Filmed as Dick Dickster, this semi-mockumentary Hollywood satire hails from director Chris Ray, son of prolific B-to Z-movie mogul (and author) Fred Olen Ray. So to fans of schlock dating back to the VHS era and before, there is some built-in cult DNA for what is otherwise a twice-told tale of a fictitious filmmaker who is sooooo bad he's...soooo bad, that's all.
Misanthropic, disheveled movie director Dick Dickster (Robert R. Shafer) is a mean drunk, womanizer, and street fighter (grabbing/kicking opponents in the crotch a specialty). Though styling himself as an artist, he only completed one movie, the horror feature Cult of Doom.
Broke, owing the mob and fielding divorce papers by his Vegas-stripper wife (Melanie Good), Dickster is sweet-talked into being the subject of a student-film documentary by one of Cult of Doom's fans. The camera captures hijinks when Dick wards off mafia violence by promising to use a wiseguy goon's script. There is also a seeming career revival for the hero when a retired porn star (Jan Broberg) hires him to shoot a sex flick. Of course, none-the-wiser Dick still treats females and co-workers abominably.
Real-life Hollywood sexual-harassment scandals among the high and mighty of the studios (as in the drama She Said) have endowed this rather slow-paced spoof of the low and lowly with perhaps more timeliness than it really deserves. Library collections could stock better comedies centered on terrible filmmakers, real and imaginary (The Independent, The Disaster Artist, Ed Wood).
Still, some showbiz names here go along good-naturedly with the gag, portraying themselves (actor Richard Grieco most prominently), and the nudity quotient is low, considering the adult-film-biz subplot. Swearing, alcoholism, and themes put this well into R-rated territory, though.
Followers of outre, low-budget, and exploitation cinema may be curious about They Want Dick Dickster, but otherwise, it is an optional purchase for public libraries.