Directed by:
Katrina Holden Bronson
Starring:
Johnny Knoxville ………. Daltry Calhoun
Sophie Traub ………. June
Juliette Lewis ………. Flora
Elizabeth Banks ………. May
Kick Gurry ………. Frankie
David Koechner ………. Doyle Earl
Ken Jackson ………. Charlie
Matthew Sharp ………. Eugene
James Parks ………. Arlo
The Movie
When you think about it first time writer/directors more times than most will make a film they feel passionate about being made, usually being inspired by real life situations as a muse of their story or characters. Some times these movies can be excellent and show audiences that the director may have great things in his or her future. Then others make you question how on earth the films got greenlit. Daltry Calhoun is a mix of both but for the most part falls in to the latter category.
Things begin with Knoxvilles character Daltry being kicked out of his house for being a dead beat and leaves town deserting his girlfriend and daughter. Fast forward about fourteen years later and we see Daltry completely turned around as the owner of his own sod company and is known around town as “the king of sod”. We first see him celebrating the future opening of a golf coarse for the town that will be for the public and everyone in town is cheering him on about the news. Ever since he got things back on track he’s become a symbol around town and everyone believes in him, unbeknownst to them his business is crumbling before his very eyes.
He then sees May who came to town after seeing him on TV in one of his commercials and is there so that he can give a good life to their child. You see May has the fatal disease that so many other on screen women have, the one that is never named or described but is suppose to be taken with the upmost seriousness. She wants him to help raise their daughter June because she’s too talented for it to all go to waste and she needs someone to raise and take care of her. Now Daltry not only has to deal with getting his business back on track before going bankrupt, he needs to learn how to be a father.
Daltry Calhoun tries to do a bit of a role reversal from the standard “estrange father needs to pull himself together” type film by looking through the child eyes. But Sophie Traub who plays the kid the movie revolves around doesn’t quite seem comfortable with the role she plays making it difficult to be pulled in to the story. Bronson’s characters seem like they were written to be humorous, in a sense that they take themselves not too seriously and purposely act the way they do, but instead of humorous they instead play out as annoying and unoriginal. Perhaps Daltry Calhoun is just one of those movies where on paper it seems like a great idea but when moved forward to actually being made shows that it might have been better left as maybe a novel.
I’m not sure what went wrong with getting the movie to a final stage but what’s shown here can’t be what was intended. There seems to be an identity crisis going on with the plot as it continuously goes back and forth between being a comedy or a drama, a father daughter story or a coming of age tale. It just attempts to appease as many viewers as it possibly can leaving everyone watching unsatisfied. Scenes cut from one place to another abruptly, sub plots seem to have absolutely no purpose to the big picture and characters will randomly switch emotions (and characteristics) at the tip of a hat as if they’re all bipolar. No matter how many touching moments the movie has, all that stuff combined make it almost intolerable to watch.
Last year showed quite a few Johnny Knoxville films and it’s a real shame that this, the one film he really shows what he’s capable of will be over looked by that god awful Dukes of Hazzard movie. Here he manages to balance his humor with some honest acting playing a father figure that’s believable and entertaining to watch. Too bad he actually does something of note in a movie he is rarely used in, but when he is used though it’s some first-rate work on his part.
Writer/director Katrina Bronson has a knack for writing, there’s not a doubt in my mind about that, it just seems like she chose the wrong style for her first major film. With a southern background it should have made for some great character interaction but for some reason the actors seem to take the script a little too serious. Where it’s never really clear what should or shouldn’t be funny leaving some things unintentionally funny while leaving actual jokes unrecognized. Her camera work shows she has talent and in future endeavors should do well for herself but perhaps then she’ll try for something a little more relatable and that stays on track with the story it’s telling.
While the promotion may lead you to believe that Quentin Tarantino is a major player in the movie due to his executive producer title there are no instances in the movie that are in his league as a writer or filmmaker. There is however some choice soundtrack selections that seem to go along with his style but he wasn’t a part of the selection, they were all Bronson’s. The only reason this movie got made is because Tarantino saw something in her writing and from time to time its easy to see why he feels that way. So don’t let the marketing ploy make you believe this is going to be filled with pop culture references or any other signature Tarantino techniques, he’s only footing the bill it seems.
Score: 3/10
The Video
(Presented in 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen)
Some scenes (specifically the start of the movie) are given a washed out look which is used as a way to differentiate the film from flashbacks. But besides that the film looks better than I would have expected for such a low budget film that received very little attention.
The Audio
(English Dolby Digital 5.1)
Being the character film it is the movie focuses most of its audio on the front speakers but when the films wonderful soundtrack starts the rear speakers and sub get some use. As would be expected with a new film the dialogue comes out clear and the same with music used in the movie.
The Extras
Feature Length Commentary – Writer/Director Katrina Holden Bronson, Producer Danielle Renfrew and Executive Producer Quentin Tarantino keep the track moving at a steady pace leaving very few dead spots. Tarantino for the most part supplies questions to the two women acting in some ways as a host to keep thing rolling and make them feel comfortable. It’s a nice track to listen to and you can hear how much love went in to the movie in the way they all talk about it.
Deleted Scenes (7:48) – Five scenes in all and the commentary track basically says they were all cut out for the flow of the film and they caused riffs in the story. it’s reasonably clear why most were cut out, like some may have given away too much story while others serve little to the movie and were meant for comedic purposes.
Hollywood Comes To Tennessee: The Making Of Daltry Calhoun (11:47) – Is a regular “Making-of” that doesn’t have too much gloss making it seem a little less manufactured but it really is in most ways just like every other studio made featurette. The cast and crew glow over the story and their co-workers which happens in all of these “making-of” pieces. What makes it slightly different is that it focuses a bit more on the scenery and locations used to shot the movie in Tennessee.
The B Team (3:45) – When production started Juliette Lewis, David Koechner, and Kick Gurry arrived a few days after principle photography started and while they weren’t there for only 2 or 3 days there were already on set stories and the three felt like the “B Team” which they affectionately named themselves. It’s a cute little featurette that doesn’t take itself serious which makes it even funnier.
Blooper Reel (7:30) – Just like every other Blooper Reel ever added to a DVD this is actors flubbing lines and giggling on camera. If you’ve seen one of these you’ve seen them all.
A Trailer for the film and a Music Video for Blue Mother Tupelo’s rendition of “Put Your Head On My Shoulder” are the last of the special features.
Score: 4/10
