Krippendorf's Tribe

Starring: Richard Dreyfuss, Jenna Elfman, Natasha Lyonne, Gregory Smith, Carl Michael Linder, Lily Tomlin, Stephen Root, Doris Belack, Phil Leeds, Mila Kunis
Directed by: Todd Holland
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy
1998

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: An anthropologist (Richard Dreyfuss) makes up a tribe to cover the fact that he did no research and squandered the grant money. Now he must go to increasingly extreme lengths to keep his lie a secret.

Review:

Tim: I really love Richard Dreyfuss. So, even though this movie looked bad, it's been a long time since I saw Dreyfuss in a movie and I felt some excitement. That dried up within the first 10 minutes. I'm still baffled how the talent involved in this film could have assembled to create such an abysmal film. Apparently this was adapted from a book, which further befuddles me. The story seems so awful, so unfunny, so ludicrous. How could someone read this in a book and think it would make a good movie? This is a painfully unfunny film.

I know this film came out in 1998, which is 20 years ago as I write this review. I understand that the world is different now, but 20 years ago wasn't THAT long ago. It was painful to watch a bunch of white people appropriate a New Guinea tribe's culture like this. Nevermind the use of blackface by multiple characters (I don't mean to dismiss it, but it's so offensive and awful I can't go into detail). Most of the jokes in this film are racial in nature. I cringed continuously throughout this film. I'm sure the world was slightly more forgiving in 1998, but it's not like this movie was made in the 1950s. The whole story is completely inappropriate and I fail to believe no one involved had a single qualm or second guess about whether this movie should have been made. And, besides the blatant racial issues, none of the jokes are even funny. The whole film lampoons another culture and isn't even able to come up with a funny joke while doing it. That's pouring gasoline on an already terrible fire.

While most of the movie is hard to stomach because of this, I tried to look at it with slightly more forgiving eyes. I mean, the movie was made in the late 1990s and I don't remember hearing any major outcries. So, while it's awful, I guess it was just more socially acceptable back then. That doesn't excuse the film for being so boring and dull. It doesn't excuse the film for being completely illogical. This movie has so many flaws beyond the racial aspect.

Now, I started this by saying I really love Richard Dreyfuss. He has his moments in this film, but they are few and far between. He's a shockingly unlikable character and we're not given a single compelling reason to care about him. He lost his wife, which is tragic. But, that doesn't excuse any of his behavior in this film. It's bad enough what he does- he's morally unconscionable in every sense of the word. Even worse, he drags his children into this illegal, immoral behavior. And, (SPOILER ALERT), it's all okay in the end. They don't pay for their behavior, they actually benefit from it. It was stunningly bad. Dreyfuss had moments, but it's not a great character and his performance never crosses over that bridge. I liked the energy Jenna Elfman brought, but again- her character was awful and her performance doesn't convince us to care about her anyway. Natasha Lyonne was fine. Lily Tomlin was so over-the-top, I cringed and rolled my eyes anytime she was on screen. I can't believe the lack of restraint in her awful performance. I kind of feel bad for Mila Kunis, who has a worthless bit part yet is guilty by association for being in this movie.

Krippendorf's Tribe is a terrible film. It was bad when it was first released and it's only gotten worse with time. Great actors make missteps and this was a major one for Dreyfuss. No one should watch this movie for any reason, ever.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 4.5



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