I saw "Hieronymous Merkin..." when I was senior in high school, and a again a few years later when I was in the navy. It is truly one of those remarkable films that never leaves you.
It has a beautiful score. True, there are hits and misses. "Chalk and Cheese" is hokey and was remarkable only because Joan Collins seemed to seductively purr it more than sing. But there are several hits. "I'm All I Need" (I'm all I need/If I succeed/I'll Thank No one/Who gives a damn?/What I am is what I'm meant to be)is a defiant statement to an unseen,uncaring God. "Lullaby" (Lull-lullaby/Go to sleep/my little one) is as touching a song as I have heard. In fact I often sang it to my daughter, but more than that it expresses a father's fears and his determination to protect his child. The biggest hit of the show has to be the "Fairytale" (Once upon a time/when the world was greener/Princess Trampolina/Daughter of a king/Rode around the land in her royal carriage/Pretty as a princess ought to be/Suitors by the score sought her hand in marriage/None of them was quite her cup of tea). My personal favorite is "Oh What a Son of a Bitch (I Am)" (Oh, when I think of those overheated/Vestal virgins I've mistreated/Well, it's obvious I don't give a damn/Kid if you're wondering who your dad is/Look at the last of the big time baddies/Oh, what a son of a bitch, I am.
The movie' biggest drawback is its disjointed construction. There is no smooth narrative, but then how many movies exhibit smooth narratives today.
"Hieronymous Merkin..." was under-appreciated when it opened and now largely forgotten. I continually search the internet for a copy of the movie without any luck. I guess I will have to content myself with the record which I came across at a yard sale.
"Hieronymous Merkin..." wasn't necessarily ahead of its time, but it managed to capture the feeling of an era in a way with vision, humor, and music that deservingly make it a cult classic, or it would if someone had courage enough to re-issue it.
It has a beautiful score. True, there are hits and misses. "Chalk and Cheese" is hokey and was remarkable only because Joan Collins seemed to seductively purr it more than sing. But there are several hits. "I'm All I Need" (I'm all I need/If I succeed/I'll Thank No one/Who gives a damn?/What I am is what I'm meant to be)is a defiant statement to an unseen,uncaring God. "Lullaby" (Lull-lullaby/Go to sleep/my little one) is as touching a song as I have heard. In fact I often sang it to my daughter, but more than that it expresses a father's fears and his determination to protect his child. The biggest hit of the show has to be the "Fairytale" (Once upon a time/when the world was greener/Princess Trampolina/Daughter of a king/Rode around the land in her royal carriage/Pretty as a princess ought to be/Suitors by the score sought her hand in marriage/None of them was quite her cup of tea). My personal favorite is "Oh What a Son of a Bitch (I Am)" (Oh, when I think of those overheated/Vestal virgins I've mistreated/Well, it's obvious I don't give a damn/Kid if you're wondering who your dad is/Look at the last of the big time baddies/Oh, what a son of a bitch, I am.
The movie' biggest drawback is its disjointed construction. There is no smooth narrative, but then how many movies exhibit smooth narratives today.
"Hieronymous Merkin..." was under-appreciated when it opened and now largely forgotten. I continually search the internet for a copy of the movie without any luck. I guess I will have to content myself with the record which I came across at a yard sale.
"Hieronymous Merkin..." wasn't necessarily ahead of its time, but it managed to capture the feeling of an era in a way with vision, humor, and music that deservingly make it a cult classic, or it would if someone had courage enough to re-issue it.