Cold Dog Soup

"SAY 'WHAT' ONE MORE TIME !" I laughed. A Lot. B stature is no put down. There's just something about the main guy though. Was he ever Norman Bates ? In the right movie he could be knockout. Maybe it's just the editing. The girl init = could be in one of Prince's girl groups in a re-remake = no ??

It's sick, it's different, and it's weird enough to watch just for interest of what's going to happen to next. (SPOILER HERE!) Who can resist a movie where a girl's hand get's eaten by a machine, (That's SPOILER 1, HERE'S NUMBER 2) Or a dog that drinks Margaritas, and continually sniffs at Frank Whaley's, well you'll find out. And the performances are pretty good, The two leads Randy Quaid or James Belushi, I always forget who it is (pretty sure it's Quaid), is great as the psycho driver who tries to lighten up poor Mike (Frank Whaley) who plays the chararctor in a great, "It's not my fault, don't look at me" sense. Though the women who played Sarah Hughes I don't think was very good as the sultry woman.

I saw this movie in the nineties when it came out. I was in my early twenties and I liked it instantly. Engaging and with a deceptively simple plot. Funny and dramatic. The movie takes place over one night of hilarious adventure. The main character tries to dispose of his girlfriend's dead dog by burying it, but a deranged (?) taxi driver (Played to perfection by Randy Quaid) convinces him that there are other ways one can benefit from the body of a dead dog, so it starts. I loved this movie and still do. It has funny dialogue and actions but has a lot of symbolic meanings that I personally connected with. The relationship between the hero and his girlfriend and the struggle we see the guy goes through (given his strong morals and sense of decency) either with his girlfriend or the taxi driver. The taxi driver represent several things in his life but I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it. If you can find it. See it. Cheers.

Randy Quaid (National Lampoon's Cousin Eddie from 1986's XMas Vacation) steals this absurd, obscure (unless you get IFC) and priceless indie as the out-of-your-nightmare cab driver, Jack Cloud. Frank, the innocent, hooks up with the one-gloved wonder,Christine, for what seems on the surface to be an innocent date. Keep your eyes and ears open as the date falls apart faster than a 2 week floater in the Ohio River! Christine's dog, Jasper, chokes on an anchovy-stuffed olive and plays the death scene to the hilt. Then the fun begins! Madame Chang (Nancy Kwan) eloquently clues us in to the meaning of the movie title; but as all the performances defy description, just watch it and enjoy the ride! Quaid's "Time Flies" monologue is forever quotable - The scripting is beautiful, location shots just too much fun - well, you can watch this again and again and never catch all the detail. Kudos to Alan Metter, Thomas Pope and the originator - Stephen Dobyns for a fab book from which to begin.

It's interesting that some people here speculated that the ratings on this movie were the subject of a "hit job," because the history of the movie is tragic. Here's how it was explained in BILLBOARD in 2001: A judge threw out George Harrison's bid to keep his former business manager and partner Denis O' Brien from declaring bankruptcy. Harrison had just had lung cancer surgery and his lawyer told a judge in St. Louis he was too ill to testify. The judge didn't buy it. Of course, Harrison later died from lung cancer, but at the time, the judge said that his failure to appear was "obviously willful." Harrison had already won an 11 million dollar judgment against O'Brien. Of course, declaring bankruptcy is a common thing - to avoid paying such judgments. Losses on the film "Cold Dog Soup" prompted Harrison to sue O'Brien.

Cold Dog Soup is the epitome of an indie film: adventurous, low (low!) budget, and well-acted. At least, it was the epitome in 1990, before indie became "Indie" and conceited self-congratulatory productions became the norm. The crucial element to the films success is the acting of its principals and supporters; Frank Whalley and Randy Quaid play off each other magnificently, and the various savoury and unsavoury characters who make an appearance offer multi-toned performances with very little screen time to spare. Bottom line: this movie will be enjoyed by those who love great dialogue, great acting, and a twisted sense of humour.

Although it is sick, different, and just twisted enough to catch peoples attention, I'm mad it's not on DVD. It is one of my favorite movies, probably #6 out of my top ten. My favorite exchanges were between Randy Quaid Frank Whaley like "If money is the root of all evil, then is time the root of all evil? If time stops for no man, who does the root of all evil stop for?" I rated it 9, showing how much I like this movie. It is probably the second funniest movie I've ever seen! I would gladly pay for this on PPV and on DVD and loved it. I just cannot get across to you how much I love this movie...But I'll try because I need to fill two more lines. I would like to own it, so PUT IT ON DVD!!!!