Customer Reviews

CORNDOG MAN

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Let's not fight, I'm HAPPY today!!!"

Thus begins one of the harrassing phone messages delivered by a mystery caller to the manager of good 'ol boy boat lot "Triple K Marine".

Ace is a bigoted, confident southerner working hot days doing all he can to just sell more boats, just as any other salesman on hundreds of car lots across the country. He's shrewd, and crude as well, and confident in his ability to finagle anyone out of their cash.

Then one day, a mysterious problem develops. A goofily voiced caller starts to harrass Ace. Day after day. Often several times a day. His calls seem to be doing nothing more than agitating Ace, sending him into a torrent of curses or rude comments. Sometimes Ace just pleads with this guy to quit calling. But nothing works. This caller won't leave him alone, and Ace tries his damndest to try to live with it.

But soon the calls become personal. A certain phrase here, a familiar comment there. Ace starts to get paranoid because this caller seems to know him, and is apparently trying to provoke him, or get something out of him. But who, and what?

That is the core of this entire film. As I explained in my IMDB review, this movie was shunted upon me by my friend Pat, who has disappointed me with his movie choices on occasion. But this time, I quickly became engrossed in the story. What is at first an apparently endless series of pointless (though thoroughly amusing) prank calls eventually becomes a fascinating game of psychological torture.

Due to the amusing and interesting dialog, and the absolutely magnificent acting by all involved, I started to become anxious to see how this situation would end. I wanted to know who this caller was, and why he was doing this. By the end, I found out. And it was surprising. It went in a direction that was both emotional and unexpected, for reasons I wouldn't necessarily have guessed. The final shots are a bit ambiguous, but take nothing away from the impact that, at least to me, left a resonance of thought.

Altogether this was a movie that, although slow, was so well written and so well acted that it stands in a unique class of its own. Done with a seemingly minimal budget, but made with an obvious sheen of thought and intelligence, this is a movie worth reccommending to those who like psychology, cruel humor, or thought-provoking issues. If you can find the dvd, pick it up for more insight and a decent commentary- as well as the only time you ever fully see that mysterious caller.

Ace Barker is a racist jerk. He is a self-centered redneck strangling in his own denial. He is also one of the most hilariously tragic figures I have ever encountered on DVD (or in the theater). Yeah,..I know,.."hilariously tragic" sounds like an oxymoron,...but,..well,..that's Ace Barker fer yah. You simultaneously (well at least I did) DELIGHT in his anguish AND sympathize with him as he slowly dissolves beneath the guilt-ridden baggage he's been dragging around for years. Prank-caller/"Un-aknowledged Son" Penrod torments him into submission BUT Ace doesn't go down easily. The result is a profanity-laced meltdown that will leave you both laughing hysterically and wanting to bludgeon Ace with a pool cue. SOMEHOW you'll feel a bit sympathetic for old Ace (his actions/responses are COMPLETELY unforgiveable but SURELY there must be SOME "good" hiding within his angry "cholesterol-ridden" thumper). Old habits die hard, however, and Ace eventually earns "his due". Bigotry and regret mixed with a healthy dose of introspection COMBINED with a chaser of prank phone calls = The Corndog Man. Noble Willingham (as Ace Barker) deserves an honorary Oscar/Emmy or AT LEAST a "gold plated corndog" for creating one of the most memorable characters I've ever witnessed on film/DVD. EXCELLENT STUFF (and a valuable lesson to be learned)!! pass the mustard,..TWO CORNDOGS UP!!!!!

Great movie. Very funny. At 83 minutes it's over very quickly, but a fantastic find. If like your comedy dark and your endings unhappy, then this is the movie for you. Be warned though, Amazon said they had it in stock but it still took 3 weeks for me to get it, what gives?

Aside from the overall awesomeness of this movie, it has a very high awesomeness factor. So on a scale of one to awesome, it's awesome. whew! Some of the really great things about this movie are when Penrod keeps calling his dad, and then those guys take away Ace's staff and maybe he gets pappy-slapped with a fish that was meant for the police. Those were citations of glimpsefull awesome.

This dark psychological comedy leaves you with that sick feeling you get when caught laughing at the wrong things. It plays like one of the classic blues songs that so aptly fits with the film's wonderful soundtrack. This Sundance selection never escaped its independent roots into the mainstream of more popular firecracker hits. It serves as a reminder of how history is experienced from many perspectives and how our hatred in the end devours everyone involved. I have passed this film off to friends because it is one that you want to laugh about with them and that is exactly what happened. One of the many interesting aspects is that you never really get a good look at the Corndogman but we get detailed viewing to the vulnerable Ace Barker. They planned it that way : )

Makes you want to answer the phone and yell Triple K Marine!



Best,

N

I thought this movie was better than most main stream movies.....everyone should own this movie. it might get agravating watching some of the scenes...but it`s a great story of "messing with someone"....Noble Willingham does a great job here. Great movie.

I read a negative review on another site for the film The Corndog Man (1999) that called it `unpleasant, irritating, and sadistic'...yeah, those are the bits I liked...I'd also throw in annoying and uncomfortable...so what happens when an individual decides to systematically attack another, somewhat deserving individual through a series of crank phone calls, and the schlub on the receiving end can't seem to stop himself from continually picking up the phone, despite the fact he knows it will most likely just another attack? It creates an unhappy, yet oddly enjoyable cinematic experience, for myself, at least. Produced, co-written, directed, and edited by Andrew Shea (Santa Fe, Forfeit), the movie features Jim Holmes (My Chauffeur, Odd Jobs) and Noble Willingham (Norma Rae, City Slickers, The Last Boy Scout), one-time Republican nominee for the U.S. House of Representatives in Texas (he lost).

