Jay Leggett, comic actor and screenwriter who starred on one season of Fox's In Living Color, died on Saturday, Nov. 23 after collapsing during a deer hunt. He was 50. According to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Legget was deer hunting near his hometown of Tomahawk, Wis. when emergency crews were called to a cabin just after 4 p.m. and arrived to find family members performing CPR on the comedian. The late actor's death is believed to be heart related, although the Lincoln County coroner said on Monday that a final cause of death is still pending. A longtime hunter, Leggett produced and co-directed the 2011 documentary To the Hunt, which documented deer camp life and the "fun, family and fraternity...
- 11/26/2013
- E! Online
Jay Leggett, a comic actor who appeared on shows including In Living Color but who always returned to the woods of his native Wisconsin, died Saturday after collapsing on a deer hunt. He was 50.
His death was believed to be heart related, but the coroner in Lincoln County, Wis., said Monday that a final cause of death is still pending, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Leggett died at a family cabin in Tomahawk, Wis., where he grew up, after returning from a deer stand on an all-terrain vehicle.
After performing with Chicago's ImprovOlympic comedy troupe in the late '80s and early '90s,...
His death was believed to be heart related, but the coroner in Lincoln County, Wis., said Monday that a final cause of death is still pending, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Leggett died at a family cabin in Tomahawk, Wis., where he grew up, after returning from a deer stand on an all-terrain vehicle.
After performing with Chicago's ImprovOlympic comedy troupe in the late '80s and early '90s,...
- 11/26/2013
- by Tim Nudd
- People.com - TV Watch
Jay Leggett, a comic actor who appeared on shows including In Living Color but who always returned to the woods of his native Wisconsin, died Saturday after collapsing on a deer hunt. He was 50. His death was believed to be heart related, but the coroner in Lincoln County, Wis., said Monday that a final cause of death is still pending, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Leggett died at a family cabin in Tomahawk, Wis., where he grew up, after returning from a deer stand on an all-terrain vehicle. After performing with Chicago's ImprovOlympic comedy troupe in the late '80s and early '90s,...
- 11/26/2013
- by Tim Nudd
- PEOPLE.com
Comedian Jay Leggett collapsed on Saturday, Nov. 23 after a day of hunting in his home state of Wisconsin, and died later that day, according to the Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. The 50-year-old actor appeared on the American sketch comedy series In Living Color in the early '90s. He held a variety of small roles including the part of Gus on the 2008 improv show Factory. He cowrote the 2004 film Employee of the Month starring Matt Dillion and Christina Applegate. Leggett also had a memorable role on [...]...
- 11/26/2013
- Us Weekly
Jay Leggett, a comedian best-known for appearing on "In Living Color" in 1993 and 1994, died on Saturday (Nov. 23) at the age of 50.
According to Wisconsin's Wasau Daily Herald, Leggett died of natural causes at the end of a day of hunting near Tomahawk, Wisconsin. Although Leggett lived in Los Angeles, he was visiting his hometown at the time of his death.
Emergency services arrived on Saturday afternoon to find family members performing CPR. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The actor and screenwriter had just returned from a deer stand when he apparently collapsed. The specific cause of death has not been made public.
In addition to his single season of "In Living Color," Leggett had guest-starring roles in shows like "ER," "Ally McBeal," "Star Trek: Voyager," "NYPD: Blue" and more. He had turned more to teaching and writing in recent years and worked at the iO West Theater in Hollywood.
According to Wisconsin's Wasau Daily Herald, Leggett died of natural causes at the end of a day of hunting near Tomahawk, Wisconsin. Although Leggett lived in Los Angeles, he was visiting his hometown at the time of his death.
Emergency services arrived on Saturday afternoon to find family members performing CPR. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The actor and screenwriter had just returned from a deer stand when he apparently collapsed. The specific cause of death has not been made public.
In addition to his single season of "In Living Color," Leggett had guest-starring roles in shows like "ER," "Ally McBeal," "Star Trek: Voyager," "NYPD: Blue" and more. He had turned more to teaching and writing in recent years and worked at the iO West Theater in Hollywood.
- 11/26/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Pop2it
It should not surprise anyone under the age of fifty that a show about the rising marijuana movement would find its way onto network television. The Fox Network, who has never been afraid of pushing the envelope when it comes to cutting edge humor, wins today’s cool news award. According to Deadline, Fox is developing the smoke-filled comedy from former Entourage executive producers; Robb Weiss, Mark Wahlberg and Steve Levinson of The Happy Tree production company. Weiss is slated to co-write the pilot script along with Jay Leggett and Blake Leibel.
