Back in the good ol' pioneering days of the USA, life on the frontier could get
pretty rough, and sometimes people had to eat their friends just to stay
alive. One such man was Alferd Packer (it is pronounced Alfred, by the way - his spelling wasn't so hot).
Meticulous research and historical analysis could probably produce an accurate psychological and emotional profile of this man: whether he was a pathological murderer or just a victim of circumstance. But for now, we have Alferd Packer - The Musical: a whimsical, bloodthirsty romp of a tale that has as much grasp of history as a walnut.
Taking the bones (sorry) of the original tale of an ill-fated expedition to find gold in the Colorado mountains in 1883, the film's writer, director and star, Trey Parker, has created a gem of a film which deserves a place in cultdom alongside such classics as The Rocky Horror Picture Show, The Blues Brothers and Monty Python's Life of Brian.
Being a musician as well as a (student) film-maker, Parker also came up with a
clutch of horribly catchy songs for the film, and devotees and haters of The
American Musical will be equally delighted by these cruel pastiches of famous
numbers, from Gershwin through Rogers and Hammerstein and Lloyd Webber
(honorary American) up to Fame.
With the cast and crew of the film being virtually one and the same, the action in front of the camera was bound to be pretty amateurish, but - as Python fans will know - this can give a film a sense of fun which you just don't get from the slick Hollywood blockbuster. What all the cast have - incredibly - is wonderful comic timing, and the script gives them plenty of opportunities to show it.
This is a film which needs to be seen more than once, and not just because it's
packed with gags, some of which are bound to be missed on the first viewing.
The first time, the fact that the Indian tribe are all Japanese is just one of
many strange quirks in the film, but seeing it again you realise that the
makers have taken a necessary economy (presumably the Japanese imports were
cheaper than the native American product) and turned it into a brilliant gag.
Behind the cameras, microphones and what-have-you, the gallant crew also perform very competently - the editing in particular is superb. The synthesized musical arrangements are a bit cheesy at times, but the songs are easily good enough to carry them through.
I love this film, and if anyone wants my copy they'll have to eat me first.
Altogether now, Let's build a snowman...
| Philip Crewdson |
the state51 conspiracy