On Edge

This film could have been better if they just stopped trying so hard.

While this film had its moments, the acting was of poor quality and it just seemed incredibly forced and not believable at all. For a 'mockumentary' to work you have to be able to believe that these are real people you're watching, and not actors. On Edge tries, and falls flat.

If you want to see a 'mockumentary' that works see This is Spinal Tap (not 'Spinal Tap on Ice'....) or any one of Christopher Guest's delightful and hilarious films (Waiting for Gufman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind).

On the surface, "On Edge" looks like a crazy mockumentary along the lines of the Christopher Guest masterpieces "Best in Show" (dog competition), "A Mighty Wind" (folk festival), or the one that started them all, "Spinal Tap" (dimensionally challenged heavy metal rockers). Certainly this merciless skewering of competitive figure skating has all the makings of an absurdist satire like those, but what distinguishes it--and possibly throws off audiences who are expecting just a silly romp--are some surprisingly powerful themes and dramatic subplots. And I'm not just talking about "fat girl shaming" which is actually just 1 element of the story.

For example there's one character, the bad girl "JC Cain" (excellently played by AJ Langer) who is introduced with the morbidly hilarious backstory of her father being accidentally canned to death in a tuna factory. (Look out, exploding drummers and bizarre gardening accidents, you've met your match.) Her character has all the makings of a total Tonya Harding caricature, but as the film progresses her story shifts to a very dramatic subplot of a person torn by imaginary loyalties, self-defeating dreams of mediocrity, and strangely disturbing voices in her head. And all of this is played straight, no satire, no ba-dum-ching punchlines and no amps that go to 11. If you're not ready for it, you may end up confused.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. The plot of "On Edge" revolves around a dysfunctional figure skating school run by a crazy alcoholic Russian ex-champion with the worst accent since Keanu Reeves doing Shakespeare, but (like Keanu Reeves doing Shakespeare) you gotta love him. We focus on the stories of a handful of skaters who are each vying for the title of regional champion, and orbiting around them are a few hilarious trainers, family members, judges, and our strategically placed storyteller "Zamboni Phil" (played by Jason Alexander of Seinfeld fame in a very non-Seinfeld role). Zamboni is the voice of reason in this crazy spectacle, and he's what bridges the gap between absurdist satire and the dramatic elements I mentioned. He's a bit like the Shakespearean fool who seems like a clown on the surface but is ultimately the wisest of the bunch.

Among the characters we meet are: (1) a sullen, perfection-obsessed diva with an eating disorder and a mother who bakes pies for everyone but her; (2) a somewhat larger-than-average yet phenomenally talented girl "Wendy" who, despite all the abuse she receives, has an unstoppably cheerful personality like Dorothy Hamill on crack; and (3) the aforementioned bad girl JC who defies description as her character arc has more spins than a Triple Salchow.

Peripheral characters provide the biggest laughs and certainly the most weirdness, like the disturbingly intense ex-judge whom you feel at any minute might jump off a rooftop trying to fly ("This is not a mind on drugs! This is a mind on figure skating!!"), or the 2 crazed Beavis & Butthead fanboys, as well as a host of other screwballs including notable cameos by Kathy Griffin and (you gotta be quick to catch it...) yes, one of the band members of Spinal Tap.

"On Edge" definitely has a lot going on, and in order to fully appreciate this flick you have to be prepared for the dramatic elements as well as the utter madcap absurdity. But now that you're forewarned maybe you'll have a great time. A final note about the actual figure skating performances: WOW. Those alone are worth the price of admission. I wasn't particularly a fan of figure skating before watching this movie, but I am now. Tuna sandwiches, not so much.

O.K. I never would have know about this movie had it not been for a friend. She knew I would like it and I really did. Maybe you have to have a daughter involved in a competitive sport like figure skating or horseback riding to see the humor of it all but to me the whole movie was brilliantly funny. Satire on a shoe string! Reminiscent of Christopher Guest (Best in Show 2000, Waiting for Guffman 1996 ), who I totally admire...it had my full attention. It's basically a pseudo-documentary drama-soap opera-comedy about young Southern California girls competing at a local then regional championship in figure skating.