- 11/21/2012
- by Kerry Fleming
- GetTheBigPicture.net
Exclusive: The marijuana legalization movement gained major momentum in the recent November elections as measures to regulate the drug made it to the ballot in three Western states and passed in two — Colorado and Washington — with several others working on similar legislation. Now the grass-roots campaign is set as the backdrop for a comedy in development at Fox. The Happy Tree, from former Entourage executive producers Rob Weiss, Mark Wahlberg and Steve Levinson, centers on a brilliant young corporate attorney who, after a nervous breakdown, quits his job and seeks a life of peace and serenity on Venice Beach only to find himself the unlikely voice for the marijuana “legalize it” movement. The project will be produced by 20th Century Fox TV and stems from Weiss’ blind script deal there. He will co-write the script with Jay Leggett and Blake Leibel, who co-executive produce with Lawrence Longo. In addition to Entourage,...
- 11/20/2012
- by NELLIE ANDREEVA
- Deadline TV
Chicago – Paramount Home Video is unleashing waves of catalog titles this month, starting with an interesting quintet of laugh-fests that range wildly in subject matter and quality.
What do they have in common? Well, three are from the “Saturday Night Live” factory - “Wayne’s World,” “Wayne’s World 2,” and “Black Sheep,” but the other two are not. Those three are also from the ’90s, another tempting way to bunch these random titles together, but “Major League” is an ’80s comedy and “Without a Paddle” is from the ’00s.
Even quality levels seem like an inappropriate way to lump these titles together as even diehard fans couldn’t claim that Chris Farley’s “Black Sheep” or the silly “Paddle” should stand next to “Wayne’s World” or the beloved “Major League”.
Why even try and lump them together? They’re all comedies. They’re all Paramount. Anyone can find at...
What do they have in common? Well, three are from the “Saturday Night Live” factory - “Wayne’s World,” “Wayne’s World 2,” and “Black Sheep,” but the other two are not. Those three are also from the ’90s, another tempting way to bunch these random titles together, but “Major League” is an ’80s comedy and “Without a Paddle” is from the ’00s.
Even quality levels seem like an inappropriate way to lump these titles together as even diehard fans couldn’t claim that Chris Farley’s “Black Sheep” or the silly “Paddle” should stand next to “Wayne’s World” or the beloved “Major League”.
Why even try and lump them together? They’re all comedies. They’re all Paramount. Anyone can find at...
- 5/12/2009
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Spike TV’s first original sitcom Factory is about four working-class guys who talk a lot about sex, but otherwise there’s not much about the show that marks it as especially Spike-ish. It’s a very low-key kind of comedy, built around semi-improvised chatter and subtle character distinctions. It has more in common with something like Corner Gas than with Mxc. The main problem with Factory’s first episode—airing tonight at 10 Pm eastern, and also available for free right now on iTunes and at the Spike website—is that while it has an amiable tone, it’s never laugh-out-loud funny. The show’s premise is simple: four small-town factory workers (played by improv vets Mitch Rouse, David Pasquesi, Jay Leggett and Michael Coleman) strive to minimize their work time and maximize their coffee breaks, so they can gripe about their wives and ex-wives and their go-nowhere occupation. None of these characters really.
- 6/29/2008
- avclub.com
Spike TV’s first original sitcom Factory is about four working-class guys who talk a lot about sex, but otherwise there’s not much about the show that marks it as especially Spike-ish. It’s a very low-key kind of comedy, built around semi-improvised chatter and subtle character distinctions. It has more in common with something like Corner Gas than with Mxc. The main problem with Factory’s first episode—airing tonight at 10 Pm eastern, and also available for free right now on iTunes and at the Spike website—is that while it has an amiable tone, it’s never laugh-out-loud funny. The show’s premise is simple: four small-town factory workers (played by improv vets Mitch Rouse, David Pasquesi, Jay Leggett and Michael Coleman) strive to minimize their work time and maximize their coffee breaks, so they can gripe about their wives and ex-wives and their go-nowhere occupation. None of these characters really.
- 6/29/2008
- avclub.com
Spike TV has officially joined "The Factory" line.
The network has given the green light to its first original comedy series, which revolves around four disinterested small-town factory workers who spend their time fraternizing while avoiding their drab work. "Factory", set to premiere at 10 p.m. June 29, is directed, produced by and stars "Strangers With Candy" co-creator Mitch Rouse.
"Factory" has been in development for several months at Spike, which has picked it up to series with a six-episode order.
" 'Factory' is a unique improvised comedy that captures the everyday lives of four regular guys," said Bill McGoldrick, vp original programming at Spike. "The humor speaks directly to our viewers and Mitch's sensibility is a perfect match for our brand."
The series, produced by 3 Arts Entertainment, also stars Michael Coleman, Jay Leggett and David Pasquesi.
