Just perfect...

disgusting, overrated, pointless

Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

This is a cartoon with real people instead of animations. At first, I didn't know what to make of this movie. Then, I realized that it was an excellent one-of-a-kind genre. The too-cute, trite story of a lowly security guard, Victor Ajax (Reed Birney), trying to impress a pretty, hard-to-get girl, Nancy (Sheree J. Wilson), isn't really as important as the craftsmanship that goes into the making of this cartoon movie whose main characters are Louise Lasser (Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman) and the two cartoonish 'exterminators' who will kill any size pest. Some may call this movie "campy." I call it great!!! The colors and settings are vivid, like a cartoon. And, the characters are just as unpredictable and indestructible as they would be in your typical cartoon: getting hit in the head with a row of bowling balls, only to be just dazed and not dead; falling out of tall building windows, only to get up and continue on with the action of the sequence; falling down a chute and into a box to be sent off to South America, etc.

Sandwiched in between his first two "Evil Dead" movies is filmmaker Sam Raimis' "Crimewave", a silly, over the top tribute to film noir and especially slapstick comedy. (Film buffs know that Raimi is a big Three Stooges fan.) It may be a little much for some people, but it does have a lot of energy, and spirited performances.It begins as Vic Ajax (Reed Birney), the ultimate nerd / patsy, is about to be executed for a series of crimes. He desperately pleads his case that the real perpetrators were a demented pair of exterminators / hit men, Faron (Paul L. Smith) and Arthur (Brion James) who had initially been hired just to eliminate the business partner of a man in the security business. As schmucky Vic stubbornly tries to woo the gorgeous Nancy (Sheree J. Wilson of 'Walker: Texas Ranger'), he ends up being terrorized by the gargantuan goons.Like a lot of comedies, "Crimewave" does lose a bit of its momentum after a while. Fortunately, things pick up again for an exciting climactic vehicle chase. Overall, the movie is extremely well cast; Raimis' old pal Bruce Campbell (also the co-producer) has a recurring bit and is so funny the viewer will wish that he had more to do. Also in the cast are TV star Louise Lasser, veteran film producer Edward R. Pressman in a rare acting gig, Richard Bright, Antonio Fargas, Julius Harris, and long ago Three Stooges co-star Emil Sitka. Smith and James are hilarious and fun to watch as the antagonists, although in real life Raimi and company had their problems dealing with them: James had a drug habit during this period and Smith, supposedly believing himself above the material, gave a performance disliked by the filmmakers so much that they dubbed him for the duration of the movie.From beginning to end, this is an effectively wild and (fairly) unpredictable affair; Raimi co-wrote with his fellow directors and friends the Coen brothers. The Coens appear as reporters, with Joels' wife Frances McDormand playing one of the nuns and Raimis' brother Ted in a bit as a waiter. They all make this a very easy to take diversion that at the very least is certainly never boring.Seven out of 10.

Oh what gleeful, delirious, no-holds-barred and anything (illogical but fun) goes movie Crimewave is! I use an exclamation point to add a little emphasis, perhaps in a near abstract way, but really this is a picture chock-full of abstractions, to the point where if you don't get into it by the first twenty or so minutes, you might as well turn it off (well, actually, don't if you dare). I watched it with a few friends and it made it even more of a great ride as it's a movie made in mind for an audience who's already used to Raimi (and the Coen brothers for that matter) with the style of film-making in tow. One friend said it best, which is maybe the only way to describe Crimewave aka the XYZ Murders- it's a full-bodied live-action cartoon. Granted this approach to style has been a big chunk of Raimi's forte, particularly in the horror films. But here its cranked up to its maximum, and as the characters go to their most extreme lengths and attitudes, and situations and sequences go to their absolute limits AND beyond even, it becomes like a daring act of entertainment. It's like Looney Tunes done through the heedlessly deranged, bizarre, crude, and bombastic heights that Raimi and the Coens go for.Indeed, we even tried to guess at times what scenes might have been written more by the brothers and which were more of Raimi's doing. But either way, it all combines into a very simple idea stretched out- a man, Vic Ajax (Reed Birney), recounts the twisted and too-much-to-believe story of what REALLY happened the night of the crimes committed, as he is nearing the electric chair. This involves mainly a shifty-eyed employer, a character with more to do with Ajax than the other parts (Bruce Campbell as the 'Heel', classic with a chin that is even more chin-ier, if that's possible), and a pair of exterminators who are, without a doubt, crazy enough to kill anyone, be then bugs, rats, 'Men', or even 'Heroes' depending on their electric-setting. This then leads to the sordid tale of one night's time as the exterminators wipe out almost everyone- well, ALMOST- as Ajax gets swept into this wild downward trip of insanity and inane chases and attempting to murder/murder, and becomes a hero to the woman he wants in the process.All of this is told with the visual verve, panache, and unique sensibility that has made Raimi a filmmaker who can bring out laughs sometimes by how he puts props and sets together and moves the camera all around through them. There's no stone unturned in putting clichés here to be ripped to shreds, and the two actors playing the exterminators (Paul L. Smith and Brion James) are so far-gone into their characterizations that they couldn't be more convincing if they were drawn by Chuck Jones himself. I couldn't help but burst out laughing at the absurdities that would go on and on; my favorites included the big bust-in that Smith did on Lasser's place (she throwing everything she has at him, then once crushed by bowling balls literally pulling the room towards him, then on and on it goes), and the big car chase climax that features everything from car-top brawls to the typical 'will the car slip over to the river' moments. It's a sign of true mad-cap quality when Campbell, who relishes greatly in playing such a one-note sleaze-bag, is only one of the finest components in the puzzle. And the hero character too, played by Birney, becomes a little more believable after the initial blandness of the 'nerd' quality fades, particularly in the dance-hall scenes and towards the end too.Crimewave is so dedicated to only following the rules of there being 'no-rules' in what can be done with the camera and with deranged night-time lighting and getting such obscenely cool performances coming out of a cracker-jack script, that it's ironic to see that Raimi supposedly disowned the film. This might even be one of those rare cases, at least to me, where the producers might have been right about this, concerning the recasting of Campbell I mean (he works best as a hero in Evil Dead, but here it wouldn't of been as convincing for the nerd work, plus he'd have to fight for room with the killer/exterminator actors). And as far as the editing and music goes I might be missing something, but it doesn't really feel compromised. If anything the cuts end up having to get into a sort of groove with Raimi's takes and angles and such. Also at 83 minutes, despite what may or may not have been cut out, it feels at a near-perfect length for the subject matter; any more might have run the risk of losing its sustained momentum, if that makes sense.But to put it in brief, if you haven't heard of this movie and by some chance come across it on ebay, and are a fan of the filmmakers by any stretch (or just in general a fan of cartoons), it's a must-see sleeper kind of comedy, where the gags and jokes and puns keep staying strong all the way up to the big finale at the Hudsucker prison (ho-ho). It's up there with my favorites of the director's, with splendid contributions from Joel & Ethan Coen.

I am a huge Coen Brothers fan, a huge Sam Raimi fan, and I love Bruce Campbell as well- but the whole does not always equal the sum of its parts as demonstrated by this movie. Unlike the films that I love by these guys (Blood Simple, Barton Fink, Lebowski, Evil Dead, Evil Dead II etc., etc.,)there is virtually no character development an I developed only a superficial interest in the storyline. Granted there are a few premonitions of the Coen Brothers masterful production, (the carpet scene is cool) But- a few cool scenes don't make this stinker watchable. I ordered a Chinese bootleg and paid $10 shipping just to see it, and it was *not* worth it- take it from me that even if you're a big fan of the directors and actors involved, don't waste your time!