There's a remarkable cast involved. Jason Alexander was highly convincing as a Ice Surface Engineer...i.e. Zamboni driver who has the scoop on all the poop. Then we have a really hammy Scott Hamilton playing a psycho skating judge who rants about the chaste and lofty ideals at the heart of the sport. God, he's so awful to look at (yellow teeth, thrift store clothing) that it's almost painful to watch him. His voice is drippingly saccharine all the while spewing complete nonsense. If nothing else he really nailed the gay figure skating persona in this judge. You just gotta love him.

There are some other well known figure skating personalities involved also...Tai Babilonia, Peter Caruthers, Steven Cousins, Randy Gardner, and Kristi Yamaguchi all play the part of the five regional judges. We all know judges can be arbitrary and vindictive not to mention down right blind, so it must have been a hoot for this group of professionals to get some deserved revenge however slight, by acting like their one time nemesis's.

All three lead rolls were perfectly cast and it would seem they must have had a lot of fun both on and off set. A.J. Langer as J.C.Cain, who raises Cain as a trailer trash Tonya Harding type. Marissa Winokur was the greatest as Wendy Wodinski,an overweight skater who has all the right moves but not the right grooves. She will remind you of Ricki Lake in ‘Hairspray' 1988. And Barret Swatek as Veda Tilman,the perfect ice princess.

I could never tell if the movie was low budget or made to look low budget but it was incredibly realistic whichever the case may be and supplemented the overall plausibility of a mocumentary. The music was campy and diverse also aiding in the over all cogency of the humor. I really enjoyed this movie. Worth a fun rent.

ON EDGE is the WAITING FOR GUFFMAN for the figure skating world.

Hard to say who is funnier, Jason Alexander as the Zamboni driver at a two-bit SoCal skating rink, or Scott Hamilton in disguise as an insane amateur skating judge. Both serve as commentators who guide a documentarist/professor (played by up-and-coming comic Chris Hogan), as he tails three hopefuls vying for the regional figure skating championship.

Seen at the HBO US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen last week, this film played to a full house. Everyone laughed at the funny bits -- and a couple of women seated near me actually cried at the heart-stopper of a false ending.

Excellent performances combined with strong storytelling all point to primo directing by Karl Slovin, who covers skating from a couple of striking new angles (literally, some gorgeous birds' eye view photography). There's good broad comedy from John Glover as the crazy Russian rink owner and Wally Langham of HBO's Larry Sanders Show fame playing a coach -- but the standouts here are the utterly convincing AJ Langer, a Tanya Harding worth rooting for, and Barret Swatek, the cold beauty.

The story, which at first blush seems quite familiar, sneaks up on you and defies pat answers because the characters show unexpected depth. At first I was surprised by some of the plot points -- but on second thought they not only made perfect sense, but they conveyed an actual moral. While none of the characters is a saint, about the time you get to your car you realize that the gal who wins is the only one who fights fair.

Music and Editing keep ON EDGE on pace -- none of the usual snail-slow indy bog, unlike more celebrated films at this festival.

Worth seeing.

Judging from some of the comments about this movie, I guess you have to be an ex-skater (or a fan of skating) to appreciate this movie. Yes, it is WAY, WAY over the top, but I think people are missing that it was MEANT to be. I found it a cute and funny film. No, it's not close to one of the greatest mockumentary ever made, but I enjoyed it.

Even though a lot of facts about competitive figure skating are gotten wrong in this movie (deliberately and hilariously so, in some cases) the filmmakers somehow inadvertently got a lot right. While most of these characters are grossly exaggerated for comic affect, I recognize almost all of them. There were quite a few Vedas that I recall: kids who were very good, but didn't give a rat's ass about skating and wouldn't be doing it if their parents (usually but not always their "skating mother") weren't forcing them to. Yes, there were most CERTAINLY mothers as pushy as Veda's mother (some worse, come to think of it and some were even in fur coats) although most of them (thank the Lord) weren't channeling Joan Crawford! Even the friendly and seemingly ever present Zamboni guy (Jason Alexander) is a character I remember. And if you think judges being prejudiced only happens on the international level, well, wake up and smell the coffee!!! There were even a few J.C.'s, girls who couldn't care less about the Olympics, but were working their way towards ice shows. Although you don't have to win Regionals to get into one, you just try out! <g>