It would hardly seem possible that a movie called "Good for Nothing" could be inspiring, but for anyone trying to pursue a dream, this film provides a road map.
Perhaps not as emotionally charges as a "Rocky" movie, the low-budget comedy is about fighting for a vision. It sprinkles in enough twisted humor, romance, and real life experiences to drag viewers cheerfully along.
Scott Jason stars as Danny, a struggling young actor looking for a break in Hollywood. With his life in shambles Danny is pressured by his family and girlfriend to get a real job.
With no money to pay rent or eat Danny struggles to make his dream a reality. Jason, who co-wrote and stars in "Good for Nothing" had plenty of background information to draw from.
In real life, he lived his characters part - even working as a valet. Unable to get a break, Jason decided to finance a film and cast himself in the lead.
The effort pays off handsomely. Jason and co-writer Mark Gutmann display obvious comedic talent. Gutmann also produced, directed, and edited the film. And David Holmes steals the show as Danny's older brother Derek. He is a marvelous as the meddling, off-centered, and definitely deranged thorn in Danny's side. The character is simply twisted and bizarre.
An example of this is when someone parks their car to close to the house Derek and Danny live in. Extremely paranoid, Derek closes the kitchen blinds and peers out the window.
"Yeah you better take off fagot," Derek says out loud to himself. "Park your peace of crap in front of my house. This is my house baby. My house."
In order to prevent getting booted out of the home, owned by his mother, Derek threatens to run around the house naked and screaming to scare off potential buyers.
The movie script is littered with funny dialog like this. Still, expectations for the movie should not be too high because it is what it is - a beginning. The fact that "Good for Nothing" was even completed is a small miracle.
The original Director of Photography bolted weeks before production. Then the sound mixer left days prior to the shoot. With limited funding these are just some of the pitfalls the crew overcame.
For this is not a well polished, slick piece of work. And that is part of its charm. There are obvious mistakes in the film. But it is a solid stab at building a career in the movie industry. That effort alone is something to be embraced and is more then enough reason to plop down some dough at the theater.
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