New film goes over the edge
May 6: Film Clips on writer-director Bobcat Goldthwait of “God Bless America,” opening May 11
By Lou Gaul
Calkins Media film critic
Bobcat Goldthwait is mad as hell.
He’s fed up with reality shows, insincere politicians, cruel pranks posted on the Internet, political hypocrites, lavish Sweet 16 parties, inconsiderate cellphone users, selfish rich folks and Lindsay Lohan-like celebrities.
The 49-year-old writer-director blasts all of them in “God Bless America,” an often brilliant attack on the state of the world. It’s often not a pretty picture, but Goldthwait uses an in-your-face approach that some viewers will applaud as long overdue and others will claim wallows in offensive humor.
“God Bless America” isn’t edgy. It’s over the edge. Way over.
That’s exactly what the Syracuse, N.Y., native intended.
“The pendulum does swing back and forth,” Goldthwait said at his Philadelphia hotel during an interview to promote “God Bless America,” which opens May 11 and follows a terminally ill middle-age guy and a teenage girl who team to rid the world of annoying people. “I think we’re in a turbulent time right now.
“Once we figure out what all these new forms of distractions (like hand-held devices) mean, life will be interesting. There’s a lot of information coming out. You used to argue over bar trivia with your friends, but that doesn’t exist anymore, because someone will use the Internet Movie Database (or a website like Google for an instant answer).
“I mentioned the other day that my friend Tom went to the library and looked it (an answer) up. The people I was with were under 30 and thought I was lying. One said, ‘Why did he go to the library?’ Young people think they (libraries) are slow.”
During “God Bless America,” which echoes unsettling themes from Oliver Stone’s “Natural Born Killers” and Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver,” many targets appear. The most bashed title is the TV talent show “American Idol.”
“My feelings about ‘American Idol’ are exactly like Frank’s (the film’s main character, played by Joel Murray of ‘Mad Men’),” he said. “I used to participate (watch ‘American Idol’), but eventually I started feeling that I’m not going to do it anymore – I’m not going to participate in watching people be torn apart for our enjoyment.
“I used (a fake) ‘American Idol’ (in the film) for two reasons. Everyone would be familiar with it, and the other was that I really did stop watching those types of shows years ago, so I’m not familiar with (newer) shows like ‘The Voice’ or ‘America’s Got Talent.’ “
For Goldthwait, who is married and has a 20something daughter, some Americans may be spoiled by feeling entitled to so many available goods and services.
“The goal of instant gratification makes people be extremely narcissistic,” he said. “I think the key to happiness is to get a reprieve from narcissism.”
The filmmaker is also taken by the amount of ill will spread by the Democrats and even more by the Republicans.
“In the political world now, you just pick a team and then just tear apart the other team,” said Goldthwait, whose stand-up concert “You Don’t Look the Same Either” (Entertainment One; $14.99, DVD), will be released May 8. “No one is very interested in change, because change means you have to be responsible and you have to make your own decisions.
“It’s much easier to pick a side and then get your news from that side. People even no longer even pick what’s best for them. But I’m a huge contradiction. I’m a progressive liberal who owns a gun.”
The talented filmmaker, who named Mel Brooks’ “Young Frankenstein” as his favorite film because “the monster is misunderstood,” first gained notice in broadly drawn comedies like the “Police Academy” franchise (which he joined as Zed in the second installment, 1985’s “Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment”).
In recent years, he has worked as director on the ABC late-night favorite “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and made his artistic mark by directing insightful but extremely dark pictures. They include “Sleeping Dogs Lie” (2007), which involves a potentially destructive sexual secret, and “World’s Greatest Dad” (2009), which stars Robin Williams as a father who exploits the death of his teenage son for personal gain.
“There is a new nastiness (in our culture),” Goldthwait observed. “It’s funny that just because I made this movie that points out that there’s a new nastiness, people will write comments to me that say, ‘Why don’t you go to Syria and then you’ll know how nasty it can be!’
“There are many dangerous and horrible places in the world. I’m willing to examine America’s flaws and maybe get us back to what we were or what we could be instead of just saying, ‘We’re not as bad as those guys are yet!’ “
Adam Sandler in ‘Boy’
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