By Geno McGahee
I was never a fan of Bobcat Goldthwait the actor. I never found his stand-up routine or character very funny, which is why I went into the 2011 GOD BLESS AMERICA with such low expectations. Remarkably, Goldthwait wrote and directed a great movie and overview of humanity as it stands. Much like FALLING DOWN and NOISE, we have a rebel against the system and I consider GOD BLESS AMERICA near the top of these types of films.
Frank (Joel Murray) works a boring job and lives in a small apartment, surrounded by noisy neighbors and a television that haunts him. The reality TV, TMZ, American Idol, and ambush news adds to the negativity in Frank’s life. At work, Frank hears about the shows that he suffered through the night before. Nobody is thinking for themselves and he cannot find anyone to really talk to. Making matters worse is this PC world that leads to the termination of poor Frank when he sends a flirty co-worker some flowers. Later he discovers that he is dying and it gives life to the monster that only lives in the imagination of Frank.
Reality star, Chloe (Maddie Hasson), is the first target. The spoiled 16-year-old is trapped in her car and shot by Frank, which is witnessed by another teen, Roxy (Tara Lynne Barr). Roxy later catches up with Frank and the two team up on a killing spree, shooting members of a church very much like the Westboro Baptist Church, nosy movie-goers, and many others that are destroying society from their perspective. As the body count rises, the duo realizes that the media molds the stories to suit their agenda. They blame the movie for the deaths, not the killers. It give the two some freedom, but it is sad to see how the media takes crime to push their own purpose.
The American Idol, or American Idol spoof, finale is the final hit for this team. The show has been exploiting a mentally challenged contestant that made a fool of himself for the amusement of others. This is a take on the William Hung situation, where the show gave him his own concert segment, having fun at his expense. Steven Clark (Aris Alvarado) is their William Hung and it’s equally as disgusting to watch. The American Idol-like show gets a finale it didn’t expect and we get a satisfying ending to a very insightful film.
GOD BLESS AMERICA is a tremendous film. Bobcat Goldthwait’s commentary on the current problems with society and the television shows that are shaping the youth is spot on. Joel Murray and Tara Lynne Barr were outstanding in their roles. Lynne Barr was very funny and Murray was very likable. They really owned their roles and worked off each other very well.
I highly recommend GOD BLESS AMERICA. It’s a must see and might open some eyes to the trash that they keep putting on television and how it impacts the personalities and behavior of others. Bobcat Goldthwait struck it out of the park with this one.
Rating: 8/10