Written by David Cross, Bob Odenkirk, Scott Aukerman, BJ Porter and Brian Posehn
Rated R for strong language, sexual content and crude humor
This was an unexpected gem. "Run Ronnie Run" is the first (but hopefully not the last) feature from the cast and crew of "Mr. Show", a 90's HBO sketch comedy series. I am a huge fan of "Mr. Show". I feel it's the best sketch comedy since "Monty Python's Flying Circus". The people involved in Mr. Show have all gone on to do different projects. I had doubts about a movie project made after the show had left the air. The "Dead Like Me" reunion movie was so bad it tainted the rest of the series for me. Would we be left with a badly-written script performed robotically by the few cast members desperate enough to even be involved in such a project? (See "Dead Like Me - Life After Death") Happily, Bob and David pick up their comic merriment right where Mr. Show left off. This film is way better than it has any right to be. It is completely unfathomable to me that any sane fan of "Mr. Show" would not like "Run Ronnie Run".
The story centers around one of my favorite characters from "Mr. Show" : Ronnie Dobbs. Dobbs appeared in several episodes in the early seasons of Mr. Show. His most famous sketch is the one in which he achieves fame by being repeatedly featured on a COPS-style police show for drunk and disorderly behavior. A Hollywood agent finds Ronnie and convinces him to make a musical of his life story. One of the funniest moments in the series is Ronnie's solo for the musical, entitled "How High the Mountain" (aka "Y'all Are Brutalizing Me").
"Run Ronnie Run" takes the basic premise of this sketch and stretches it out to nearly an hour and a half, using non-stop comic antics to fill in the blanks. Not only do all of the original cast members of the show make appearances, so do dozens of celebrities and comedians. Here's a list of the people I recognized (there are probably many I didn't):
Patton Oswalt (Comedian), Dave Foley (Comedian, "Kids in the Hall"), Andy Richter (Comedian), Sarah Silverman (Comedian, "The Sarah Silverman Program"), Trey Parker and Matt Stone (Comedians, creators of "South Park"), Ben Stiller (Comedian, "Zoolander"), John and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos (actors), Scott Thompson (Comedian, "Kids in the Hall"), Tom Kenny (Comedian, voice of Spongebob Squarepants), Mandy Patinkin (actor, Inigo Montoya from "The Princess Bride"), Mary Lynn Rajskub (actress, "24"), Jack Black (Comedian, actor, musician) and Jeff Goldblum (actor, "Jurassic Park", "The Fly").
While many of these cameos are only for a few minutes of screen time each, some of the best moments in the film involve these guest stars. Without a doubt, the most poignant moment for me was the operatic solo of "How High the Mountain" sung by Mandy Patinkin (Inigo Montoya of "Princess Bride", Rube of "Dead Like Me"), who had been chosen to play Ronnie in the Broadway musical based on Ronnie's life story. You kind of have to know who Mandy Patinkin is to fully appreciate this moment, but people who are new to his work will probably laugh anyway. Fans of "Princess Bride" and "Dead Like Me" will get to see a whole new side of Mandy. If your curious what that means, watch the movie.
My second-favorite moment involved openly gay Kid in the Hall Scott Thompson being revealed as a secret agent in an international gay conspiracy. Thompson has been tragically absent from the mainstream comic scene since "Kids in the Hall" went off the air. It was good to see Scott. I hope he continues to guest star in comedy projects until he's 100. You might have to be an avid fan of the "Kids in the Hall" Canadian sketch comedy series to be as excited to see Dave Foley and Scott Thompson as I was. Both are amazing comedians in their own right, and seeing them working collaboratively with Mr. Show (the first "Kids..."/"Mr. Show" crossover since Dave Foley guest starred on the show during it's original run) warmed my heart.
The music of "Run Ronnie Run" is fantastic in general. It features several butt-metal classics that bring you right into the world of Ronnie Dobbs. One of my favorite soundtrack choices was "Every Rose Has it's Thorns" by Poison. In addition to the good use of classics from Poison, Ted Nugent, Foghat, The Atlanta Rhythm Section, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Judas Preist, but there are several uncommonly good original compositions. These include "Ronnie's Song", "The Greatest Love in History", "I Loathe L.A.", and "Ass-Kickin' Fat Kid".