The network has given the green light to its first original comedy series, which revolves around four disinterested small-town factory workers who spend their time fraternizing while avoiding their drab work. "Factory", set to premiere at 10 p.m. June 29, is directed, produced by and stars "Strangers With Candy" co-creator Mitch Rouse.
"Factory" has been in development for several months at Spike, which has picked it up to series with a six-episode order.
" 'Factory' is a unique improvised comedy that captures the everyday lives of four regular guys," said Bill McGoldrick, vp original programming at Spike. "The humor speaks directly to our viewers and Mitch's sensibility is a perfect match for our brand."
The series, produced by 3 Arts Entertainment, also stars Michael Coleman, Jay Leggett and David Pasquesi.
- 4/28/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
NEW YORK -- National Lampoon will return to producing live entertainment by bringing back a re-imagined version of the Lemmings sketch comedy troupe, which launched the careers of John Belushi, Christopher Guest and Chevy Chase.
The company on Wednesday described the new show, called "National Lampoon Lemmings Comedy Troupe Presents America 2.0," as a 90-minute interactive show with short videos between sketches. It is designed as "a satire on today's blown-out tabloid world."
Characters include the Gangsta Rap Wizards and Michael Vick touting his new dog food.
As did its 1970s counterpart, the new Lemmings comedy troupe will showcase young sketch comedians.
"We have created a stable of talented actors, writers and filmmakers we look to grow within our family in our many television, film and Internet projects," said Lemmings producer Amber Lawson.
The Lemmings show was created by Lawson, director-producer Jay Leggett ("In Living Color", "Without a Paddle") and executive producer Scott Rubin.
The Lemmings cast includes Adam Devine, Anders Holms, Annie Savage, Blake Anderson, Jen Cain, Jillian Bellcq, John Moody, Mark Gagliardi and Sitara Falcon.
The company on Wednesday described the new show, called "National Lampoon Lemmings Comedy Troupe Presents America 2.0," as a 90-minute interactive show with short videos between sketches. It is designed as "a satire on today's blown-out tabloid world."
Characters include the Gangsta Rap Wizards and Michael Vick touting his new dog food.
As did its 1970s counterpart, the new Lemmings comedy troupe will showcase young sketch comedians.
"We have created a stable of talented actors, writers and filmmakers we look to grow within our family in our many television, film and Internet projects," said Lemmings producer Amber Lawson.
The Lemmings show was created by Lawson, director-producer Jay Leggett ("In Living Color", "Without a Paddle") and executive producer Scott Rubin.
The Lemmings cast includes Adam Devine, Anders Holms, Annie Savage, Blake Anderson, Jen Cain, Jillian Bellcq, John Moody, Mark Gagliardi and Sitara Falcon.
NEW YORK -- National Lampoon will return to producing live entertainment by bringing back a re-imagined version of the Lemmings sketch comedy troupe, which launched the careers of John Belushi, Christopher Guest and Chevy Chase.
The company on Wednesday described the new Broadway show, called "National Lampoon Lemmings Comedy Troupe Presents America 2.0," as a 90-minute interactive show with short videos between sketches. It is designed as "a satire on today's blown-out tabloid world."
Characters include the Gangsta Rap Wizards and Michael Vick touting his new dog food.
As did its 1970s counterpart, the new Lemmings comedy troupe will showcase young sketch comedians.
"We have created a stable of talented actors, writers and filmmakers we look to grow within our family in our many television, film and Internet projects," said Lemmings producer Amber Lawson.
The Lemmings show was created by Lawson, director-producer Jay Leggett (In Living Color, Without a Paddle) and executive producer Scott Rubin.
The Lemmings cast includes Adam Devine, Anders Holms, Annie Savage, Blake Anderson, Jen Cain, Jillian Bellcq, John Moody, Mark Gagliardi and Sitara Falcon.
The company on Wednesday described the new Broadway show, called "National Lampoon Lemmings Comedy Troupe Presents America 2.0," as a 90-minute interactive show with short videos between sketches. It is designed as "a satire on today's blown-out tabloid world."
Characters include the Gangsta Rap Wizards and Michael Vick touting his new dog food.
As did its 1970s counterpart, the new Lemmings comedy troupe will showcase young sketch comedians.
"We have created a stable of talented actors, writers and filmmakers we look to grow within our family in our many television, film and Internet projects," said Lemmings producer Amber Lawson.
The Lemmings show was created by Lawson, director-producer Jay Leggett (In Living Color, Without a Paddle) and executive producer Scott Rubin.
The Lemmings cast includes Adam Devine, Anders Holms, Annie Savage, Blake Anderson, Jen Cain, Jillian Bellcq, John Moody, Mark Gagliardi and Sitara Falcon.
