The Foot in Mouth Way (The Foot Fist Way (DVD))

Member Name: samueltyler

Product:	The Foot Fist Way (DVD)
Date:	13/10/09 (53 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Danny McBride is good at improvisation

Disadvantages: The rest of the cast are not, no story, not very funny

The improvisation style of comedy film has had some success in recent years with modern comedians such as Judd Apatow and Will Ferrell instigating the change. This is a type of improvisation that is strictly supervised and varies on the type of film they are in. The likes of 'Knocked Up' or 'Land of the Lost' are well structured films that allow improv only in some of the dialogue choices of pre-written scenes. The next step up is films like 'Anchorman' that has a loser storyline with a lot more of the scenes being improvised as the actors go along. The ability to be able to think on your feet has prevented stale comedians like Eddie Murphy from entering the new breed of films as he would look out of his depth. Therefore, the liked of Ferrell are always keen to find new people they can bounce ideas off. Actor/writer Danny McBride has started to come to prominence in films such as 'Drillbit Taylor' and 'Tropic Thunder', it was his largely improvised 'The Foot Fist Way' that provided the opening; but was the film actually any good?

Fred Simmons runs a small independent martial arts studio in the back of beyond USA. He considers himself a big man in a little town and provides training with scant regard for the feelings of his students. When the opportunity arises to meet his idle he does just that and mistakenly hires Chuck 'The Truck' for a large sum of money to judge a local competition. Can Fred save face with his students if he is shown not to be as skilled as Chuck? Will his wife ever learn to respect him and stop flirting with anything in trousers? The next few weeks will prove a turning point in Fred's life as he learns some harsh truths.

The art of improvisation is not an easy thing to pull off as you can lose all structure and end up filling a film with meaningless babble. The best form of the skill imo is to use it sparingly as a way that the actors can embellish already solid and well thought out material. This is not the case with 'The Foot Fist Way' as it has a paper thin story that relies totally on its characters and dialogue to work. Therefore, do the characters and dialogue work?

No, for a comedy 'Foot Fist' is exceptionally dark. The darkness is not in the form of violence, but in the form of black comedy. Fred is not a likable man; he is naive, stupid, a bully and weak. To pull off a character like this you have to seriously write some good dialogue. This is not the case and the blame is obviously with all three co-writers who also star in the film. They are unable to actually produce many funny moments as their characters are made to come across as people to dislike. An unlikable character can still work (see David Brent in the Office), but they do need some level of sympathy; Fred has none.

The rest of the cast feel incredibly amateurish. The film is shot pretending to be part mockumentary, although it constantly breaks its own rules. This documentary shoot allows for a more natural style and improvisation. Unfortunately, McBride is the only person skilled enough to actually do this. The rest of the cast feel like people taken off the streets and made to look fools in front of McBride's character. These amateur actors are not really to blame as they are cast to be like this. However, this cannot be said for Ben Best and Jody Hill who play Chuck and Mike. These two are part of the film's production and have cast themselves supposedly because they think they are good. Hill in particular is rubbish and wastes his time on screen. Best does better, but is still unable to actually produce a laugh.

With a poor script that is not supplemented with improvised humour you are left with only a dark film. The central relationship between Fred and his wife is one of the most depressing things I have seen in a while and has no elements of humour for me. The feel of the relationship is just that little bit too dark for you to be able to laugh at the suffering of these deeply unpleasant people.

Overall, 'The Foot Fist Way' is a failed film that succeeds in being nothing more than an extended audition reel for McBride. He is heads and shoulders the best thing in the film and although his character is displeasing it is clear that he is able to do improvised comedy very well. It is a shame then that he may as well be acting up against a wall as the rest of the cast are abysmal. Those that are amateurs can be forgiven, but the professional cast should be sent back to drama school. 'Foot Fist' would have been a stronger film with a slightly more rigid story that would have allowed Fred to be more sympathetic. As it stands you have to struggle through some unfunny and awkward moments to get to the one or two highlights.


Director: Jody Hill
Year: 2006
Cert: 15
Starring: Danny McBride
Price: Amazon uk £4.98
Play.com £4.99



Extras

There is a short making of featurettes, but nothing worth watching.

Summary: An extended audition reel for McBride and little else