Lo spezzaossa

I admit it - the reference to Ethan Coen on the sleeve of this straight-to-video oddity secured a rental. I wasn't disappointed.

The Naked Man bears all the hallmarks of a Coen-penned script - albeit from the more fantasy oriented side of their cadre (see also The Hudsucker Proxy and the Sam Raimi directed Crimewave). Also, the very first sound you hear is a man screaming - another Coen favourite.

This is not to detract from J. Todd Anderson's direction. The whole production has a surreal air. He places events in a small town in middle America, but it doesn't seem out of place. You never forget this is supposed to be a fantasy.

Look out for it next time you're in Blockbuster. If you don't expect something as masterly as The Big Lebowski or The Hudsucker Proxy, you'll love it. A lo-fi Coens flick, if you will.

Of course, this isn't a Coen brothers film, but it does have a strong connection to their films with Ethan Coen contributing to the script (but not producing) and with the Coen's storyboard artist J. Todd Anderson directing and also co-writing. As to be expected, it's not as good as a full Coen brothers effort, but worth a look for anyone who is a fan of the Coens (as I am).

That said, it's not a great movie. It does have a pretty funny central concept, but to me, it never seemed to completely get off the ground. J. Todd Anderson directs the film in a similar style to Joel Coen, but he isn't near as good as writing funny dialog. There is some stuff here that people with a weird sense of humor (like me) will appreciate, but mostly the film is meandering and pointless.

Definately not on the same level as the Coen brothers' classics, but worth seeing for anyone who likes the Coens, or weird comedies in general.

One half of the Coen Brothers has co-written one of the weirdest and most intelligent comedies I've ever had the pleasure of viewing. Underrated actor, Michael Rappaport excellently portrays the inscrutable chiropractor/wrestler of which the title refers. The Naked Man features wonderfully quirky performances, equally quirky dialogue and a storyline just strange enough to keep anyone interested. Fans of David Lynch or John Waters, don't miss this!

When I saw this movie, I was on the one hand overwhelmed and on the other hand very disappointed. It is a tragic and in some parts surrealistic comedy that is standing close to Bertolt Brecht's theater dramas and his V-effect and the German Dadaism-Artists. It may be considered as a sequel or even as a conclusion of other Coen - movies OR as just a big piece of humbug. I myself was thinking between these two aspects for a long time. And I came to the conclusion that everybody has to decide for himself. The thing that was really fascinating were the characters: real types - to speak in the traditional language of drama - not complex protagonists made me think about the sense of this movie. And to come back to the title of this comment: It is really a thin line between a very complex piece of film-artwork and rubbish. Decide for yourselves!

Quirky? You bet. This surreal tale of a man torn between two worlds is populated with supporting characters from both sides of the rainbow. The dialogue, the pacing, even the camera angles scream "Sit up straight for an evening of romance, revenge, and spinal integrity."