The Naked Man (1998)

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Good but not great movie bears a lot of the hallmarks of a Coen Bros movie, particularly in the movie's tone which is semi comedic, semi serious. I can't really explain it, but the film really moves and feels like a Coen Bros film...but without the luster or shiny glossy veneer that the Coen Bros usually put on their films--No Country For Old Men aside. Michael Rappaport's character even seems to be right on the same wavelength as other leading characters in several of the brothers other films such as Tim Robbins in The Hudsucker Proxy or Brad Pitt's in Burn After Reading. All three kind of share this kind of dimly, upbeat world view that can't be shaken despite all the crap that keeps getting thrown at them by everyone around them....that is until they're completely shaken and their spirits completely crushed only to be reborn anew, which also happened to be the character arcs of the main characters in both The Hudsucker Proxy and Burn After Reading so this all tracks. In re-watching this movie tonight for the first time in a good decade plus, the real chief flaw in it is how underwritten, or i guess underwhelming Michael Jeter's villain is here. My memory of the movie had a more flamboyant villain and Jeter's character doesn't seem to be quite present enough to make as big an impression as he should in order to be the big bad guy that Rappaport must defeat. John Caroll Lynch fares a bit better as the Elvis like henchman, but his character also doesn't get much definition--but at least he gets some sequences in which he gets to properly snarl and be villainous, but without much by way of character definition, its hard to really care about either of the two bad guys here which kind of takes some of the sting out of the movie. I did really enjoy Rappaport's performance tho. He's not always so well regarded as an actor by people I know despite having been quite good in a fair number of films over the years, and between this and his excellent lead role in the film "Special" he's someone who honestly may be overlooked as an actor. The movie would not work at all if you didn't buy his shifts from happy go lucky to despondent to vindictive but he nails the role...and frankly his speech in the ring on "the evils of a crooked spine" should be better known in general. All that said, there are some serious flaws in here, but its worth a look especially if you're a fan of either wrestling gimmicks or Rappaport or just want a look at what a Coen Brothers movie would look and sound like without either brother at the helm.

When I saw the trailer for this movie, I thought this was going to be a comedy about underground wreseling. Man was I wrong. I found this movie in the comedy section, but I did not witness any comedy, just a lot of unneccessary and drawn out seens. There also was not much wreseling going on. I don't know how you make a seen where a man wearing a suit with his organs drawn on beats up a biker boring. This movie beat all the odds though. By shear numbers alone that seen should have been at least mildly entertaining, somehow though it was not. The only saving grace is Racheal Leigh Cook's character. Not really the character but how she was dressed. Its a sad production when a movie must credit a characters lack of clothing as its only high point. This had pretty respectable actors in it to. Do actors read the scripts before they take parts? I really can not write any thing else about this movie for I do not wish to recall my viewing of it.

The director has, on a low budget, created a tight script, with beautiful timing. Rapaport plays a pro wrestler (whose persona is "The Naked Man")/chiropractor who is thrust into responding to an attempted gangland takeover of his small town. Wonderfully acted from the chain smoking cynical cops, to the paraplegic gangster, to his Elvis impersonating enforcer, and finally to the biker girlfriend follower. All the little bits were perfect and the movie was a hilarious comedy.

One half of the Coen Brothers has co-written one of the weirdest and most intelligent comedies I've ever had the pleasure of viewing. Underrated actor, Michael Rappaport excellently portrays the inscrutable chiropractor/wrestler of which the title refers. The Naked Man features wonderfully quirky performances, equally quirky dialogue and a storyline just strange enough to keep anyone interested. Fans of David Lynch or John Waters, don't miss this!