Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)
How many young minds did Chuck Barris
really warp? The number must be huge. Barris, a raconteur
of television, created numerous titillating game shows
in the late 60's and early 70's which were enormously
successful in riding the crest of the sexual revolution
into American's homes. Indeed, he may very well be
responsible for the epitaph of "Boob Tube" being assigned
to the magic box.
I remember as a child not even being
allowed to watch "The Newlywed Game." Left unsupervised
as an adolescent teen, of course, I reveled in the
pure naughtiness of the questions and answers when
I finally got to sneak peeks at the show.
And then in the late 70's came "The
Gong Show!" A masterpiece of the talent show in perverse
reverse, "The Gong Show" was a messy, iconoclastic,
freaky train-wreck on daily TV. Barris became even
more of a pop star as its host. Seemingly all smiles
in the role, the popularity didn't set well with the
quiet and shy Barris or "Chuckie Baby" as he became
known to his legion of fans.
I myself simply loved "The Gong
Show." Its irreverent mix of bad talent, cheesy comics,
goofy celebrities and outrageous moments kept my attention
more than anything else on TV, more even than Kate
Jackson or Kristy McNichol. (Lance Kerwin may be another
story). My favorite part of the show, without a doubt,
was the appearance of Gene Gene the Dancing Machine.
A rotund black man dressed in driving cap and jogging
suit, Gene Gene always shuffled rhythmically onto
the stage as the same music began and the crowd would
go wild in a seeming unrehearsed orgy of dancing and
throwing of hands into the air. The music that accompanied
Gene and signaled his arrival became an anthem of
unadulterated joy to those of us who loved him.
Gene Gene appears briefly in "Confessions
of a Dangerous Mind" as does Jim Lange (host of the
"Dating Game"), Jaye P. Morgan (from the "Gong Show"
panel), and Dick Clark, in a modern day interview
where Barris is discussed, giving the film the historical
context it deserves. Gene Gene now has artificial
legs with no explanation given as to what happened
to him. Barris, as he is today, appears at the end
of the film. Grey-haired and bespectacled, Barris
still seems as unassuming and as shy as he ever did.
His recent talk-show appearances prove this to be
so.
By now, the cult memoir on which
this film is based is legendary. But just in case
you've been holed up in a cave, or stuck on CNN watching
the news about wars and space shuttle crashes, here
goes: Barris claims, in his "unofficial autobiography"
which bares the same name as this movie, that he was
a CIA operative. He claims that his "cover" as a TV
producer/chaperone of winning "Dating Game" couples
allowed him to travel to foreign lands and kill for
the CIA.
Neophyte director George Clooney,
who gives himself a plum role in this film, uses the
dichotomy of Barris' claim to give the film a really
unique and cool look. The "reality" based moments,
where Barris works in TV and attempts to have a relationship
with Drew Barrymore's Penny, are as authentic and
realistic as any period piece ever made. (Think "What's
Love Got to do with It.") The colors pop with a mod
60's and crass 70's color palette. Meanwhile, the
espionage sequences are almost bereft of color; cold,
black and grey, grainy film moments that evoke the
cinematic thrillers to which they pay homage.
Everything about "Confessions of
a Dangerous Mind" is right on target. Clooney's direction
is cool and perfectly paced. Charlie Kaufman's script
is witty, savage yet tender. The props, sets and costumes
are perfect in their verisimilitude. But nothing is
as right-on-target as Sam Rockwell's Barris. Rockwell
nails it. If we have any doubt at all about his performance
(and we don't), they are waylaid when "The Gong Show"
segments come around. Our most familiar images of
Barris as host are recreated with an amazingly intricate
perfection. Rockwell is, however, more than mere mimic
and he brings real depth and clarity to Barris. He
makes all that happens here seem totally believable
and real.
Rockwell is not only helped by Clooney's
direction and Kaufman's script, but, of course, by
his amazing co-stars. Clooney is simply perfect as
the FBI agent who recruits him into the agency. Barrymore
is the most likeable 'ho to grace the screen since
Julia Roberts in "Pretty Woman" and Julia Roberts,
meanwhile, proves that "Rocky and Bullwinkle" would
have been a completely different movie if Rene Russo
had never been born and she had gotten the role of
Natasha. Folks like Matt Damon and Brad Pitt pop up
for an occasional inside joke. And the tertiary cast,
including Rutger Hauer and many seeming unknowns,
is quite good. Everything just works here.
"Confessions of a Dangerous Mind"
works best because it could only come from the mind
of Chuck Barris. Guessing whether or not this is based
on reality is surely one of the greatest cinematic,
pop-culture parlor games to be played in 2003. Let's
face it, chances are that his story is total fabrication.
Then again, if it were true, the only way Barris would
still be alive is that his fame and public persona
leads us to believe that he's just full of shit. And
wouldn't that be the perfect "profile" for a government
assassin? Someone who nobody believes anyway... Either
way, it makes a helluva good movie.
Notes:
Rockwell spent several weeks with
Barris preparing for the role.
David Fincher and Bryan Singer were
both considered for direction. A plethora of stars
wanted the role of Barris at various times including
Mike Meyers, Ben Stiller and Johnny Depp.
The clip from the "Newlywed Game"
where Bob Eubanks asks "What's the weirdest place
you've ever made whoopie?" is a real clip that was
censored in the original airing of the show and then
disappeared for several years. It was kind of considered
an urban myth that it had even occurred for several
years.
Barris' other TV series include
"The Game Game," "The Rah Rah Show," "Operation Entertainment,"
"The New Treasure Hunt," "The $1.98 Beauty Pageant,"
and "Three's a Crowd."
Viewed in Austin in February 2003.
