Run Ronnie Run!, 2002 - DVD

My first experience with Cross and Odenkirk was with Mr. Show... and I never caught any of the episodes on HBO. Ok, I caught maybe one episode... but I missed the boat by a couple of years, and was lucky enough when HBO released the three seasons of Mr. Show on DVD.

I'm a huge fan of their work, and was excited to hear (about a year ago) that they'd come up with a feature dealing with Ronnie Dobbs. Ok, so, at the time, I didn't know who the hell Ronnie Dobbs was, but I knew that Cross and Odenkirk were two talented guys. So, hell, I was excited to see a feature film by them. And, of course, after watching the Mr. Show episodes (one or two featuring Ronnie Dobbs), I was looking forward to Run Ronnie Run!

Earlier this year (or at the end of last year), I had been visiting the Bob and David website, and came across a letter that the two had written, discussing the fate of the film.

It seemed that both Cross and Odenkirk weren't too pleased with the way the film had come out, and weren't allowed to create a cut of the film that was to both of their likings. That, in and of itself was a shame, because you don't want the creators disappointed in their own project. Although, their honesty was refreshing, to be honest. No, honestly.

It's a shame when creators are taken away from the final product by the people who supplied the money (or the distribution rights, or what-have-you), because they think they know best. Or, it becomes a power play, and they keep the final say so, just because... you know. It's sad. You've got a group of people passionate about making a feature film, with a relatively low budget, and a list of talent that are excited about the project, and respect its creators. And then the power people blow it for everyone.

All of the writers attached to this film have worked on episodes of Mr. Show. So, we know they all know their comedy. My overall impression with Run Ronnie Run! is that it's for fans of the show. There are some pretty hysterical moments, but probably the biggest problem is that they have to set up a lot of the scenes, and the characters, so there are lulls in the comedy. It's hard to keep a consistent level of humor, when you're trying to develop characters... especially when you're showing it to an audience who might not have seen any of their Mr. Show work.

The first half of the film... setting up the premise and the characters... even though it's a little slow, the second half of the film makes up for it. There's a much more sense of ease in the second half, and the scenes flow easier. I think they were able to concentrate on more random comedy in the second half.

Much of the cast has been seen in Mr. Show, and I think that it's this sort of family atmosphere that makes the movie more entertaining to watch. I've seen some of the Mr. Show episodes more than once, and it was good to see Tom Kenny, Jill Talley, Becky Thyre, Jack Black, Scott Adsit, Sarah Silverman, Paul F. Tompkins and the many other actors who made the show great.

The other thing that added an interesting pace to the film were all the cameos. Dave Foley, Jeff Goldblum, Kathy Griffin, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Andy Richter, John and Rebecca Stamos, Garry Shandling, Ben Stiller, and Scott Thompson. It's obvious that the actors and actresses in the comedy community has some respect for each other.

It's no wonder that Troy Miller was hired to direct this film. He's got a very impressive credit list, including being director/producer of Mr. Show episodes. He's worked on a number of comedy shows, including The Ben Stiller Show (with Odenkirk starring in that show), Pee-Wee's Playhouse, Tenacious D, along with some stand-up shows, including George Carlin and Robin Williams. He's directed MTV Movie Awards shows, numerous television sitcoms, and a number of features, including Jack Frost, and this years Dumb and Dumberer, which he wrote, directed and produced.

With Miller's experience working with the cast and writers, the movie is a solid work. I can see where Cross and Odenkirk weren't pleased with the amount of comedy in the film, but I still say that there are more positive elements in the film than there are negative. It's possible that Cross and Odenkirk are a little too close to the project, and their overall vision was ruined because of their lack of final involvement... but I still enjoyed the film.