Overnight

I purchased The Boondock Saints on DVD back in the summer of 2002 solely on word-of-mouth buzz from a few friends without so much as seeing a trailer for it, one of only two times I've done so. Like most guys, I liked it immensely and I too passed on recommendations to other friends. I consider myself a pretty avid film buff, so I couldn't understand why I had never heard of the movie's writer/director Troy Duffy beforehand. After some research I finally found a copy of Overnight, and after watching it I now know the answer to that question. This documentary captures with stunning insight and clarity the story of a man who essentially wasted a once in a lifetime opportunity by way of his incredible arrogance and profanely abusive personality.

If you were to look up "karma" in the dictionary, you would probably find a picture of Duffy with the definition. The story sounds too good to be true, mostly because it is. Here's a guy who was handed quite possibly the most incredible opportunity for a first time movie-maker in the history of Hollywood, and it managed to come crashing down before it even took off. A script for The Boondock Saints personally purchased by none other than Harvey Weinstein, a recording deal for his band and the purchase of the bar he was working in at the time making him a co-owner: all of these things were placed at his feet. Such an overwhelming reversal of fortune seemingly out of nowhere would be hard to handle for anyone, but instead of meeting the deal with gratitude and humility Duffy instead used it as an excuse to further inflate an ego that was apparently immense even before his incredible run of luck. Friends and family were verbally assaulted, complete strangers were subjected to vulgar tirades and members of his band were denied any credit concerning the group's record deal. In one of Overnight's more memorable scenes, The bands co-managers are told by Duffy that they don't deserve any of the band's profits because they were only there by his good graces and hard work. Through an amusing if not catastrophic series of events, the film deal with Miramax fell through, the band's contract was terminated before they even set foot in a studio and no other studio in Hollywood would even consider making The Boondock Saints. The dream, for all intents and purposes, was over.

Duffy eventually made Boondock Saints on half the budget offered by Miramax with a 5 theater theatrical release and the band's album was a resounding flop with less than 700 copies sold. The band's co-managers, once good friends and the co-directors of this film, originally set out to make a documentary of Duffy's rise to stardom but changed their tone drastically once he revealed his true persona. The result is a scathing and often startling glimpse into the downward spiral of a modern day Narcissus undone by his own greed and hubris. Plans for a Boondock Saints II release sometime in 2009 generated mixed buzz on the internet with many people stating the time for a sequel has long passed to have any sort of success. If the sequel does indeed become a hit, it will would be hard to attribute its good fortune to Duffy and perhaps even harder to not harbor jealousy towards him. As Overnight convincingly shows, it wouldn't be well deserved.

This is not just a fantastic story; the film is beautifully produced. You can't pull your eyes away from it, just like a burning building, simply because you cannot believe this is non-fiction. Tony and Mark endure so much more than normal humans should ever endure from a so-called friend for the duration of their story, and it is all captured on film. However it is they who get the last laugh. I was so amazed that I saw it twice. I look forward to seeing your next work. Be it another documentary or not, the editing and production of "Overnight" has turned me into a lifelong fan of its filmmakers, and a lifelong head-shaker in the direction of Troy Duffy.

This is a doc that makes you squirm in pain at what you see happening on the screen-- no matter how you feel about the "Harvey" referenced repeatedly in the film, Troy Duffy manages to make you take Harvey's side. That, in itself, is a major accomplishment. There is no sugarcoating what you see on the screen, no Moore-ish distortions, just Duffy managing to show the viewers exactly what he is made of, and how he feels about himself, and everyone else to boot.

A great documentary, well worth watching-- and when available, buying on DVD to keep on your shelf in case you need to remind yourself about "staying humble."

An interesting take on pain-- emotional pain-- on giving it, receiving it, and living through it. .

If Bernardo Bertolucci, the director of TRAGEDY OF A RIDICULOUS MAN, had directed OVERNIGHT, he might have titled it COMEUPPANCE OF AN EGOTISTICAL MAN. That egotistical man is Troy Duffy, a bartender and aspiring screenwriter/director/musician from New England who became the star of his own real-life Cinderella story. THE BOONDOCK SAINTS, Duffy's original Boston-set script about two Irish brothers-turned-vigilantes, was bought by Miramax's Harvey Weinstein, who sweetened the deal by letting Duffy direct and score the film as well as buying Duffy's tavern. Alas, Duffy's cockiness proved to be outright arrogance as he began making demands before production began on either the film or the album, and this Cinderella Man's coach turned back into a pumpkin. Even Duffy's brother Taylor and his longtime friends come in for harsh treatment from the not-so-wunderkind, as he keeps expecting them to work their butts off despite their funds dwindling to the point that some of them are on the verge of being evicted. By the end of the film, almost all of The Brood Syndicate, as they call themselves, have gone back to the kind of manual labor jobs they thought they'd left behind once Miramax came calling, and Duffy is a Hollywood pariah. In addition to Duffy's egotism, his naïveté contributed to his downward spiral. Surely he'd spent enough time in L.A. at that point to have heard about Weinstein's tendency to snap up movie properties and then either put them in turnaround or leave them gathering dust on the shelf (didn't he ever pick up issues of VARIETY, THE Hollywood REPORTER, etc.?). Moreover, Mr. I Know More Than the Guys Who've Been in the Film Business for Years neglected to include broadcast and home video rights in his William Morris contract, so despite THE BOONDOCK SAINTS eventually overcoming its pitiful 5-theater release to become a cult favorite on home video, Duffy doesn't make a penny off it. Don't miss the Albert Goldman quote at the end about how fame doesn't change a person, but instead acts as a "truth drug" that reveals the person's true character. Granted, the directors of OVERNIGHT are two of Duffy's former friends from The Brood Syndicate, but they swear they actually left out footage that would have made Duffy look even worse. I suppose Duffy is lucky there isn't a Director's Cut of OVERNIGHT -- angry mobs would be chasing him down with flaming torches! :-)

