Dust Up

A former vigilante who has embraced his peaceful nature comes to the aid of a young mother in trouble with a cannibalistic drug lord.

You know, any plot that has "cannibalistic drug lord" in it should automatically be good. And especially in the hands of Troma (which this, sadly, is not). This film is not what I expected, and although I was hesitant to get into it, I really liked the humor.

Sure, you can talk about the film's bright, vibrant style and use of color, but the humor... wow. From the hitchhiker and his legendary "jobs" to the "butt dial" joke, and even wondering what might be coming out of the pipes... and even a Hoobastank reference? Weird.

I guess if I have to be critical, I would say that eye patches work best when it looks like the person actually wears one. Does the main actor actually wear one? My guess is no, because he seems awkward. However, he also happens to be such a smooth operator that I do not care (though I think having him without a patch might have helped and would be less distracting).

I picked up this movie based on impulse. Based on its cover, and the title, bot which spoke of outwrite insanity, I had to fish it. And I am so glad I did.

Its one of those movies which is entirely based on only a hand full of characters, but sometimes that's all it takes. The characters were nicely created, specially the bad guy (played by Jeremiah Birkett). This guy surely performed his role to the optimum limit.

I don't know if I am alowed to say this in a review but if you are a Tarintino fan, and are tired of all those high government conspiracy big budget movies, and just want a good mindless entertainment, with a lot of character, do check out this movie. It won't disappoint you.

Dust Up! delivers raucous humor and balls-to-the-walls story-telling that studio films don't have the kahunas to try.

The story is relatively simple: A one-eyed former vigilante turned pacifist/desert handyman must summon his inner commando to rescue a young mother and her meth addict husband from a cannibalistic drug lord.

It's the execution and blend of story/character/music/violence/humor that makes this exploitation film so damn funny. Everything from the opening credit sequence to the exploding bar and the desert dance-off smacks of Tarantino on a tight budget.

This film takes characters you've seen before – the eye-patched warrior (a combination of Billy Jack and Kill Bill femme-assassin Elle Driver), the even-keeled, arrow slinging sidekick (Tonto of course, but played much more coolly by Devin Barry as "Mo"), and the out-of-control ultra-violent drug lord (name any memorable film where the bad guy was so awesome you loved to hate him, add some outrageous antics and you've got Jeremiah Birkett's "Buzz"). Toss in an attractive damsel in distress (Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Amber Benson) victimized by her husband's ineptitude and an adorable wide-eyed baby (Director Ward Roberts' daughter Bo) … and there's a lot to like and laugh about.

Even more impressive is that Writer/Director/Producer Ward Roberts pulled this all off on a micro-budget.

A great job all around, and a fun time to be had by all who dare to venture into the off-kilter mind of Mr. Roberts. Special kudos to Aaron Gaffney (who plays the protagonist one-eyed soldier Jack) and Jeremiah Birkett (the afore-mentioned despicable villain with a maniacal laugh).

Absolutely one of the best Indie films I've seen. Humorous and action packed!! I highly recommend giving this Movie a pause of your time to view. If you like grotesque, lizard guy, action, campy one liners, then This movie will be right up your alley. All mentioned makes for a good entertaining movie. I was compelled from the first scene of eye patch scruff dude doing yoga and Indian dude shoots an arrow at him to the last scene where there's a BBQ'd guy skewer and stuck in the ground. The makeup and props were quite impressive for a low budget film. The cast are a perfect match for their roles. Amber Benson plays a great character of weaknesses and gains a pair by the end. Two thumbs up with a little bang bang!!!

This movie is not laugh-out-loud hilarious, but there's some good fun, and its play with cliché often produces a solid smile and even the occasional chuckle. If it fails to do so with you, you should probably eat more fruit or something, maybe get some fresh air, because there's definitely something wrong with you.

I mean, me, personally, I've got some pretty high comedy standards. The highest in the world maybe. I laugh at nothing. In fact, I'm annoyed by most things. Especially the elderly. Or even the weak in general. But also bad comedy. This movie made me smile several times, however, so it should do at least the same for you.

Where it definitely fails, in my opinion, is where it tries to mock anti-Native American racism. One of the main characters is a Native American named Mo. Like the fake Native Americans of the western movies this character is supposed to spoof, Mo is played by a white actor, but looks and behaves even more like a bad stereotype.

Ultimately, however, the joke lands on Native Americans. I mean, how can it not? Even when you indirectly mockingly mimic a people and their traditions, by mockingly mimicking a mimic, you still mockingly mimic a people and their traditions.

This may be funny sometimes, but it can also be hurtful. And whether it's funny or hurtful depends, mostly, on the history and especially the current power relations between the peoples who do the mocking and the people who are being mocked. In this case, both the history and the current socio-economic power relations between white Americans and Native Americans make it, at best, a little insensitive to for members of the former group to mock the latter. Although I'm sure the movie wasn't made with this intention.