I gave "Run Ronnie Run" a 10/10. I hesitated to give this film the highest rating, but I couldn't seem to talk myself down from it. I came into this movie with relatively low expectations, and it just blew me away. People unfamiliar with "Mr. Show" may have a different experience with this film than I did, but that just means that they need to watch "Mr. Show" and catch up with the comedy. "Run Ronnie Run" is the kind of movie that causes you to start spontaneously laughing in public places, making people think you're crazy, just because you remembered a joke or an image from the film. There's so much more to say about this film, but rather than spoil the jokes for you in advance, I'll just strongly encourage you to check it out yourself. You won't be sorry!
I also recommend:
"Run Ronnie Run" takes the basic premise of this sketch and stretches it out to nearly an hour and a half, using non-stop comic antics to fill in the blanks. Not only do all of the original cast members of the show make appearances, so do dozens of celebrities and comedians. Here's a list of the people I recognized (there are probably many I didn't):
Patton Oswalt (Comedian), Dave Foley (Comedian, "Kids in the Hall"), Andy Richter (Comedian), Sarah Silverman (Comedian, "The Sarah Silverman Program"), Trey Parker and Matt Stone (Comedians, creators of "South Park"), Ben Stiller (Comedian, "Zoolander"), John and Rebecca Romijn-Stamos (actors), Scott Thompson (Comedian, "Kids in the Hall"), Tom Kenny (Comedian, voice of Spongebob Squarepants), Mandy Patinkin (actor, Inigo Montoya from "The Princess Bride"), Mary Lynn Rajskub (actress, "24"), Jack Black (Comedian, actor, musician) and Jeff Goldblum (actor, "Jurassic Park", "The Fly").
While many of these cameos are only for a few minutes of screen time each, some of the best moments in the film involve these guest stars. Without a doubt, the most poignant moment for me was the operatic solo of "How High the Mountain" sung by Mandy Patinkin (Inigo Montoya of "Princess Bride", Rube of "Dead Like Me"), who had been chosen to play Ronnie in the Broadway musical based on Ronnie's life story. You kind of have to know who Mandy Patinkin is to fully appreciate this moment, but people who are new to his work will probably laugh anyway. Fans of "Princess Bride" and "Dead Like Me" will get to see a whole new side of Mandy. If your curious what that means, watch the movie.
My second-favorite moment involved openly gay Kid in the Hall Scott Thompson being revealed as a secret agent in an international gay conspiracy. Thompson has been tragically absent from the mainstream comic scene since "Kids in the Hall" went off the air. It was good to see Scott. I hope he continues to guest star in comedy projects until he's 100. You might have to be an avid fan of the "Kids in the Hall" Canadian sketch comedy series to be as excited to see Dave Foley and Scott Thompson as I was. Both are amazing comedians in their own right, and seeing them working collaboratively with Mr. Show (the first "Kids..."/"Mr. Show" crossover since Dave Foley guest starred on the show during it's original run) warmed my heart.The music of "Run Ronnie Run" is fantastic in general. It features several butt-metal classics that bring you right into the world of Ronnie Dobbs. One of my favorite soundtrack choices was "Every Rose Has it's Thorns" by Poison. In addition to the good use of classics from Poison, Ted Nugent, Foghat, The Atlanta Rhythm Section, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Judas Preist, but there are several uncommonly good original compositions. These include "Ronnie's Song", "The Greatest Love in History", "I Loathe L.A.", and "Ass-Kickin' Fat Kid".
I gave "Run Ronnie Run" a 10/10. I hesitated to give this film the highest rating, but I couldn't seem to talk myself down from it. I came into this movie with relatively low expectations, and it just blew me away. People unfamiliar with "Mr. Show" may have a different experience with this film than I did, but that just means that they need to watch "Mr. Show" and catch up with the comedy. "Run Ronnie Run" is the kind of movie that causes you to start spontaneously laughing in public places, making people think you're crazy, just because you remembered a joke or an image from the film. There's so much more to say about this film, but rather than spoil the jokes for you in advance, I'll just strongly encourage you to check it out yourself. You won't be sorry!
I also recommend:
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