You know when you get yourself into one of those uncomfortable situations where several people are yelling at each other and you're stuck in the middle feeling awkward? That is what watching this documentary felt like.

This is a documentary seven years in the making that focuses on an arrogant, naive and very stupid bartender named Troy Duffy. Back in 1997, he literally "overnight" became the latest "rags to riches" success story in Hollywood where his script "THE BOONDOCK SAINTS" was bought by Harvey Weinstein (of Miramax Pictures) and was given the green-light to direct his own feature and provide music from his band for the soundtrack. Harvey was also considering co-owning a bar in West Hollywood with him, and it seemed like everything that Troy had worked hard for his entire life was finally coming to fruition.

Well not really. He could have had it all, but like most stupid people, he wasn't satisfied with what he was given and he demanded more.

Unlike Terry Gilliam's almost-comical "LOST IN LA MANCHA" which was plagued with natural disasters, bad scheduling, bad production and bad luck, Troy Duffy played his own hand in sending his dream project into assured failure.

For Duffy, his biggest enemy was himself. Although this documentary tries to make out Harvey Weinstein as some sort of Hollywood tyrant (which apparently isn't that far from the truth), Duffy was the one who ultimately destroyed his own career and that of his fellow band-mates who were too intimidated to stand up to him and tell him that he was going all about it the wrong way.

First of all, Duffy's biggest problem is his attitude. It's BAD. He's one of those people who not only THINKS AND KNOWS that he is RIGHT, but certainly doesn't hold back any feelings when it comes to telling other people that they are wrong (even if they're not).

Watching Duffy mingle with D-list celebrities like Paul Rubens, Patrick Swayze, Jerry O'Connell and Mark Wahlberg was nothing more than deliciously amusing, showing both sides of the industry kissing serious ass.

Even for those who don't even know what this documentary is about, watching him destroy his dream and career is inevitable from the first few minutes when you get to explore his vulgar personality and character. He went into Hollywood with no idea and basically left barely any the wiser.

The people you feel most sorry for are his band-mates. Although they also had a part to play with the miserable launch of their so-called music career, watching Troy sink them as he tries to pull his imaginary strings in the music industry is a notch below humiliating, not to mention embarrassing.

The worst part was seeing him trade barbs with that slimy excuse of a man who headed the casting agency, watching them at the Cannes Film Festival revel in the value of the almighty dollar before getting any of their facts straight first.

When it said that their album had sold 690 copies in six months (yes you read correctly, 690), there were a few awkward laughs in the audience. I don't think anyone in the audience really knew what to make of Duffy's actions. I felt not only embarrassment for him, but also disgust. He has quite a mouth on him and is not afraid to use it. One scene in particular shows him mouthing off in front his mother (who doesn't seem to be the least bit phased by it), and another scene showing him screaming into the speaker-phone about accusations of being called a liar. Watching it will really make your skin crawl.

It's hard to say as to who the documentary was trying to prove who the bigger tyrant was - Duffy or Harvey Weinstein. After all, Harvey has the comfort and leisure of being that way as he is a self-made man. Duffy on the other hand isn't.

There is one bizarre scene in "OVERNIGHT" that seemed like it came out of nowhere. It involved the premiere of Duffy's movie at a tiny cinema and his 'attempted' hit-and-run with an automobile that occurred outside. It's almost as if they tried to imply that Harvey Weinstein had ordered a hit on him or something, which only made Duffy look even more stupid.

While the conclusion of the documentary shows that the only people who stood by him - his friends, the people he ended up alienating now working in construction or manual labor, you can't help but exit the screening with a bad taste in your mouth and ponder the idea as to whether he has learned anything from all of this.

There is no question as to whether Duffy has any talent - obviously he does as there seems to be a cult following to the movie "THE BOONDOCK SAINTS". However, whether he has learned anything from his experience in BOTH the music and film industry is doubtful. Time will tell with the release of his next project, a sequel to "THE BOONDOCK SAINTS".

My Rating - 9 out of 10