Beanbioca As Good As It Gets

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Fatma Suarez The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Woodyanders Three kids in a dysfunctional suburban family -- mopey older brother John (writer/director Jon McBride), chipper sister Denise (perky Denice Edeal) and precious younger brother Tom (cute Tom Casiello) -- are left alone with their mean, annoying, overbearing religious fanatic old battle axe Aunt Tess (an outrageously hammy Patricia McBride) when their jolly dad (amiable Perren Page) goes away for the weekend on a business trip. Things turn sour when Tom accidentally kills the nasty old bat. The three siblings dispose of her corpse by stuffing it in a woodchipper. Matters are complicated when no-count sleazeball cousin Kim (a perfectly slimy Kim Bailey) comes poking around looking for Aunt Tess. Boy, does this alarmingly atrocious, but often uproarious and thus oddly enjoyable ghastly marvel possess all the right so wonderfully wretched stuff to rate as a total four-star stinkeroonie: hopelessly amateurish acting from a game no-name cast, plodding (non)direction, a slight, talky script, poky pacing, cruddy shot-on-grainy-video photography, hissy sound quality, a mechanically bouncy score, hilariously horrible dialogue ("We?! What's all this we stuff? You're the one that killed her!"), a gleefully deranged sense of pitchblack humor, and a meandering story. Moreover, there's a playfully dark and deviant oddball sensibility evident throughout which not only makes the whole movie feel like a third-rate drawn-out sitcom pilot gone seriously mental, but also gives this picture an undeniable kooky charm that's impossible to dislike. A so sick and shoddy that it's paradoxically spectacular sidesplitting riot.

videobob1 This movie was shot on video in 1988 as Jon McBrides second feature. Shot on a Panasonic AG-450 S-VHS camcorder, and using local actors, friends and family Jon made a masterpiece. Well written and scored by Jon, the video was edited and distributed nationally in 1989. I rented this movie in the early 90's and it inspired me to take my hobby of video and take it another level. When I realized that anyone with the talent and ambition could actually make a movie and have it out there for millions to see I pursued television. Jon went on to make many other movies and appear in several other TV shows, Soaps, and even a Michael Jackson video! Little Tommy grew up to be an Emmy award winning writer for daytime drama. Jon had a good eye for talent. Most recently, WOODCHIPER MASSACRE was featured on the national syndicated show, "Videobob's Stupid Movie of the Week". The was a hit and one of the best ratings grabber for the show. - VB

ldinkins Mr. Casiello's performance as victim #4 was stunning. His smile as he was being stabbed can only be compared to that of the popular AMC actor, Forbes March. Mr. Casiello is indeed an up and comer. His appearance was brief and will make everyone forget March. Mr. Casiello brings a style to the genre that can only be described as unique. I look forward to his next project.

ari-13 Definitely one of the best shot-on-video movies to come out of the Northeast in the late 80's. Tom Casiello's air guitar scene makes this movie worth renting alone.