"Waiting for Guffman" may just be my favorite comedy of all time; hardly a scene goes by without a dozen hilarious little lines and moments. It would, therefore, have given me nothing but pleasure to report that "Best in Show," the first of Christopher Guest and ensemble's attempts to recapture the blissfully goofy chemistry of that earlier effort, was a rousing success. Unfortunately it's not. There are quite a few amusing moments, but the film never inspired in me much beyond a modest chuckle.
Mostly to blame, I think, is the fact that Guest enlarges his ensemble too much, with the result that no one really has enough screen time to create full characters with personalities of their own. The film feels much more episodic, and the actors even more than in "Guffman" play caricatures rather than people.
Still, these complaints will probably only pose a problem -- or at least problems to the same extent -- if you are as much a fan of "Guffman" as I am to begin with.
Grade: B
Mostly to blame, I think, is the fact that Guest enlarges his ensemble too much, with the result that no one really has enough screen time to create full characters with personalities of their own. The film feels much more episodic, and the actors even more than in "Guffman" play caricatures rather than people.
Still, these complaints will probably only pose a problem -- or at least problems to the same extent -- if you are as much a fan of "Guffman" as I am to begin with.
Grade: B