Cuckoo Cuchoo! First Reactions To Kevin Smith's TUSK
Snoochie boochies! Kevin Smith's new film Tusk made its debut at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. Hit the jump to check out the first reactions to this "disturbing" film.
Those that were in attendance for the midnight feature at the Toronto International Film Festival were given the pleasure of viewing Kevin Smith's latest flick, Tusk. A film that features an old seafarer transforming an arrogant podcaster into a creature that he cherishes, a walrus. Yup. First reactions are positive for the most part. Most critics are raving about the film's blend of "disturbing" and "funny" material. Sounds like this horror-comedy, set in Canada, might be as good as poutine. I'm kidding, nothing is as good as poutine. If you want spoilers I would encourage you to check out the review from The Hollywood Reporter which reads more like a detailed synopsis than an actual film review. If you don't want spoilers, avoid it.
THR: "A cult-ready oddity anchored by Michael Parks's inspired performance"
"While a shifting focus toward other characters dilutes the pleasure in the second half, the often funny film will please the director's devoted fan base and win over some schlock-horror lovers who may have little time for the Clerks universe." - John DeFore
JOBLO: "Makes THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE seem almost mild in comparison"
"After a bit of a rough patch Kevin Smith is back with TUSK, a film which is maybe the best thing he's done in a decade, and strikingly different from anything he's ever tried before. It seems going microbudget – with the premise cribbed from a crazy story on his own wildly popular “Smodcast” – suited Smith just fine. Free from an obligation to investors, studios, or stars, Smith has made an absolutely macabre horror comedy that makes THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE seem almost mild in comparison." - Chris Bumbray
HIT FIX: "Kevin Smith's 'Tusk' is more a step forward than a return to form"
"I think even considering the film's short running time, there are some missteps, and the whipsaw tone of the film is going to really put some people off. But "Tusk" would seem to suggest that Kevin Smith has reconnected in some essential way with his love of filmmaking, and perhaps that he's even become a different person in those regards. If the premise itself puts you off, the film won't win you over, but Smith's faithful fans and audiences who are drawn in by the "WTF?!" premise are going to largely walk away feeling satiated." - Drew McWeeny
THE PLAYLIST: "Tusk is outlandishly unforgettable"
"You'll feel that it's Smith who has been reinvented most of all. He's using his skill set in a different genre, with a different agenda altogether, combining autobiographical elements, spooky late-night B-movie influences and a deeper thematic exploration of the nature of storytelling, to create something wholly unique and twisted. "Tusk" will be a lot of things to a lot of people (and we expect the reaction to the film to run the gamut from rapturous adoration to repulsed indifference), but at it’s best, “Tusk” is outlandishly unforgettable." - Drew Taylor
In theaters September 19, 2014
In the twenty years since his influential debut feature, Clerks, Kevin Smith has established himself as a singular voice in the American indie landscape with his wry observations of disaffected youth culture. With his 2011 horror film, Red State, and his new film, Tusk, Smith reinvents himself by bringing his comedic chops to a new, disturbing milieu. Wallace (Justin Long) co-hosts a popular podcast with his pal Teddy (Haley Joel Osment), focusing on cruel, mocking cringe humour as part of their mission to keep it “real and raunchy.” After his trip to Winnipeg to interview the “Kill Bill Kid” — a teen whose unfortunate samurai-sword video has gone viral — comes up empty, Wallace decides to make the trip worth his while and find a good story north of the forty-ninth parallel. A handwritten flyer he finds in a bar bathroom leads him to a grizzled old swab (Michael Parks) full of tall tales to share from his life of adventure at sea — and this is where Wallace’s voyage to the Great White North descends into straight-up madness.
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