Dirt (2001)
DIRT is a quirky comedy about two simple-hearted brothers who, when abandoned by the death of their mother, search to find a replacement Mom. Junior and Scooter find themselves ill-prepared for life on their own. To ease their suffering, they search the desert dregs of West Texas for a woman to take Mom's place. Due to their social disability, they are forced to kidnap a woman from a Piggly Wiggly supermarket. They soon realize that they have gotten more than they bargained for when their "victim," Dede, turns out to be the maltreated wife of an abusive Texas Ranger. She quickly turns her misfortune into theirs, convincing the brothers to steal her baby away from her sadistic husband. Life gets even more complicated for these simple-hearted boys when the vengeful Ranger tracks them down bent on keeping them from living happily ever after.
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So much average
Memorable, crazy movie
The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.
This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.
Junior (Michael Covert) and Scooter (Tracy Fraim) are dimwit brothers in West Texas. Their father was a meanie, but he died long ago, and Mama took good care of her boys. Now adults, the siblings have just buried Ma out in the desert near their home. Who is going to mother them now? These intellectual midgets don't hold jobs and have never cooked or cleaned. So, what's the solution? First, the duo tries picking up a hooker (Jennifer Tilly) who assures them she will take care of them. After the money exchange, Ms Hook slips out the bathroom window. Junior and Scooter are miffed. On the next go- round, the brothers try kidnapping a lovely grocery clerk, DeDe (Tara Chocol) with mixed results. At first, she's terrified of course, but she's been looking for a way to leave her abusive sheriff hubby, Vincent (Patrick Warburton). So, she will agree to be a housemaid for them if the sibs will help rescue her darling baby from Vince's clutches. They do. Now, the oddest family is sticking together in their remote home. But, more complications arise as the wife beating sheriff is hot on their trail and a sweet-but-stupid bank clerk, Margaret, falls for Scooter. Out in the lovely but harshly barren West Texas landscape there is turmoil! Perhaps the title is a giveaway, ha, for a less than highbrow movie but dummies can be charming and fun. All the players here, not well known, are talented and funny. Likewise, the desert setting is intriguing and lovely while the costumes, script, and lively direction are made to measure. No, folks down in Texas may not like the depiction of dimwits in their great state but if they are smart, they will laugh along with the rest of the movie audience.
I love this film. It has a meandering and unrealistic plot and was shot on a shoestring budget but, man...I love this film. It's not a perfect film, it may not even be a good film. But its gritty imperfections combine to make it even more emotionally affecting and, well, lovable. There's a dozen things to which I could point and say, "That should have been better" or "That's totally out of place" but, if I were given the option, I wouldn't change a thing (well...the orchestral swells in the last five minutes of the film make my teeth hurt. But, other than that, not a thing!). This is cinema that is authentically and movingly human. Its soul shines irresistibly through the quirky tone and budget constraints.Come on, movie people! License this film and release it in some format so I can see it in a non-film-festival form! Not that film festivals aren't wonderful, but a much larger group of people deserve to see the wonderful human confusion that is Dirt.I love this film.
What a pleasant surprise, to laugh oneself sore during a film festival screening of a sleeper independently produced film! This one is going to be a HUGE winner, as I'm sure the word will filter out through hipsters and sites such as "aint-it-cool-news.com" You deserve a break today... watch for, and go see "DIRT." You'll be glad you did!
I also saw this film at The Los Angeles Film Festival, and what a joy! It made me think of the kinds of great films the Coen brothers used to make before people gave them a lot of money. An outstanding example of what a film maker can accomplish with great material, charming actors, and a cinematographer who knows how to shoot a picture, even when you're dealing with a limited budget. This film is full of gun humor without being overtly violent, and yet when it does pull the violence trigger, usually gets laughs instead of blood. Ironically this film also delivers a very real emotional punch. The best American films always deliver their heros in the end with some sort of salvation, and this film doesn't disappoint. It's not conventional, but definitely leaves you feeling good about the human condition and the possibilities that love can bring, even in the most diverse ways. A true gem, it will be a sad statement on the state of Hollywood if some company doesn't give this flick a theatrical release so audiences everywhere can embrace it.