Willingham play Ace Barker, an overweight, pompous, bigoted, loud-mouthed, obscenity spewing boat salesman who works out of the Triple K Marine in Bougherville, South Carolina, which is supposedly the fishing capital of the South. Despite his natural charm, sparkling personality, and ability to turn a colorful phrase, Ace is the number one salesman, but given his competition (a couple of dopey looking types who spend their days peeping on the chubby office girl while she uses the washroom), I wasn't all that surprised. Anyway, things seem to be going well for Ace until one day he begins receiving a series of phone calls from a mysterious individual. At first the caller seems interested in buying a boat, but soon we see his interest is more in harassing Ace, keeping him on the phone, and allowing for others to pick up on the sales Ace normally would have gotten had he not been tied up with the phone. After awhile the calls turn personal, as the man begins questioning Ace about where he eats, what he wears, etc. Day in and day out the calls come in, eventually forcing Ace take matters into his own hands by getting some tape recording equipment and finally going to the police. The calls stop for about a week only to start up again, just as relentless as before, only now the man begins calling Ace at his home, along with his work. Not only that, but the man seems to be stalking Ace, aware of his every move, including his secret liaisons with an African American trannie (I have to say contrary to the Aerosmith song, this dude did not look like a lady). The stress begins to wear on Ace, causing problems, both professionally and personally. Turns out the man, who operates a corndog cart (hence the title of the movie), isn't some random prankster but has a serious interest in Ace, particularly a heinous event Ace participating in way back in the day.

If you get a chance to see this film and enjoy it, you should really check out a CD title `The Tube Bar' as it features a whole series of prank calls made to a gravelly voice, surly bartender named Louis `Red' Deutsch, and were the basis for the prank calls Bart Simpson made to Moe early on in The Simpsons television series. The original bit has such a following that back in the early 1990's someone even made a short feature titled Red (1993), starring Lawrence Tierney as Red, one that utilized the actual recorded material as the audio...the main reason I mention this is because it seems like the filmmakers may have gotten the idea for the story from here, along with a couple of other sources. I was watching a featurette included on this DVD, and the director mentioned that some audience members actually developed a sense of empathy for Ace during the course of the film, despite all of his obvious faults, the main one, in my opinion, was that he was a bigoted SOB. Shea stated this was due primarily to Noble Willingham's acting abilities but I have to say, never at any point during the film did I feel sorry for the character. I'll agree Willingham was a good actor, as I did feel his mental fatigue, but the more I learned of the actual character, the less I cared for his ever-worsening situation...and boy did it deteriorate. As far as his tormentor's motivations, I didn't address the man's reasoning for what he's doing, but it is spelled out clearly within the movie, sometimes through the use of black and white flashbacks peppered throughout the story. The man reveals his identity to Ace early on, but Ace doesn't really make the connection given he didn't remember, or wiped certain past occurrences from his consciousness given their odious nature. I did laugh at some of Ace's misfortunes mainly because they were happening to someone other than me, but it helped a lot given the fact Ace was just an all-around rotten human being whose only respect was for that of the almighty dollar. He did have a pet guinea pig that he doted on, but I have to say, this made me like him even less...why? We can see he's capable of compassion, but chooses not to show an ounce of it towards his fellow man. Nah, he'd rather expend it on a fuzzy, little rat...I'm not saying the creature wasn't worthy, but how about sharing some of that kindness with those who have to occupy the same planet as you do? Whatever...it was interesting how the caller was presented more as an entity rather than an individual with a grudge, at least until we fully learn his relationship to Ace. The funniest bit for me, and there were a few, was when the guy called Ace on the payphone outside of the shop, as Ace was filling some balloons with helium trying to make the place look festive in order to draw in customers. The guy keeps calling, interrupting Ace and at one point Ace accidentally draws in some to the gas, giving his voice a high, silly sounding pitch. Imagine one of those wacky, Disney chipmunks spewing forth a string of angry obscenities...the story is relatively simple, but since it focuses mostly on one character, Ace, we delve into the complexities as to what makes him who he is, and it ain't pretty. All in all this was an interesting and often darkly entertaining film, but certainly not for everyone. If you dig on Todd Solondz (Happiness, Storytelling), David Lynch (Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart), or Steven Soderbergh (Schizopolis, Out of Sight), along with independent films, then this one might be right up your alley.

The picture, presented in widescreen (1.85:1) aspect ratio, looks clean and the Ultrastereo 5.1 Surround Sound comes through clearly. Extras include a promotional trailer (which I'd advise against watching prior to watching the film, a featurette titled "Every Dog Has His Day' (10:36), and a audio commentary track with Andrew Shea and Jim Holmes.

Cookieman108

By the way, after watching this film, you may feel the urge to turn the ringing off on your phone...I sure did, but not because I was concerned about getting crank calls, but just because I was so tired of hearing the damn telephone ring within the movie.

I have order this twice once I loaned it out and it didn't come back I have to have a copy to show people and surprise them with how great it is.

This is the best movie ever. It is a must-see for the entire world. I must love to fall off the couch because I do every time I watch this movie. I can't help but laugh hysterically. If I had the option to own only one movie during my lifetime, it would be this one.

The Corndog Man comes to town.
He'll warn you not to let that rat drown.

If you like movies that don't follow the "Hollywood formula" but have a great story and acting check out Corndog Man.