The Big Picture: #WalrusNo - Why Tusk Is A Bad "Bad" Horror Movie

[Daniel Janhagen]

It isn't even out yet in my part of the world, so I'll have to skip Big Picture this week. Maybe I'll remember to come back to it in a month or two or three or whenever I can actually see the movie. Will say right now though, that if Bob thinks this is bad in the same way that he thought Red State was, then I'm probably looking forward to one awesome, awesome movie.

 

[Darth Sea Bass]

Pretty much all I took away from that was "I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith" Ad Infinitum, Yada, Yada.

 

[zelda2fanboy]

I think moviebob is a bit misguided here in the assertion that this is an intentional "bad" movie. It is intentionally messed up, intentionally goofy from time to time, and intentionally weird, but it's not intentionally "bad." At least you can't tell it on the screen. It takes itself fairly seriously (sometimes) with a really dark plot about infidelity and identity right at the center of it. Assuming that there's nothing here for people who don't know about Kevin Smith is an assumption coming from someone who knows all about Kevin Smith.

It isn't even out yet in my part of the world, so I'll have to skip Big Picture this week. Maybe I'll remember to come back to it in a month or two or three or whenever I can actually see the movie. Will say right now though, that if Bob thinks this is bad in the same way that he thought Red State was, then I'm probably looking forward to one awesome, awesome movie.

That having been said, I think Red State is way way better than this movie. The review on the escapist is right on the money. Tusk has its moments, but overall there just isn't enough material to carry a feature length film. Smith tries to make it feel like a "real" movie (contrary to what moviebob says), but it feels like the plot is stretched very thin.

 

[RJ 17]

I'm just looking forward to Schlocktober because it means the pumpkin smilies are coming back!

Pretty much all I took away from that was "I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith" Ad Infinitum, Yada, Yada.

While there certainly was plenty of that, I think the over-all point is that this is another movie that fails in a bad way because it's trying to fail in a good way. The "good" failings can only come when they're non-intentional. Case in point: The Room, perhaps the funniest-but-not-supposed-to-be-funny movie ever.

Edit: Oh, but I do have to correct Bob on one thing: Birdemic was supposed to be some environmentalist's way of spreading global warming awareness. I don't care what the creator said, even just trying to say "it was an homage to The Birds" is an insult to Hitchcock and everyone that ever enjoyed his work.

 

[klaynexas3]

Sooo, basically...


Except in five minutes instead of 16? No, I get it. I think parody movies are typically just stupid. Sometimes they can be actually clever and even entertaining, but it just feels so pointless to watch. I'd rather watch the original thing they were making fun of. Even a straight faced movie trying to be wacky is something I can deal with, Sharknado(or anything from that awful fucking company), Tusk, any of those films that barely even commit to their own ideas just piss me off. In a way that Bob can understand it, it feels like the Amazing Spider-man movies, just a movie made by a committee. It's Call of Duty. It's NSMB. It's every WoW clone ever. It's just god awful trash that isn't even trying to be original or inventive or even fun. Fuck now I'm pissed.

 

[Darth_Payn]

Yeah, there really is nothing quite like someone who genuinely feels/believes in their messed-up masterpiece as opposed to someone trying to recreate that same goofy, stupid, "who thought this up?!" style. It's kind of like how I like the quirky weirdness of Adventure Time as opposed to the quirky weirdness of Pinkie Pie in My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic; it's just so obvious that her dialogue was written by someone who went "Oh, this sounds weird, let's go with that." It's unnatural, and while Adventure Time definitely has weird lines that make no sense whatsoever, it somehow "makes sense" in context, and because it sounds like something that character would say as opposed to just throwing shit out there thinking it just sounds weird.

It's also why I don't believe Tommy Wiseau at all when he continuously tries to claim "The Room" was deliberately meant to be a comedy... Hell, I'm STILL trying to wrap my head around what the fuck that guy's thinking!

A man with a face like his is one I find hard to believe, if I could understand what the everliving fuck he says. I mean, did you look at it? That guy looks like he survived having a stroke!

 

[MovieBob]

Those birds, god damn... I want to see this movie now.

 

[anonymity88]

My understanding was that out of the core concept of "man becomes walrus" Smith was trying to make a serious horror film. I haven't really kept up with him post-Clerks 2 though (brief forray into some of the podcasts, and Red State is on my to watch list whenever I cba).

