Sometimes, especially in the dog days of summer, you just
want to watch something carefree and a little bit silly. That’s why I opted for
a small indie called Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass. Believe
it or not, it sorta-kinda marries The Wizard of Oz to a modern-day sex
comedy. Somehow it pulls off the trick of combining wide-eyed innocence with
today’s wide-open sexual mores. Is it raunchy? Well, call it fairy-tale raunch.
We begin (of course) in Kansas, where the wide-eyed Gail
(once a prom queen, now a hairdresser) is on the brink of marrying her
long-time sweetheart, Tom. First they’re joking about the right—should the
occasion arise—to skirt their marriage vows if there’s a chance of shagging the
celebrity of their dreams. Then, suddenly, Gail catches Tom in flagrante
with Jennifer Aniston, who just happens to be passing through town. Despite
this fling, Tom remains determined to marry Gail; understandably, she’s not so
sure. At this moment of indecision, she’s invited by her best friend, a gay (of
course!) African-American named Otto, to fly out to the coast, where a major
hairdresser convention is going to take place. Gail’s personal goal: to even
the score with her fiancé by bedding her own celebrity crush, Jon Hamm.
Quicker than you can say “We’re off to see the Wizard,” they
land in SoCal, an Emerald City chock full of crooks and rascals. After a
celebrity sighting at the airport (Henry Winkler!) Gail discovers her suitcase
has accidentally been switched with one containing secret government documents.
Of course there are some bad guys (and one VERY bad gal) determined to get
these papers back. If blood is to be shed, so be it.
We follow Gail and Otto through Hollywood, where the not-too-bright
crooks seem unable to find them even when they’re spotted on a surveillance
video directly in front of the world-famous Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. Eventually
Gail’s merry crew expands to include an eager-beaver actors’ agent in training
and a would-be paparazzo desperate to capture Hamm’s image with his lens. These
new additions don’t exactly replicate L. Frank Baum’s friends-of-Dorothy, but
they’re almost equally goofy. This goes especially for a late addition to the
group: none other than snowy-haired John Slattery, who of course once
co-starred with Jon Hamm on Mad Men, and who in this film turns out to
be an aspiring martial artist. (Alas, the film misses out on the presence of Toto
. . . but Gail DOES sport snazzy red shoes.)
After much searching, and a near-disastrous encounter with
an unhinged celebrity whose name I won’t reveal, Jon Hamm’s current address is finally tracked
down. But that’s not the end of the road for Gail and her pals. They face down
a difficult challenge, and are nearly vanquished by—shall we say?—non-flying
monkeys. Ultimately, though, the new pals prove their merit, and Gail gets . .
. well, I don’t think I should spill any more beans. Except to say that the end
of the film is silly and charming and entirely appropriate.
None of this would be worth watching if there weren’t an
absolutely delightful “Dorothy” at the center of things. Zoe Deutsch (who made
a winsome Jean Seberg jabbering in French in last year’s Nouvelle Vague)
is now a charmingly innocent brunette for whom we can’t help rooting, no matter
the oddity of her quest. I enjoyed her companions too, though they lack the indelible
presence of Dorothy’s eecentric band. But be assured we make it back to Kansas.
After all, there’s no place like home.
No comments:
Post a Comment