Cecil B. Demented

After lulling the cinematic establishment into a false sense of security with a trio of mellower movies (Cry-Baby, Serial Mom, Pecker) gonzo director John Waters delights in turning around to bite Hollywood in the ass with Cecil B. Demented, a hilarious, low-budget, anti-studio romp that mocks the film industry's toothless, cookie-cutter status quo. Stephen Dorff oozes lunatic moxie in the title role as an independent filmmaker/terrorist who kidnaps Hollywood's biggest spoiled bitch/aging starlet (Melanie Griffith) and forces her to act in an autobiographical guerilla movie about destroying mainstream cinema. And if that means invading screenings of Patch Adams: The Director's Cut and attacking the set of Gump Again, so much the better. Waters is clearly having a ball living vicariously through his maniacal hero, and his latest offers great fun for cinephiles. Recommended. (R. Blackwelder)