“Loves Company”
(USA)
Screened at the 44th Reeling Chicago International LGBTQ+ Film Festival (3/5)
Letterboxd (3/5), Imdb.com (6/10), TMDB.com (6/10), Imdb.com critics review
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When done right, dark comedy can make for entertaining fare. But, when mishandled, it can be a real chore to sit through. And, as for this latest offering from writer-director Jason Laurits, the finished product falls somewhere in the middle, starting out strong but losing steam the further it progresses. The film is at its best when viewers meet washed-up television celebrity Blake de Troy (Jack Plotnick), a onetime staple of campy 1970s game shows cut from the same cloth as the likes of Paul Lynde, Rip Taylor and Charles Nelson Reilly. Since the heyday of his career, however, Blake has struggled to find work except for the occasional made-for-TV movie and supporting appearances on two seasons of a cheesy sitcom. And, of late, the pickings have been even slimmer, no matter how much his handler and long-suffering partner, Jimmy (Bryan Batt), has tried to bolster Blake’s sagging marketability, a sad but funny effort loaded with some hearty laughs. Blake still tries to put his name out there, convinced that something will eventually click, but about the only interest he garners comes through occasional fan letters from diehard followers, most of which he summarily dismisses out of hand. However, when Blake is suddenly and unexpectedly widowed, he’s lost. So, while on a trip to scatter Jimmy’s ashes, he impulsively decides to look up one of his snail mail contacts, his supposed number one fan, Antoinette Funk (Rachel Dratch). Antoinette is lonely, having recently lost the elderly father she was caring for in her rundown home in the Florida Everglades. But Blake soon comes to regret his decision to satisfy his curiosity, especially when he’s injured in a car accident on his way there. Upon regaining consciousness, he quickly discovers that she’s the second coming of Annie Wilkes, the unhinged number one fan from Stephen King’s “Misery” (1990). He becomes embroiled in a scenario not unlike that of the protagonist in that wickedly dark comedy, a plot development that gets old rather fast. It also marks the beginning of an ongoing game of cat and mouse while Blake recovers and he and his host each use one another to get what they want out of their bizarre association. And that, unfortunately, is where this release loses traction. The bits involving the duo just aren’t particularly funny, often feeling as if they’re forced, reaching for laughs the picture doesn’t do enough to earn. What’s more, the humor turns more sinister, bypassing the feel of a macabre Saturday matinee, an approach that would have worked well here, in favor of attempts at jokes that are often too far over the top. It’s truly unfortunate that “Loves Company” loses its way after such a promising start, but, then, it’s probably ironically fitting, given the nature of Blake’s character and the state of his circumstances (although it’s definitely not my cup of tea). I had high hopes going into this one, but I came away from it only modestly amused considering what I had to sit through.