Smart with a shuffling gait, Hue Rhodes debut feature Saint John of Las Vegas (hereafter: St John) is a journey in the vein of the Coens’ learned comedy O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000). A road trip of philosophical proportions St John transplants Dante’s 14th C vision of hell into the seedy bars and squalid surrounds of present day Las Vegas.
Not breaking a sweat Steve Buscemi (Reservoir Dogs, Ghost World is well cast as the titular lead “St” John Alighieri, a (somewhat) reformed gambler who happens to share a surname with author of The Inferno and who is paying his penance via work in an admin role at an insurance agency, far away from the lights and temptations of his former abode of Las Vegas. Comedienne Sarah Silverman and prolific actor Peter Dinklage add a sharp edged comedic weight to the cast and Romany Malco serves admirably alongside Buscemi as John’s enigmatic insurance investigator partner/guide Virgil (so named as a direct reference to Dante’s source material). Director Rhodes even hat tips to his film’s older genre sibling by casting Tim Blake Nelson – Delmar from the Coens’ O Brother, Where Art Thou? central trio – in a cameo role.
Starting his cinematic journey with both a promotion and a new girlfriend (Silverman’s smiley obsessed office bunny Jill) Buscemi’s John finds himself out of the office and on the road with seasoned insurance fraud investigator Virgil trying to debunk the suspicious claim of an apparently wheelchair bound stripper with the charming moniker “Tasty D Lite”. Their investigations find the pair ranging across Nevada – winding themselves ever closer to perilous centre of Las Vegas – stopping at significant waypoints and meeting increasingly strange folks in more and more twisted circumstances. Only after meeting his fear of again losing himself to his gambling addiction head-on is John able to find a glimpse of freedom and the contentment that has been conspicuously missing from his existence.
As a straight dramedy St John works well, providing plenty of comic fodder amidst it’s more sombre philosophical elements and moving with a pace that keeps it from getting bogged down. I do wonder if the narrative might prove slightly confusing to a portion of filmgoers but I think the performances and the visual design contain enough merit to keep all but those in need of firm narrative handholding from losing interest. As an adaptation the film works even better translating a renowned, if less well known, medieval poetic epic into a recognisable character/story in a believable contemporary environment. If St John doesn’t quite attain the heights of O Brother, Where Art Thou? it does illustrate the potential of Rhodes as a filmmaker to keep an eye on. DVD Info A plain vanilla release this single disc release comes with perfectly adequate sound and picture quality but is devoid of any enticing extras. It’s all about the film baby!
Single Disc Edition Region 4 PAL 16:9 Widescreen Dolby Digital 5.1 / 2.0 Languages: English (with English Captions/Audio Description for the hearing/vision impaired) FILMGUIDE rating:
Reviewed by: Jacob Powell Rating: M – Contains offensive language and nudity. Duration: 85 mins Genre: Indie Black Comedy | Film Adaptation (from Medieval poetry) Director: Hue Rhodes (2009) Actors: Steve Buscemi, Romany Malco, Sarah Silverman, and Peter Dinklage. Country: USA Distributor: Vendetta Films
“smart with a shuffling gait” – what a great description. Thanks for the write-up.
Hue Rhodes Writer/Director, Saint John of Las Vegas
There is something about me..
“smart with a shuffling gait” – what a great description. Thanks for the write-up.
Hue Rhodes
Writer/Director, Saint John of Las Vegas