Waiting for Guffman (1997)

Film: Waiting for Guffman (1997)
Stars: Christopher Guest, Eugene Levy, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey, Bob Balaban
Director: Christopher Guest
Oscar History: Nothing to speak of, though the film received three Spirit Award nominations.
Snap Judgment Ranking: 2/5 stars

After spending so much time in 2011, for some reason my Netflix queue decided I should take a quick detour into 1997, and into the world of Christopher Guest.  My brother is a huge fan of his films, and for some reason or another his films always intrigue me, but not so much that I seek them out (this is only the second of his movies that I've seen).  The only film of his I had seen, For Your Consideration, was not a favorite of mine despite it dealing with Oscar campaigns (which of course, I adore), and though I was told that it was not his best work, I have to admit that Guffman, one of his more acclaimed pieces, was not to my liking at all.

The film is about a community theatre group who are being lead by the effeminate Corky St. Clair (played by Guest), a New York theater man who clearly struck out in the Big Apple and is now lording his brief tour in the city over a small town group of show-biz wannabes.  Guest, who consistently uses the same players in most of his films, surrounds himself with real-life acting talents playing some version of a rube-two mildly obnoxious travel agents (Willard & O'Hara), a dentist with Michael Scott sort of delusions (Levy), a Dairy Queen worker wanting more out of life (Posey), and a hunky but dopey mechanic (Matt Keeslar) whom Corky is clearly attracted to, despite his many conversations to the camera about his wife Bonnie (a running joke that goes nowhere).  The film is in the style of a mockumentary (like most of Guest's films), and we see how the actors slowly get more out-of-control when they realize that a Broadway producer (the titular, but never seen, Guffman) is about to come to their town to review the play.

You obviously know where this is going (Guffman will never come and see the play, and the cast members will never get the stardom they've dreamt about), but predictability is not what hinders a film-a truly great director or writer will try and rise above it, and though there's something to be said for the Altman-esque style of Guest's filmmaking, unlike Altman, the message seems to be constantly sarcastic-look at how absurd these people are, look how silly it is to dream.  In my opinion, it's a deeply mean-spirited sort of film and I don't believe that is what Guest was going for; if his point is to show how even the biggest of dreamers look ridiculous from the audience's vantage point, that's one thing, but if it's to simply poke fun at how stupid these people appear, that's quite another.  At least with For Your Consideration, you got to see some of the ramifications of what the film's catalyst has done to the characters (that devastating moment when O'Hara realizes that she will not receive an Oscar nomination is a performing triumph even if the rest of the film flounders); in this film, it's just another cheap laugh at the characters.  Again, I'm not saying that mocking your characters is a bad thing, but it feels so out-of-place in this initially pleasant movie.

The film is very, very short, so I don't have much more to say.  Guest just isn't my cup-of-tea, I guess (though I do have Best in Show and A Mighty Wind coming up in my Netflix queue due to their presences on some projects, so I might still be won over), but I'd love a Guest fan to explain to me the appeal-it's not like I wouldn't like to love him (and I acknowledge that there's some strong intelligence going on here)-is this his best outing, or do I have a better film waiting for me?  Do share in the comments!