Sorry for the long absence. College adjustments.
When Generation X is popped up in the film industry, we think of:
Richard Linklater's 1991 experimental comedy-drama Slackers;
that Singles movie;
Reality Bites;
the first two films of Wes Anderson (Bottle Rocket and Rushmore);
Quentin Tarantino pre-Kill Bill;
Robert Rodriguez back when he made violent films with a purpose;
the cult followings of films like Santa Sangre (which is a fine black comedy/satire about Christian ministry that works very well as a slasher) and The Wild Bunch (just The Wild Bunch);
and the emergence of Todd Solondz, Jim Jarmusch, and Tom DiCillo.
Some people might add, "olo you forgot about the height of the SNL movie" and in someways, I did. For example, Wayne's World is one of the greatest comedies filmed mainly due to its innovative use of fourth wall obliteration, injokes to the original SNL/Second City skit, and amazing performances on part of Mike Myers and Dana Carvey. Plus, it parodied in a nutshell every cliche and fault that Gen X had.
But, they might say, "what about Chris Farley's films?" Most of them are forgettable. Black Sheep - unfunny comedy with lame set-ups for gags, an uneven use of the Chris Farley/David Spade duo, and just plain Crosby/Hope at their WORST. Almost Heroes - not Chris Guest's best. His lowest point. Beverly Hills Ninja - just the same stuff you expect in every Farley film but with an Asian theme (and a more obese version of Surf Ninjas).
However, there's another film that, to half of the notorious major film critics, is about as forgettable as those films. However, in filmmaking circles, SNL circles, and people devoted to the underrated talents of Chris Farley, Tommy Boy is an immortal classic that becomes more and more relevant to this day. To me, before I knew good filmmaking from bad, I knew Tommy Boy had something very special in it. Was it the fact that Farley wasn't plodding along the film as some sort of irredeemable jerk or could it be that David Spade was finally funny in this? Could it be the shocking amount of drama that had a point? Could it be that the film made you feel happy and made you root for Tommy, even if he's portrayed as some slacker ass?
The answer, to me, is yes, yes, yes, yes.
Now, when I saw it recently, I had read the AMG review and the Roger Ebert review about this film - both praised certain aspects of the film while bashing the rest, especially the bulk of the comedy. AMG's right when they say that Tommy Boy is occasionally funny - it's supposed to be. It's a comedy-drama (and, in a few cases, a black comedy) where you cannot laugh to scenes like Tommy realizing that his father's dead or that he's a failure or that his "mother" betrayed him so she could sell his auto parts company to Dan Aykroyd. Ebert's right when it comes down to the fact that Rob Lowe's character is the only three-dimensional character in the traditional sense. It hearkens back to Frank Capra days, when all your great heroes were just representations of American ideals (George Bailey, Jefferson Smith, "John Doe") and not really fleshed out in the modern sense. And yet, Ebert's not blasting Mr. Smith Goes to Washington for being flat or It's a Wonderful Life for being insulting and horribly outdated (save for its story and moral).
When I saw, I didn't see it in the traditional eye I usually saw it in - the eye that this is an underrated comedy - but I saw it through the eye of every critique known to man.
I saw the faults - they did NOT need the 10 joke in there when they introduced Bo Derek.
I saw the praise - Tommy was indeed correctly translating what David Spade was saying about the brake pads (quicker reaction time due to better chemical reactions and material in the pads themselves).
I also saw how Capra-esque Tommy was: the "worthless" hero placed in an alien world he somewhat knows about (from sources that aren't that educational) but has to find his voice in order to get his way and get through this place without killing himself or destroying the ideals he stands for in the first place.
I also saw why David Spade was a jerk - he's an easily-insulted "bastard" who looks up to Tommy's dad and merely wishes to be like Tommy (like Owen Wilson in another one of my favorite films, The Royal Tenenbaums). Plus, when Tommy hears the bad news, he doesn't go off into an alcoholic spell like Spade. Tommy is unselfish, grateful, and very resilient. He has hope. He's the embodiment of the human spirit - crazy, hilarious, enlightened, hopeful.
That's why I love Tommy Boy. Sorry to throw out the Film Brain way of critique on this in a few parts, but I saw it necessary. And plus, in this horrible economy with conglomerates buying out people (fuck you, Charles Bluhdorn) and placing them in destitute situations, Tommy Boy becomes a testament as to how the average American can get through life without focusing on the bad things.
It's definitely a lot less dated than It's a Wonderful Life, that's for sure.
