[.ca] The Dark Backward

jamie dunlap:
if you like weird films, david lynch, oliver stone types you'll love this movie. it almost as if russia had won the cold war and america was run by a company called blumps. everything is nasty and dirty and low tech. this movie is a real feast for the eyes as well as what is real. i am fasinated by the detail because if you look at every detail (decor, outside, entertainment, all of the things in life ) you can watch it several times over and see something new each time. this is not a film for the average or simple minded type.

Regardless of how much you like this ..it's just BAD!:
This movie is so poor you might think it was written and directed by John Waters. It's that bad, and it really looks like a Waters film. So much one might think it was done on purpose. It's disgusting, the characters need a shower and Judd Nelson looks painfully geekish. It's almost like someone decided to make a comedy that was intentionally unfunny, as if that would be what made the viewer laugh. Well HA! HA! Considering the talent involved (including Bill Paxton & Laura Flynn Boyle) this was pathetic. So if your still interested grab some squeezable bacon and a glass of pork juice. Enjoy the show.

Hilarious dark comedy of twisted, disgusting proportions:
The Dark Backward is a sickly twisted comedy of ridiculous and nauseatingly gross proportions that will leave you laughing until you cry and barfing up your lunch. Judd Nelson plays Marty Malt, an extremely bad BAD stand up comedian. Don't expect the Judd Nelson from The Breakfast Club either; as Marty he is a sweaty, Jeffrey Combs type character and plays the role very, very well. His best friend is Gus, played expertly by Bill Paxton, a greasy and disgusting accordion player whose girlfriend Nicolette weighs over 400 pounds. Marty and Gus work as Trash Collectors during the day, and while working Gus spies a lump on Marty's back, like a boil. Marty goes to visit Dr. Scurvy, outlandishly played by James Caan, who puts a band-aid over it and charges Marty $200.00. Gus manages to bring talent scout Jackie Chrome (played by Wayne Newton) in to hear Marty's routine, and Jackie walks out on it, telling Gus that Marty is the worst comedian he has ever heard. Marty is crushed but Gus keeps his good spirits about it all. Marty's "lump" grows some more, and Gus discovers he now has a hand growing out of his back, like a baby's hand. When Marty goes to see Dr. Scurvy again, Dr. Scurvy again places a band-aid over the baby hand and accuses Marty of "picking at it". Marty's waitress girlfriend, Rosarita, played by Laura Flynn Boyle, leaves him because she can't date a man with a three hands. The hand grows into a full sized arm, and Jackie Chrome winds out taking on Marty as a client, turning him into Desi The Three Armed Wonder Comedian. Gus joins up as a sidekick to play his accordion inbetween Marty's terrible jokes. Watch for Rob Lowe to show up in a cameo role as Hollywood Bigwig Dirk Delta. This is a tongue in cheek, very dark comedy with scenes of pure grossness. The entire background of the film is seedy, filthy, and nauseating. From the grimy offices of Dr. Scurvy to Marty's mother's apartment where he clips her toenails while she chainsmokes though on oxygen, to the trash filled streets they are supposed to be cleaning, to the seedy bars and lounges, it is plain that there is a great amount of detail focused onto the overall atmosphere of the film, setting the perfect mood for the plot. Pay attention! All throughout the movie we see the omnipresent Blump's, a company so encompassing that it owns the garbage company Gus and Marty work for, and also manufactures such delicacies as Liquid Bacon. Go ahead and make the connection, I did. Gus is the grossest imaginable character, even finding an old lunch pail in the landfill, opening it up, and eating the sandwich that was inside. Gus will eat anything. Also not to be missed is Marjorie Zipp and the Human Xylophone as they audition in Jackie Chrome's office. There are some hilarious twists in the plot, and an ironic ending, and some amazingly good acting throughout from this stellar cast. The overall filth of the atmosphere and the disgusting physical and mental attributes of the characters make for one bizarre flick. Very funny movie, but only for those with sick and twisted funny bones. I wish it was available on DVD. Enjoy!

Find out for yourself:
Okay, just sit back, relax, and plan on seeing one of the oddest and darkly comedic films you will ever see. If your idea of funny is Bad Boys II or you listen to top 40 music and base your film experience around the same mind set, then forget it. But, if you can keep an open mind and appreciate odd for the sake of being odd, then indulge yourself with this film. Judd Nelson is a VERY bad stand-up comic by night and VERY bad garbage man by day. His friend (Bill Paxton) is Marty's (Judd Nelson) only fan. They live in a bizarre world where a company named Blumps is supreme provider of all human needs i.e. food, drink, etc. though it is all chemically synthisized. This toxic existence causes Marty to grow a third arm out of his back and boosts his comedy career. With an unlikely cast such as Wayne Newton, James Caan, and Lara Flynn Boyle, not to mention the 3 women well over 300 lbs. each, that Bill Paxton has . . . with on a nightly basis. There are midgets, freaks, losers, corpses, and Judd Nelson's chain smoking, abusive mother. If that's not enough to get your curiosity up, then go rent Love Story and leave the freaky comedies to those with a bit more sense of adventure. You should laugh, gag, cover your eyes and peek through the cracks, and stare for long stints at a time with your mouth open in dis-belief. John Waters? Ha! This is a different brand of weird... In a good way.

Dark Comedy and Carnivalesque:
Cult director Adam Rifkin (Never on a Tuesday, The Chase, Detroit Rock City) delivers once more. Those of you familiar with his work will undoubtedly be familiar with his oddball characters and outlandish plots. For those of you new to his work, 'The Dark Backward' is the best place to begin. Marty Malt (Judd Nelson) is the worst stand-up comic in the entire world. He is equally terrible at his day job, a garbage collector. It seems that Marty is not destined for stardom ... until one day something strange happens that changes his life forever. His accordian playing, garbage-collecting co-worker, Gus (Bill Paxton), notices a lump growing out of Marty's back while they are doing the rounds. This odd growth is diagnosed by the disturbingly incompetent Doctor Scurvey (James Caan) as a third arm. What would normally be an embarrassingly freakish human deformity, turns out to be Marty's comedic calling. Before, Gus was his sole fan; now he has a mass following. Enter the slimy Dirk Delta (Rob Lowe), who offers Marty the chance of Holywood stardom. So begins a successful career in comedy ... ? Seemingly straight out of a Ray Bradbury short tale, Rifkin's film is furnished with carnivalesque characters. You will be astounded and revolted by characters like 'the fat woman', 'the muscle man', and 'the human xylophones'. Rob Lowe is unrecognizable in his role as slick Hollywood bigwig (a role he would later reprise in 'Wayne's World' and 'Tommy Boy'). James Caan is frighteningly brilliant as Dr. Scurvey, and leading man, Judd Nelson, puts in his best performance since 'St. Elmo's Fire' and 'The Breakfast Club' (look out for Judd's oddball cameo in Rifkin's 'Never on a Tuesday'). 'The Dark Backwards' is arguably Rifkin's best film, not having directed anything since to equal it. It is certainly his strangest movie since 'Never on a Tuesday'. If you are a fan of cult movie directors like David Lynch and John Waters, check this film out. If you are afraid of zombies, freaks, midgets and men with three arms I suggest you look elsewhere. Cast: Judd Nelson, Bill Paxton, Rob Lowe, James Caan, Lara Flynn Boyle, Wayne Newton, et al