Vulgar

Anybody wanna watch a movie in which a guy dressed as a children's party clown gets violently gang-raped? I didn't think so. But here's the bigger question: Why would Kevin Smith (Clerks, Dogma) help produce such a movie? Did he owe a favor to writer-director Bryan Johnson for being a frequent bit player in Smith's movies? Brian O'Halloran (the convenience store clerk from Clerks) stars in this unpleasantly dark comedy-drama as a down-on-his-luck professional clown who gets sexually assaulted at an off-color gig. Later, when he becomes a celebrity with his own kiddie show, the rapist blackmails him with a videotape of their encounter, setting the clown on a path toward revenge. Vulgar--which lives up to its title and then some--isn't just pointless and repellent; the stink of amateurism wafts off the screen, and with the exception of brief flashes of accidentally passable acting, it's so grossly under-rehearsed as to be laughable--especially when Johnson steps out from behind the camera to play the clown's best friend. Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include a commentary by executive producer Kevin Smith, writer-director-editor Bryan Johnson, star Brian O'Halloran, producer Monica Hampton, and executive producer-editor Scott Mosier; six deleted scenes (with an on-screen introduction by the same commentary group), including original opening and ending scenes; a photo gallery; text film festival responses (i.e., rejection letters) from Sundance, Slamdance, The Hamptons, Telluride and South By Southwest film festivals; and a 37-minute featurette "Judge Not…In the Defense of Dogma" where cast and crew from the movie adamantly stand up to criticism against 1999's Dogma. Bottom line: an impressive extras package for a repugnant and inept film.] (R. Blackwelder)