BAD BOY BUBBY (1993)
Though films of this ilk are generally my steez, Bad Boy Bubby doesn't quite hit right for me. It certainly has it's strengths - the most impressive part is actually the cinematography, in my opinion, which is pretty unexpected for a "shocker" such as this. The atmosphere during the first act was quite jarring and effective - what a grim set. The 2nd kudos would go to the overall plot, which does demand intrigue from the viewer, almost guaranteed (at least for the first half of the film).
I think the film's greatest fault is that lead actor Nicolas Hope's performance doesn't quite invoke any emotional response. There are layers of majorly heavy subject matter being dealt with through this entire film, but Hope's portrayal of Bubby often feels rather vapid. I realize he is meant to be a shell of a person - but the nearly 2-hour runtime is fixed on his face a majority of the time. The blankness gets old and uninteresting after a while. Once I got about halfway through the film, I didn't really care what happened to his character anymore. Also, the plot meanders pretty hard. It gets cheesier as it goes, as well, in my opinion. Also, maybe it had something to do with the streaming service I watched it on, but this had perhaps the worst sound mix I've ever heard in a feature film? The majority of the dialogue was SO low, I had to turn closed captions on, and I NEVER do that.
One thing's for sure - if you're easily offended, this movie will definitely offend you. It's definitely THAT kind of movie. I have to give it up to everyone involved for being so committed to creating an offering with actual cinematic value that primarily hones in on such CRUDE subject matter. It certainly stands on it's own - I just don't find much about it satisfying or even very entertaining, personally. It took me 5 separate sit-downs, each time picking back up where I left off, just to get through it, but I still RESPECT this film. :)
Though films of this ilk are generally my steez, Bad Boy Bubby doesn't quite hit right for me. It certainly has it's strengths - the most impressive part is actually the cinematography, in my opinion, which is pretty unexpected for a "shocker" such as this. The atmosphere during the first act was quite jarring and effective - what a grim set. The 2nd kudos would go to the overall plot, which does demand intrigue from the viewer, almost guaranteed (at least for the first half of the film).
I think the film's greatest fault is that lead actor Nicolas Hope's performance doesn't quite invoke any emotional response. There are layers of majorly heavy subject matter being dealt with through this entire film, but Hope's portrayal of Bubby often feels rather vapid. I realize he is meant to be a shell of a person - but the nearly 2-hour runtime is fixed on his face a majority of the time. The blankness gets old and uninteresting after a while. Once I got about halfway through the film, I didn't really care what happened to his character anymore. Also, the plot meanders pretty hard. It gets cheesier as it goes, as well, in my opinion. Also, maybe it had something to do with the streaming service I watched it on, but this had perhaps the worst sound mix I've ever heard in a feature film? The majority of the dialogue was SO low, I had to turn closed captions on, and I NEVER do that.
One thing's for sure - if you're easily offended, this movie will definitely offend you. It's definitely THAT kind of movie. I have to give it up to everyone involved for being so committed to creating an offering with actual cinematic value that primarily hones in on such CRUDE subject matter. It certainly stands on it's own - I just don't find much about it satisfying or even very entertaining, personally. It took me 5 separate sit-downs, each time picking back up where I left off, just to get through it, but I still RESPECT this film. :)