Here’s a quick quiz for readers: Do you think Lynyrd Skynyrd is a person? Do you consider croutons vegetables? Do you wear your hair in a mullet, short on the top and sides — possibly spiked — and long in back? Do you still wear acid-washed jeans and sport Def Leppard concert T-shirts?
If you answered yes to any of those, you’re in good company.
In the just-released movie “Joe Dirt,” the lead character Joe, played by David Spade of “Saturday Night Live” fame, would have answered yes to all of those questions. But have no fear, mullet-wearers of the world. Joe is vilified for his personal loves, and by the end of the 90-minute long redneck extravaganza, Joe emerges to a nation of followers. So yes, it’s safe to come out of your closets.
Joe was left by his parents at the Grand Canyon when he was eight years old, already wearing his signature mullet. Once he realizes that they are not returning, he embarks on a journey of discovery. He is bounced from foster home to foster home, but finally ends up in Silvertown, a place that looks nice to him. There he meets the impossibly gorgeous Brandy, played by Brittany Daniel, who is taken in by Joe’s kindness. He also meets Brittany’s father Don, played by Joe Don Baker, a beer-swilling, daughter-spanking coon-hunting slob of a man.
Kid Rock makes a cameo as Robbie, Joe’s nemesis, who is also vying for the salacious Brandy, and he makes life just difficult enough for Joe.
After some time, Joe realizes that he must seek out and hopefully find his parents. So, he leaves Silvertown, and on the way encounters the spacey Indian, Kicking Wing, played by Adam Beach; Buffalo Bob, a hulking man with a secret, played by Brian Thompson; and finally Zander Kelly, a Los Angeles disc jockey who is enthralled with Joe’s story, played by Dennis Miller. Christopher Walken is his usually eerie self as Clem, a school janitor Joe spends some time with.
If you’re not a fan of Spade’s deadpan comedy, you probably won’t like this movie, unless butt humor and general grossness are your ticket. “Joe Dirt” also offers a certain goofiness in Joe that should keep a smile on your face for much of the movie. Spade plays the lead character well, allowing viewers to ride his roller coaster life along with him, yet he exhibits a sort of tenderness that gives a bit of dramatic relief. Additionally, the supporting cast is perfectly assembled to complement everything anti-Joe.
The movie will not be an Academy Award nominee and it is not meant to be. In fact, most of the reviews I’ve read about the movie are negative. But this movie is fun.
Adam Sandler, also of “Saturday Night Live” and feature film fame, is one of two executive directors, and this movie is reminiscent of some of Sandler’s slapstick antics in films such as “The Waterboy” and “Happy Gilmore.”
Joe’s motto is “Life’s a garden — dig it.” The less serious and not-easily-grossed-out contingent will dig this movie.
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