think that these contributed to its less than widespread popularity in the States, but anyone with an active imagination and a sense of humor other people don't "get" is going to dig this film. And by gods, is it quotable: you too will find yourself interrupting discussions and social events to announce, "My cat can eat a whole watermelon," or "I am the king of the Echo People," for years - yes, years - afterward.