Destino trasversale

Adam Rifkin has a resume of films that could have been. They are inspired, ambitious, original, but at the same time almost incomplete. The Dark Backward encompasses all these qualities and more.

The film opens promising enough. Judd Nelson as Marty, looking something like Crispin Glover in Back to the Future, sweats on stage delivering some horrible stand up comedy. We then meet Gus, Marty's "friend" played with villainous comic timing by Bill Paxton. He urges Marty on to keep at the stand up.

The film plays off like a twisted moral anti fairy tale. It's the almost rags to riches story gone awry, as Nelson plays a horrible stand up comic who's only talent seems to be an extra appendage out of his back.

Rifkin's allegory is great and the ending is a spectacular take on show-business and what it truly takes to come to fame. But it's the middle that sort of fails. It's painful to watch. Such pains are great to see in some films when writers are able to spice it up with great dialogue or endearing characters, but most of it is just revolting schlock. Rifkin goes to great lengths to show how pathetic the lives of Gus and Marty are. It's a bit much.

The saving grace of the film is Bill Paxton. He makes some of the disgusting material work, going from pure disgust to some shocking laughs. Sadly, Paxton doesn't do much comedy. For better or worse, this film may be the reason why. He is unbelievable and the way he sinks into the material (and other things) makes the film almost work.

Adam Rifkin seems to be full of half baked ideas. They're good ideas and strange ones at that. His projects never seem to have a fullness to them, but they are full of strange inspired moments that are unlike any other film. I don't know if we'll ever see Rifkin's material reach their maximum potential as these ideas don't sell to the mainstream, but we should enjoy strange sick gems like the Dark Backward from time to time.

You have got to say one thing about this film whether you like it or don't. It's completely original.

There's never been anything quite like it on-screen. In form, it's a Fairy Tale of the very Grimm variety. In tone, it's closest to the absurdist theatre works of Beckett, Pirandello and Ionesco. There's also a whole lot of allegory and symbolism going on here. Though everything is told simply there's a tremendous amount of depth to ponder in the issues the film raises and in the way the characters deal with living in this metaphor for Hell. Understanding the universe they are inhabiting is the key to appreciating this film.

The "Dark Backward" explores a world that is overwhelmed with scum and filth. One of the characters, Gus, is so dirty he looks like a live action version of "Pigpen".

As this character Bill Paxton gives one of the bravest, most fascinating performances I've ever seen. He walks a tightwire of contradictions playing a character who is at once both innocence and evil incarnate.

He's loud, lustful and obnoxious. He's quiet, virginal and caring. At one moment, he's as stupid as a post; in the next, he's cunningly manipulitive and deceitful. To oversimplify-it's like being asked to play Forrest Gump AND Iago in the same character. Miraculously, Paxton not only pulls it off but makes it appear as though all these opposing traits could easily belong to a single creature.

The rest of the cast is magnificent in the way they embrace the excesses of their respective characters. As mentioned earlier, this is an absurdist story and these actors realize the importance of exaggeration to make the genre work. This is also why those who have dismissed Paxton's work as over-the-top should not be heeded. This is a film that shows a world where there is no top to be gone over. There is nothing which can be considered too much.

Adam Rifkin's off-the-wall "The Dark Backward" is one of those films one could say suffers from the "trying too hard" syndrome. In this case, it really does go out of its way to come off as some instant sort of cult film. It does work as a minor commentary on the nature of show business, and how important a gimmick can be. In this case, the gimmick is the third arm growing out of garbageman Marty Malt's back. Malt, you see, is also a stand-up comedian who keeps plugging away, telling the same terrible jokes over and over, spurred on by a maniacal "pal", Gus, who has very big show biz aspirations. When the arm appears, they believe that this is all the edge that they will need, and their new agent Jackie Chrome believes so too. Sometimes the film seems to be weird just for the sake of being weird, and absolutely revels in its filth. It may be one of the grimiest films you'll ever see. The production designer, Sherman Williams, and cinematographer, Joey Forsyte, do stylize this to a high degree; this film takes place in a truly decrepit and seedy world, populated by seedy people. There's also a fair bit of grossness to the story, as well, at least when it comes to the character of Gus, played with his customary exuberance by Bill Paxton, who is utterly fearless throughout this thing. This is a guy who licks corpses before stealing their jewelry. Judd Nelson is perfect as the nerdy Malt, completely disappearing into the character. And Wayne Newton is spot on as the agent. The eclectic assemblage of actors also includes James Caan as a doctor, King Moody (at one time a portrayer of Ronald McDonald!) as a kiddie show host, Rob Lowe as a grease ball who picks Malt to be on a TV show, and Claudia Christian as a nurse. Presenting itself as something of a fable, "The Dark Backward" is not for everybody and in fact may be something of an endurance test for some viewers; others may embrace its oddness. It's not altogether unique, but it does have its moments (it's hard to forget that human xylophone). However, it goes on just a little too long. Curious and patient cult movie lovers may want to give it a look. Five out of 10.

This movie is creepy and amazing. It's like an overlong Liquid Television sketch. The actors, the sets, everything looks dirty and depressing. Bil Paxton is never clean, Jud Nelson never stops sweating, Laura Flynn Boyle never looks happy, and the town never has sunlight. It'll throw you off if not prepared, but honestly, it's a great movie. It makes no sense, except in the world it created, and that's the beauty of it. This movie is great.

I don't know whether I've ever encountered another film with quite as much on screen filth as this one... not filth in the pornographic sense, but in the sense that there is a layer of dirt covering just about everything all through the film. I remember looking at the case and seeing the claim that it compared to Brazil, Pink Flamingos and Eraserhead. At the time I thought it would be worth the money just to be able to tear it to shreds after watching it... but it turned out to be a very endearing film that paints a sinister picture of opportunism. Of course, The Dark Backward isn't going to appeal to just anyone, but anyone who finds humour in scenes of perversion and obvious discomfort will recognise this one as a gem.