As for the complicated relationship angle; it still sounds like Smith got lucky and it just burns you up inside that he's living your dreams.

 

[PunkRex]

Those birds, god damn... I want to see this movie now.

Just watch the JonTron vid, actually sitting through that mess looks like freaking torture... when the guy starts talking about global warming my brain checks out like 'F*CK IT, I'M DONE!'

 

[MovieBob]

Those birds, god damn... I want to see this movie now.

Just watch the JonTron vid, actually sitting through that mess looks like freaking torture... when the guy starts talking about global warming my brain checks out like 'F*CK IT, I'M DONE!'

I'll take your word on that. Though, we have a tradition with my circle of friends to gather and watch terribad movies for giggles. Things like Sharknado, Project Philladelphia, Robo-Geisha, Machine-girl and such.

So I may watch JT vid, but still get the movie to watch with friends.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I remember seeing a preview for this movie when my friend and I saw Expendables 3. I turned to my friend and whispered, "Who the hell comes up with this stuff?" and not in the good, funny way.

 

[Iambaytor]

If you don't like Tusk or Snakes on a Plane, that's fine. If you don't like Kevin Smith then that's fine too. But for Christ's sake don't waste everyone's time by inventing some nonsensical metric to justify that dislike. There are plenty of examples of creators trying to be bad and making good things: Machete, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavera, Garth Merenghi's Dark Place, Killer Klowns From Outer Space, Hobo With a Shotgun, almost every movie Troma has made since The Toxic Avenger, the entire discography of Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show, Planet Terror, Terrorvision, The Video Dead. Audacity and weirdness can be done by people who actually know what they're doing, too. I haven't seen Tusk yet but I already know it will be mug more watchable than The Room and Birdemic, which are both too boring to justify their continued popularity.

 

[Stabby Joe]

I think Kevin Smith should be apart of some kind of MovieBob drinking game.

From Smith;s own take on it, i don't think he was trying to make a "so bad its good" but rather trashy a'la Troma in that it's a film that know what it is and who its for (particularly his own audience and there's nothing technically wrong with that).

Come on Bob, I know you and us can't wait for Shlocktober and I even understand you're point (screw the Sharknado series) but some topics like Smith just get repetitive, more so since I thought the whole point of your multiple episode series on him was to put the pin in the subject...

...ah well, roll on October all the same.

 

[thetoddo]

The thing is, Smith's laughing all the way to the bank. International distribution rights were sold and the movie was in the green before the first ticket was sold. Saw it opening night and I think the movie has enough quotable dialogue and general weirdness that its going to be a Troma-style cult hit. I'm mostly sad it didn't do better because a strong box office might have made the studios more apt to make niche of a niche films based on public support. And not for nothing but this was studio, NOT kickstarter financed based on social media wanting this to be made. That's huge. Or would have been.

 

[Strain42]

I actually didn't come away from this episode with a "Oh, more Kevin Smith hatred" or anything like that...in fact I don't even really feel like Tusk was discussed that much (it sounds bad, but I'll admit I'm curious)

This was more just "Bad movies that are so bad they're good happen by accident: Here are several examples and some clips from them."

I think I have to go read that Tusk review now though.

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

Now the question is whether or not it's worse than Red State. I'm gonna have to say it's one of those situations where it's somewhat better than Red State, BUT it's less interesting because Red State was at least weird at times. God, I do wish Smith would just go away like all the other over-the-hill auteurs

 

[Not G. Ivingname]

This entire film came about because of a joke he made during a podcast?

 

[Rad Party God]

... Now I'm interested in this film Bob, thanks for the heads up!

Those birds, god damn... I want to see this movie now.

Birdemic is... mostly about boring humans doing boring stuff, the birds don't show up until the third act and the movie itself is more preachy than Al Gore and yes, it's about "global warming". If you're still interested in this... thread carefully, as it's not an enjoyable ride as The Room or Troll 2, opposed to those films, Birdemic only comes off as pretentious and boring.

 

[bobdole1979]

Pretty much all I took away from that was "I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith, I don't like Kevin Smith" Ad Infinitum, Yada, Yada.

yup! Moviebob needs to get over his rage over Kevin Smith. At this point he just sounds like a jilted lover who can't get over getting dumped

 

[bobdole1979]

This entire film came about because of a joke he made during a podcast?

yup pretty much but to be fair Casablanca only exists because two guys made a bet on if they could turn a bad play into a good movie.