| People have asked me, "Why in God’s name haven’t you watched Reptilicus (1962) yet? Who the hell are The Flying Karamazov Brothers and why do you keep watching their tape instead of Denmark’s greatest giant-monster movie?"
Fair questions all, and they deserve to be answered. Let’s begin with the question about the world’s coolest and most famous juggling troupe – The Flying Karamazov Brothers.
These guys have been at it for 30 years now, but I’d still love them even if the only show they ever did was their brilliantly freewheeling adaptation of William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors at Lincoln Center in 1987. This show aired on PBS when I was supposed to be studying for my final exams and I can’t imagine a more potent distraction from the educational process. I still can’t remember what I was studying that night, but the image of a 300-pound opera singer taking a bite out of a Styrofoam cup while tap dancing straight into a wall is forever engraved in my mind. It’s amazing that I made it into university at all.
In a time when Shakespeare tended to be approached in a staidly tedious manner, the Karamazov’s vaudeville-inspired shtick was a refreshing blast of seltzer water. The Bard’s text and story were scrupulously adhered to, but the troupe was constantly interjecting funny little asides, circus acts and comic business. The aforementioned cup-chomping tap dance was not a blooper, but a scripted bit of non-sequitur nonsense. It fit in with the rest of the show perfectly. Some other brilliantly off-kilter moments include:
· Antipholus and friends trying to break down a door by firing a chicken out of a cannon. ("And thus with fowl intrusion enter in." Groan.)
· Two minor characters (Second Merchant and The Goldsmith) are played by one actor whose costume and makeup are divided down the middle. He switches characters by turning from side to side and has frequent arguments with himself.
· All scenes of dramatic conflict are accompanied by juggling.
· The local police officer wears a black leather jacket, mirrored sunglasses, a rotating dome-light helmet and 12-foot-high stilts.
· The heroes’ swords are plastic toys and are still attached to the cardboard backing, with the Thundercats cartoon show logo clearly visible.
· The character of The Conjurer is performed by an actor whose face and hands are visible through a curtain, while a second performer operates a tiny pair of fake legs directly under the head. The end result looks like a bizarrely truncated midget with incredible flexibility. This technique was used with equal success in the berserk kung fu movie Miracle Fighters (1982).
· During the exciting climax, Antipholus makes a dramatic entrance by rappelling 40 feet down to the stage with a rope. He then gestures for his manservant Dromio to follow suit – and a dummy resembling Dromio falls to the stage with a thud. The real Dromio hastily switches places with the dummy and poses dramatically as if he had just performed the stunt himself. ("Ta-daaaa!")
If you Shakespeare purists are clutching your chests and hyperventilating right now, let me assure you that this performance of the Bard’s first comedy completely succeeds in accomplishing the original intentions of the text – that is, to make the audience laugh and cheer. I love Shakespeare myself, and this show remains the most delightful version of his work I’ve ever seen. Rather than attempting traditional Great Shakespearean Acting™, the boys stick with what they’re best at and provide broad comic performances that work perfectly.
Sadly, The Comedy of Errors has never been released on home video in any format. If you know anybody who taped the program off the 1987 Great Performances: Live from Lincoln Center broadcast, beg them to let you see it.
The Flying Karamazov Brothers continue to do their thing for hip and appreciative audiences and you can check out the troupe’s history at www.fkb.com. Concert tapes (like the one I’m on the verge of wearing out) are rare these days, but if you want to see the guys in action… you probably already have. They appeared in The Jewel of the Nile (1985) as a cabal of Sufi rebels determined to protect the Jewel of the title. This sequel to the hit film Romancing the Stone (1984) might lack a little something compared to the exciting charm of the original, but there’s no denying the Brothers’ charisma, as they juggle and fire-walk their way to victory over the bad guys.
Now, onto Reptilicus. I’m gonna watch it one of these days – really, I am. The fact that it’s been in my collection for so many years without ever being viewed is purely a coincidence. Heck, I own tons of movies that I haven’t watched yet – I just don’t normally point them out in print. Reptilicus and I have had plenty of close calls though – they usually go something like this:
Guest: Hey, let’s watch Reptilicus!
Me: Sure! I’ve been meaning to watch that for years!
Guest: Wait a minute. You’ve got the complete second season of Rocky and Bullwinkle? Let’s watch that instead!
Me: Uh, OK.
Guest: Did you just hear a cry of anguish coming from that pile of movies over there?
Me: That happens all the time. Just ignore it. |
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