Shakes the Clown

This is one of my all-time favorite movies. As shallow as it appears on the surface, this film delivers with some subtle laughs. As far as casting goes, this is the only movie in which I liked Chris Elliot. The character of Binky cracks me up every time I watch the film. His absolute self absorption and megalomania lead to some very "quoteable" lines and terrific cinematic moments. Also, the fact that Robin Williams' name doesn't appear in the credits makes me smile. In the credits, Mime Jerry is played by "Marty Fromage" making me wonder if, at seeing the final product, he refused to have his name attached to it. Or, if Mr. Williams is willing to play jokes with his very name when he doesn't have a great stake in the success of a film. I consider this film a masterpiece of dark comedy, and it has made me eternally loyal to Bobcat Goldthwait. I only hope he runs for President someday.

My goodness I had no idea that Florence Henderson could be so hot..... Her cameo was worth the price of admission..... I wish she would have had a longer role.... She was GREAT!!!

I was amazed to see this movie getting ranked just above a five. There's never been a movie like it. It manages to be funny and confront alcoholism at the same time, something you won't see in say, 28 Days. Instead of trying to be serious, this movie is surreal, and in being surreal, it manages to give you an accurate portrayal of the disease of addiction, and also a very funny movie about clowns who drink, fight, and wear their clown suits all the time.

This rare gem is an example of a funny, funny man (Bobcat Goldthwait) given free reign over the creation of a comedy gem. Though this film may not exemplify any of the tired old Hollywood "formulas" for what makes a profitable comedy, it nonetheless succeeds wonderfully. Shakes The Clown is quirky, kinky, edgy and hilarious. It features great comic performances by many such under rated comic talents as Bruce Baum and Tom Kenny. Conversely, in the tradition of the inspired casting of Leslie Neilsen in Airplane, Goldthwait places in hilariously improbable comic situations traditional "straight" actors, such as Florence Henderson in the role of a Clown-dating bar floozy. I won't say that this film exemplifies a category, because I feel that it defines one. A true original, one of a kind, Shakes The Clown should not be missed.

This movie was written, stars, and was directed by BCG. It is dark, there are drugs, alcohol, and inner demons. But all this is dealt with and lived by people who live 24/7 as clowns and mimes. They have clown bars etc. BCG two other semi well known movies are worlds greatest dad ( robin Williams (plays a mime here)) and God bless america (bill Murray's brother (plays a milkman here)). Those 2 movies are very dark comedies, and this is as well. I think a lot of people didnt get that because of the silly clown premise. It's dark, it's over the top, it's silly, a little raunchy,I think it's great overall. It needs a little 7 star love from others. P s. See spongebob square pants (tom kenny) as a coked out psycho disco clown in this movie as well.

The movie poster when I saw "Shakes" in the theatre touted it as the "Citizen Kane of Alcoholic Clown Movies," clearly a better analogy than the "Gone with the Wind" one touted here. This is one strange fantasy where clowns hang out in their own bars watching clown shows on TV while tossing back shots. The bars are segregated by clown type, with bars for rodeo clowns and bars for party clowns with no mixing tolerated. Robin Williams' bit part as a mime instructor is some of his best work every, enhanced (as all Robins work should be) by it's brevity. Great work, Bobcat! (The kids in the sprinkler scene is great, a lovingly filmed, uncharacteristicly joyful moment in this very, very dark comedy.) Rumor has it that clown groups picketed theatres when this movie was released, claiming that it was defamatory to clowns.