Schizopolis

"WARNING: ALL ATTEMPTS AT SYNOPSIZING THE FILM HAVE ENDED IN FAILURE AND HOSPITALIZATION," it says here on the box, so I'm not even gonna try. Directed by Steven Soderbergh (sex, lies & videotape), Schizopolis was shot in a big hurry for what looks like about $75, and stars Soderbergh himself, who had never acted before. Much of it is devoted to Stoppardian language games--for example, Munson (Soderbergh) and his wife often say the descriptions of their dialogue rather than the dialogue itself ("Imminent departure; return is discussed." "Acknowledged"); in later scenes, Munson's dialogue is dubbed randomly into French, Italian, and Japanese, none of it subtitled. There's also some subpar Monty Python-style sketch humor: silly newscasts, a running gag about a naked mental patient on the run, etc. The general impression is that Soderbergh crammed every leftover goofy idea he's ever had into a single movie, so that he can finally throw his notebooks away and start from scratch. Considered objectively, I suppose Schizopolis is an utter fiasco: pretentious, incoherent, and often painfully unfunny. At the same time, however, it's so relentlessly audacious, and veers off in so many totally unexpected directions, I can't help but reluctantly admire it. Extremely optional. (M. D'Angelo)[DVD Review--Nov. 18, 2003--Criterion, 96 min., not rated, $39.95--Making its debut on DVD, Steven Soderbergh's 1996 Schizopolis is not one of the director's best. But that didn't stop the Criterion folk from spiffing it up with a new high definition digital widescreen transfer (and, to be honest, the film was never really glossy-looking to begin with), Dolby Digital mono sound, and a handful of extras. Chief among the goodies are the two audio commentary tracks: one by Soderbergh interviewing Soderbergh (you know its totally tongue-in-cheek when Soderbergh says the project originated with David Lean--two years after Lean's death), and the other a more serious track by producer John Hardy, actors David Jensen and Mike Malone, and sound mixer Paul Ledford. In addition, the disc features a 9-minute montage of deleted scenes called "Maximum Busy Muscle." Bottom line: Soderbergh enthusiasts will want to consider; others can pass.]