Trou de mémoire

This movie is one of my favorite comedies. I saw it before I knew that Dana Carvey was Garth from Wayne's World (this was before my great interest in Cinema and now know everything about films in the '90s and '00s). I found it to be very entertaining and have seen it many times since. I love it when an ex-SNL actor is able to star in a movie that is not based on a Character they did on SNL (Mike Myers in So I Married and Axe Murderer, Adam Sandler in Billy Madison, and Chris Farley, David Spade in Tommy Boy). Carvey has this charm about him as seeming like a regular guy. He does not seem like the Hollywood type. I think he is highly underrated and I hope he can find his niche again. Clean Slate is the comedy version of Memento, or Memento is the serious version of Clean Slate. I heard that Adam Sandler was producing a script Dan Carvey wrote, so I hope something comes of that.

Pogue (Dana Carvey) wakes up one morning in Venice, California and doesn't remember a darn thing about his life. Suffering from daily short term memory loss, way before Drew Barrymore did, Pogue listens to a tape he made the day before. It states he is a private detective and that he has been called upon to testify against a gangster (Michael Gambon) who blew up an automobile containing Pogue's lovely girlfriend, Sara (Valeria Golino). Yet, Sara appears on his doorstep and asks for his help. How can this be? She directs him to follow her to a fashion show, where she will tell him more. In the meantime, Pogue is "arrested" by police officers, who take him to a surprise birthday party, where he is the guest of honor. It seems Pogue used to be a policeman and had contact with a D.A. (James Earl Jones), an assistant D.A. (Kevin Pollack) and others. But, Pogue fails to recognize anything that will jog his memory, not even with a doctor's help (Michael Murphy). Will Pogue and his darling canine, Baby, be able to dodge the bullets of those out to prevent him from testifying, without knowing exactly what is going down? This is a nice little film with a very fine cast. Jones is always welcome and Pollack is acidly funny most of the time, too. Golino is very lovely and Gambon is quite amusing as the designated gangster. As for Carvey, he has such great comic skills that it is a shame that he never gets to attain his usual "go for broke" humor, but he is still funny and a very attractive performer in his own right. Kudos to the little dog in the movie, too, as he is highly entertaining. As for the costumes, sets, and production values, they are quite adequate, and the script and direction show decided originality and zest. In short, if you love Carvey, you will like this film, even though his humor has been toned down. But, truly, anyone who loves off-the-beaten-path comedy films will embrace this one with zeal.

This is a hight quality movie, in that it's not like Austin Powers where it's just kind of silly, weird humor (and don't get me wrong on that, I LOVED Austin Powers). If you're looking for a movie with a good story line (and by the way there are some serious parts along the way that spices it up) and good quality humor, believe me, this is the one. It's hilarious and you will be laughing from your belly. It made ME crack up. There's only a select few movies that Dana's been in, but this one was one of his best. He really showed off his how funny he really is in this one, and, like I said, what's even more worthwhile about this movie is that it actually has a plot and it's a good one.

Dana Carvey's performance as a private eye who forgets everything he learns by morning is truly exceptional. Clean Slate is an underrated movie that deserved a lot better recognition than it got! This movie was funnier than all the performances Dana did on Saturday Night Live combined. In this one, Dana Carvey plays Maurice Pogue, a private eye who must remember every little thing about a crime he is investigating. He teams up with a woman who helps him along the way.

Clean Slate is a roller coaster ride of a comedy. Every situation our hero gets into will keep you wanting for more. Another good thing about this movie is that it never seemed to run out of any sight gags like in some comedies of nowadays. It had an array of colorful characters, a well-written plot, surreal sight gags, and it's just plain fun for anyone who is a fan of Dana Carvey. Wayne and Garth? Who are they, anyway? Want to have some good clean fun? Then Clean Slate is the one! It's Dana Carvey at his best! I give it 5 stars!

After an explosion, private detective Maurice Pogue wakes up every morning with amnesia. The night before, he has always made sure to record on tape everything he would need to remember the next day, such as what is wrong with him and why. One very important detail: he must not tell anyone what is wrong with him, because he must testify in the case against Cornell, the bad guy responsible for the explosion, and without his testimony there is no case. Obviously, if he can't remember the explosion, he has no credibility as a witness.

Sarah Novak, who was supposedly killed in the explosion, comes to Pogue for help, saying she can't go to the police. She may be in the Witness Protection Program as fashion model Beth Holly. Or perhaps Beth is pretending to be Sarah.

Pogue and Sarah/Beth must search for a coin worth millions. One gag involves this coin being put into a parking meter.

And Pogue is also the father of a baby. It would be a disaster if a baby was put in the care of someone in his situation.

Cornell would like Pogue to conveniently forget what he saw. Of course, he doesn't know that he has gotten his wish.

Rosenheim is the prosecutor in Cornell's case, but he is so dense that when given clues the blind street musician could see the significance of, he can't figure out what they mean. Dolby is Rosenheim's wheelchair-bound boss.

Speaking of the street musician, he is quite good. He plays the clarinet and people give him money. Next to him is an artist painting new versions of The Mona Lisa on the side of a building. I say "versions" because he is not good at accepting criticism.

I liked a lot of the music in this movie. Some of it was traditional jazz, and the movie used various styles of music from old-style detective movies.

The concept of a private detective with amnesia was the funniest thing. Pogue had to be a detective every morning just to figure out who he was. "Groundhog Day" in reverse.

Dana Carvey was okay as Pogue. He had several standout moments, such as the time Cornell came to his door just after Pogue reminded himself the landlord was demanding the rent or else! And there was the scene where, while watching an old detective movie (Bogart may have been in it, but I'm not entirely sure), Pogue figured out how to solve his problem. And of course Dolby's birthday party at the movie's start.

I thought Michael Gambon gave the best performance as the evil gangster Cornell. Not completely evil, but balanced and convincing.

Pogue's dog Baby (played by Barkley) added a lot, because he kept bumping into things because of his lack of depth perception. And of course the name means Pogue keeps searching for clues related to a baby.

It isn't great, but it is entertaining.