20 February 2013 | t_atzmueller

7 | An American parable and an excellent study of America's underbelly

For many people who know the United States only through cinema, tabloid celebrity-news and TV, the US is the land of the rich and the beautiful. For those people, the likes of Tom Cruise, George Clooney and Angelina Jolie, in other words, actors with big, polished grins and empty eyes are the faces of America. And Hollywood is its capital city.



Well, "Gummo" isn't about that America; "Gummo" is the America of the poor, uneducated and the degenerated descendents of the dregs from around the world. These aren't the (supposedly) proud and noble people who came to America on board the Mayflower, but rather those that travelled in the ships hull; those who eventually ended up in some dreary trailer camp and hamlet somewhere in the Midwest, simply because they weren't wanted anywhere else.



"The prophet has no honor in his own country", goes an old saying, which would explain the harsh criticism that director Harmony Korine has received, especially by American critics and reviewers. Too close to home and too harsh a reality, but undeniably a reality that Korine is more than familiar with. Korine descends from a similar environment and I dare say that it took courage to explore such an uncomfortable background.



The closest I can compare "Gummo" to is Werner Herzog's "Stroszek"; not only are the filming techniques very similar (whether Korine is a Herzog-fan I do not know, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least), blending together professionals, amateur- and non-actors seamlessly, but both films have a similar nihilist air, telling stories that are free of redemption, yet captivate the viewer's attention like a travelling freak-show or the birth of a two-headed cow.



One of the main reasons that I was watching "Gummo" in the first place, before even realizing what kind of film it was, was the presence of actor Jacob Reynolds. I had seen Reynolds in "The Road to Wellville", were he has a small but impressive scene as Dr. Kellogg's (Anthony Hopkins) adopted son. Apart from being an excellent actor, Reynolds is ugly. His ugliness, the over-sized head, bird-like features and asymmetric features, glues itself to the eye of the beholder; one could watch him for hours, giving new meaning to the term "so ugly that he's back to beautiful again". A shame that the young actor hasn't been starring in more films and bigger roles, but, like I already said, the industry relies more on pretty and lifeless actors.



Well, this definitely isn't a "pretty picture" – if you want "pretty" or "artificial", I recommend films with above mentioned ladies and gentlemen – and it most likely will not make you feel better if you happened to have a bad day. But it's authentic, and that's not exactly common these days. A movie one either loves or loves to hate.