BOTTOMS UP: DVD

SYNOPSIS:
Owen (Jason Mewes) leaves Minnesota to compete in a bartender competition in Los Angeles, desperate to win the $10,000 prize for his father. He stays with his closet-gay Uncle Earl (David Keith), through whom he meets famous actor Hayden Field (Brian Hallisay) and his girlfriend Lisa (Paris Hilton), who happens to be the daughter of the Hollywood studio boss. But Owen does not win and because he cannot bring himself to tell his family, he stays with Uncle Earl to earn some money.

Review by Louise Keller:
There's little merit in this crass, low-brow comedy except for some Paris Hilton curiosity value. She pouts a lot, seems dazed and looks at the world through heavily mascara-ed semi-closed eyes. Sullen, swollen lips that look as though they have overdosed on lipgloss are the norm, and the heiress-turned actress spends most of her screen time flicking her hair as she delivers lines like 'books are those things you read'.

The story? As you might expect, the story is silly and unbelievable, but I quite enjoyed David Keith's outrageously ('100% not gay, just a little colourful') effeminate Uncle Earl who paints his nails and wears a floral housecoat when we first meet him. Quickly changing into a t-shirt that boasts an obscenity on the front, he adopts a John Wayne swagger and a deep voice as he welcomes his nephew Owen (Jason Mewes).

'I get much funnier after a couple of drinks,' says Owen, which gives a clue about how the film will be best enjoyed. Mewes does a reasonable job with the material at hand and it is a pity Kevin Smith does not have more screen time. The King of the Bar competition that prompts Owen to head for Los Angeles is little more than an excuse for Owen and Uncle Earl to get up to silly things. Owen digs up some dirt on Hilton's studio-boss's daughter Lisa and gets introduced to her 'sexiest man alive' actor boyfriend Hayden Field (Brian Hallisay).

The language is crass and the most unusual character is a faecal therapist who reads the turds of the stars. The animations that break up some of the scenes are a nice idea, as is the opening animation which has considerably more value than the film itself.

Published November 29, 2007

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CRITICAL COUNT
Favourable: 0
Unfavourable: 1
Mixed: 0

BOTTOMS UP: DVD (MA)
(US, 2006)

CAST: Jason Mewes, Paris Hilton, Jon Abrahams, David Keith, Phil Morris, Nicholle Tom, Kevin Smith

PRODUCER: Brandon Birtell, Freddy Braidy, Chris Breed, Alan Hajjar, Francesco Juilland, Nick N. Raslan

DIRECTOR: Erik MacArthur

SCRIPT: Nick Ballo, Erik MacArthur

CINEMATOGRAPHER: Massimo Zeri

EDITOR: Sherwood Jones

PRODUCTION DESIGN: John Larena

RUNNING TIME: 89 minutes

PRESENTATION: Widescreen

SPECIAL FEATURES: none

DVD DISTRIBUTOR: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

DVD RELEASE: November 7, 2007

UPCOMING EVENT
RIVERSIDE SNEAK PEEK PREMIERES
A program of premiere screenings of new movies prior to their commercial release on 4 consecutive Tuesdays - March 10, 17, 24, 31, 2015 - at Riverside Theatre, Parramatta, Sydney.

Curated & presented by Andrew L. Urban, discussion to follow with special guests. Briefing notes provided.