FFWD Weekly
Copyright © 1999. All Rights Reserved
| Film by Robert Tarry Go So, speaking of Quentin Tarantino.... I swear the guy must get a quarter every time some hack screenwriter rents Pulp Fiction and a dime every time some hack film critic name drops him in a review. With Go, I think he can buy Paraguay now. Yes, everything you’ve heard about Go is true: directed by the Swingers guy, cool soundtrack, more fun than a barrel of raving, glittery eyed monkeys and completely, thoroughly, absolutely, 110 per cent ripped off lock stock and barrel from Pulp Fiction – from the story structure right on down to the character names. (Whose car is this? It’s not a car, Baby, it’s a Miata. Who’s Miata is this? It’s Zack’s. Who’s Zack? Zack’s dead, Baby, Zack’s dead.) ’Course I’d rather watch a remake of Pulp Fiction any day over, I don’t know... Zapped, and first-time screenwriter John August certainly paid attention. When the writing clicks – and it only falls flat during a side trip to Vegas – Go comes at you fast and furious, with some sparkling dialogue, funky twists and terrific performances. Standouts in the ensemble cast include Canada’s own Sarah Polley as the slacker supermarket checkout girl with a quick drug deal scheme to make rent (and kick the plot into gear), the usually bland but surprisingly funny here Jay Mohr as soap opera actor turned reluctant narc, and William Fichtner as the ambiguously gay, Amway-selling cop. In fact, the writing and the cast go a long way towards erasing the Pulp Fiction shadow altogether. But what finishes the job is the way Go perfectly captures the quintessential delusion of the young, bored and good looking: you can drive fast, shoot first, gobble drugs like Skittles, screw two people at once, stomp on life’s gas pedal, scream "Go!" and live to tell the tale the next day at work at your crappy job. And that’s why Go gets its – it is shamelessly referential and shamelessly fun, deeply cynical and upbeat at the same time. Just like these crazy kids today, with their clothes and their hair.... |
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