By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 2 cats | 3 cats
Director: Mike Hansen
Starring: Mike Hansen | Raphael Sikic | Ryon Thomas
Year: 2023
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15234016/reference/
Brett says: “The genre western-comedy does not exactly have a long list of acclaimed representatives to its credit. In fact, the all-around rugged, image-conscious, hidden-emotions heroic quality of westerns usually means that attaching the word comedy to it is an indicator that such a film will be a type of parody or ineffective narrative simply set in the frontier, undermining most of the actual ‘western’ genre characteristics of the film. To its credit, ALL MEN ARE WICKED is a film that tries to keep up the western parameters, veering close the edge of yuk-yuk humor at times, yet not necessarily abandoning the substance of the namesake genre in the process.
“Much of the response to the film will center on how one feels about main character Catfish (Mike Hansen), so named for his ability to wriggle out of complicated situations. His witty banter with foes and accomplices alike are at the forefront of the comedy aspect of the film while still keeping the plot feeling very much like a western might. The tone is not altogether as hammy as one might cringe and expect, for the character delivers most of the fast-paced dialogue borderline gruff and close to a whisper, but again, the degree of believability might lead to varying reactions. The character feels very much put-upon at times, as if you can almost hear the director/writer–who, incidentally, is also the actor playing that lead character-saying to his friends, “Wouldn’t it be fun to play a cowboy who is kinda winging that whole schtick?” The noticeable accent–which is not exactly able to be pinpointed, but it’s clearly not a frontier tongue-does not do such a character any favors and somewhat distracts from any attempts to make this character part of the long legacy of memorable frontier personalities. But, to be fair, that might be the point/intent.
“Aside from the dialogue-heavy banter, there are a couple of new character types introduced that also expand and evolve the comedy aspect of the genre. One will have to ‘see, doggie, see’ firsthand in order to fully understand and appreciate this attempt at this authentic frontier world-building.
“Instead of just spamming the viewer with recognizable iconography from the western genre, it is acceptable to say it has adequate film language/syntax of a western as well. It is clear by the end that this film very much wants to be a western, which is more than many entries in this field can claim. 2 cats out of 5, on the brink of of 3
“Recommended and worth taking a chance on if you like your comedy genre-benders wry”