Support Your Local Parodies

You know, for a guy with so many interests, I really don't feel all that strongly about a whole lot....
Sure, I'm interested and aware of current events, but it's rare that I'll form an opinion on anything that's firm enough for me to want to take real action. What can I say? I just have this uncanny ability to see the value in almost anything, while not having any deep emotions about it. I'll closely observe some controversy in the news, but never quite get riled up about it in one way or another; I'll give money to charity, but have no real passion about which one it is; I'll vote in an election, but not be upset in in the slightest when my candidate loses....You know, I tend to just feel sort of "meh" about things, in general. I figure, things will work out one way or another, and that's the only way it could be. Perhaps this attitude is simply a natural side effect of getting old. And it's not so bad, really -- I'd rather be a laid-back zen master than some spaz who launches into an indignant tirade over every subject that's brought up in his presence. I hate those kinds of people.


But there are still a FEW things that will get me off the couch. For instance, I believe in the benefits of supporting local arts -- especially movies. Yes, if I hear about some chap from my neck of the woods who has gone through the trouble of producing a feature film, I am immediately interested. It doesn't matter to me how low-budget or unprofessional the picture is, either; I take a locally-made film seriously and will see it whenever possible. Heck, I'll even buy a DVD of the darn thing. You know why? -- Because a movie made in some small Michigan town is likely to be a lot different from the usual crap that gets shipped to our corporate-owned theaters from Hollywood each year. And, above all else, I want things that are different.


A few weeks back, I heard about a guy not far from my town who had just completed a feature-length movie that spoofs the Harry Potter series. An article about him showed up in one of the local newspapers, and I jumped on it immediately. I mean, first of all, this dude made a movie HERE (where I am), and secondly, it's NOT about zombies! Can you believe that? An independent, far-outside-of-Hollywood filmmaker who DOESN'T do horror is pretty friggin' rare. I HAD to see this guy's movie.

It's called Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise. It was shot around Southwestern Michigan and South Bend, Indiana for a budget that I'm told was less than 100-thousand dollars. The director, Tim Richardson, has apparently been kicking around the local scene for some years, having once made a parody of Lord of the Rings called Dork of the Rings (HA!). He held a screening of the Harvey Putter project down in South Bend recently, and the missus and I attended.

Now, I've never actually seen a Harry Potter movie, nor have I read the books. Still, I had high hopes for this parody. I mean, the concept in and of itself was golden: three teenage witchcraft students discover that they're really just characters in a series of novels and films. That's hilarious! No need for me to understand the source material, really. I mean, I've caught enough random bits of info about Harry Potter over the years to more-or-less get the idea, anyway. Apparently, there's been, like, 47 of the motion pictures released in the past ten years or something. Who would have thought those crazy kids from the first movie way back in 2001 would still be doing them today???

(Careful, Drew....)

So, with a basic understanding of the Harry Potter phenomenon, I checked out the locally-produced satire, Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise. Would it be funny? Would it rely too heavily on cheap bathroom jokes?? Would its low budget and semi-amateur origins hold it back from being watchable??? I had my concerns, but boldly pushed on. Let's check it out.

Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise (2010)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1161421/


IMDB description (because there's no Netflix listing):
Celebrity teen wizard Harvey Putter and his friends learn that they are merely characters in a best-selling book and must magically escape their world before the final chapter....

First of all, let me say that Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise is easily the highest-quality film of its kind that I have seen. It looks great, the sets are fantastic, and all performances are remarkably strong. This one is about as good as it gets in the world of extremely low-budget film.

As stated, the plot revolves around teenage witch-in-training Harvey Putter and his friends trying to collect all seven books in a series about...well...themselves. See, they figure out that they're living in some famous British woman's fantasy land, and must obtain the seven sacred texts in order to escape. Why they want to escape is unclear; I guess they're just normal teenagers who hate their lives. I mean, why was The Matrix so popular?

In between the book-hunting sequences, our heroes engage in a random array of joyously-silly, Harry Potter-related, activities. Having never seen the original films, I can only presume that the classroom scenes featuring crusty magic instructors, for example, are parody. Same goes for the bit in which Harvey is taunted by a Smurf-like leprechaun in a potato chip bag ("Dumpy the Houseschmuck"). Yeah, a lot of random slapstick goes on in this movie. You can tell that the filmmakers had some trouble overcoming an urge to cram as many Harry Potter references as possible into this baby.

Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, though. Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise fires such an unrelenting barrage of off-the-wall fanboy gags at us that it's only inevitable enough of them will connect and make the experience a pleasant one. Sure, you might get a little bored during the extended Quidditch scene, but you're bound to laugh at some other bit that the movie shoots out a few minutes later (for instance, I was greatly amused by the ghost-in-the-toilet gag). There's a whole lot going on here, folks.

Performances are top notch, especially for such an independent film. Bryce Cone, as Harvey Putter, not only looks the part, but makes it hilarious with a sort of bratty-Emo persona that's likable the second we see it. The guy who plays Harry's red-headed pal, Rod Cheesely, although a little annoying, is perfectly comfortable on camera, providing us with a constant supply of comedic dumbassery. And I especially liked the actress who portrays Harvey's female friend, Hernia Grunger (my God, I can't keep up with these names). She's got that certain something which makes me hope to see her in other films.


I am pleased to report that Harvey Putter doesn't rely too heavily on cheap sex and bathroom jokes. As I've noted before, an alarming number of comedies these days seem to be falling back on such crutches, which are really only funny in moderation. While this picture does throw in a handful of toilet bits and boob gags, they're relatively well-constructed and acceptably placed. I'd say Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise is a hard PG-13 -- willing to get blue, but not dependent on it. It's strange to think that this movie -- shot on digital video in a South Bend warehouse for less than a hundred grand -- is funnier than such major studio productions as Epic Movie and anything by the Wayans Brothers. Why, Hollywood, why?

As indicated, this film is all over the place. It's a non-stop, unabashed celebration of giddy silliness that would probably be an absolute hoot for fans of Harry Potter and, at the very least, respectably amusing for the rest of us. I personally was impressed with how well Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise turned out, and WISH it was available on Netflix so I could recommend it to all of you fine folks.

But, sadly, that's not the case. Yup, this is the first film NOT featured on Netflix that I've ever reviewed for my blog, and until its producers work out such a deal, Harvey Putter will not be so easy to obtain. As far as I can tell, the only way to see it right now is to buy it.

It's up to you if you want to take such a leap of faith and spend twenty bucks. Hardcore Harry Potter fans might want to go ahead, but to all others, I recommend waiting for Harvey Putter and the Ridiculous Premise to show up on a rental service. When that happens, I say stick this sucker in your queue, and prepare yourself for a few chuckles. It's a fine experience.

4 out of 5.

b.