Making like a slacker City Slickers, Steven Brill's Without a Paddle chronicles the backwoods misadventures of a trio of childhood buddies who make good on a 20-year-old pact and set out to find bank robber DB Cooper's missing $200,000 stash.
But while the likable Seth Green, Matthew Lillard and Dax Shepard are definitely up to the comic excursion, the picture charts an uncertain course between wild and mild, eventually running aground in a pile of male-bonding muck.
Those looking for late-summer lark may be up for the trip, but the soft-around-the-edges tone won't exactly go over big with its target young, testosterone-driven demo.
The trek begins promisingly enough with the neurotic Dr. Dan Mott (Green), burned-out businessman Jerry Conlaine (Lillard) and aimless adventurer Tom Marshall (Shepard) honoring the memory of a childhood friend by going on a canoe trip in search of Cooper's rumored treasure.
Armed with a detailed map their pal left behind, a toy Indiana Jones compass and their not-so-collected wits, the guys take on roaring rapids, a maternal brown bear (played with the usual conviction by Bart the Bear -- actually Bart the Bear 2) and a pair of angry pot farmers (Ethan Suplee and Abraham Benrubi) whose crops were accidentally destroyed by the trio, before meeting up with an eccentric mountain man (Burt Reynolds) who happens to have been a good friend of Cooper's.
Too bad they couldn't have lent their Indy compass to director Brill (Mr. Deeds, Little Nicky) and his group of five credited writers, because Without a Paddle is never able to find any real sense of direction.
Weighed down by a patched-together script, a sluggish pace and a wavering tone caught between a rock and a squishy place, the picture keeps stumbling along toward a particularly wobbly ending.
With New Zealand providing the Oregon backdrop, The Great Outdoors beckon mightily, especially during those white-water sequences, which are effectively photographed by cinematographer Jonathan Brown (whose father, Garrett, invented the Steadicam mount).
And music supervisor Julianne Jordan supplies a worthy mix tape for the journey, which manages to unite Culture Club, Joey Ramone, the Faces and .38 Special, not to mention R. Kelly, whose Bump 'N Grind intro sets up one of the picture's funnier sequences.
Without a Paddle
Paramount
Paramount Pictures presents a De Line Pictures production
A Steven Brill film
Credits:
Director: Steven Brill
Screenwriters: Jay Leggett, Mitch Rouse
Story: Fred Wolf, Harris Goldberg, Tom Nursall
Producer: Donald De Line
Executive producers: Richard Vane, Andrew Haas, Wendy Japhet
Director of photography: Jonathan Brown
Production designer: Perry Andelin Blake
Editors: Debra Neil-Fisher, Peck Prior
Costume designer: Ngila Dickson
Music: Christophe Beck
Music supervisor: Julianne Jordan
Cast:
Dr. Dan Mott: Seth Green
Jerry Conlaine: Matthew Lillard
Tom Marshall: Dax Shepard
Elwood: Ethan Suplee
Dennis: Abraham Benrubi
Flower: Rachel Blanchard
Del Knox: Burt Reynolds
MPAA rating: PG-13
Running time -- 93 minutes...
But while the likable Seth Green, Matthew Lillard and Dax Shepard are definitely up to the comic excursion, the picture charts an uncertain course between wild and mild, eventually running aground in a pile of male-bonding muck.
Those looking for late-summer lark may be up for the trip, but the soft-around-the-edges tone won't exactly go over big with its target young, testosterone-driven demo.
The trek begins promisingly enough with the neurotic Dr. Dan Mott (Green), burned-out businessman Jerry Conlaine (Lillard) and aimless adventurer Tom Marshall (Shepard) honoring the memory of a childhood friend by going on a canoe trip in search of Cooper's rumored treasure.
Armed with a detailed map their pal left behind, a toy Indiana Jones compass and their not-so-collected wits, the guys take on roaring rapids, a maternal brown bear (played with the usual conviction by Bart the Bear -- actually Bart the Bear 2) and a pair of angry pot farmers (Ethan Suplee and Abraham Benrubi) whose crops were accidentally destroyed by the trio, before meeting up with an eccentric mountain man (Burt Reynolds) who happens to have been a good friend of Cooper's.
Too bad they couldn't have lent their Indy compass to director Brill (Mr. Deeds, Little Nicky) and his group of five credited writers, because Without a Paddle is never able to find any real sense of direction.
Weighed down by a patched-together script, a sluggish pace and a wavering tone caught between a rock and a squishy place, the picture keeps stumbling along toward a particularly wobbly ending.
With New Zealand providing the Oregon backdrop, The Great Outdoors beckon mightily, especially during those white-water sequences, which are effectively photographed by cinematographer Jonathan Brown (whose father, Garrett, invented the Steadicam mount).
And music supervisor Julianne Jordan supplies a worthy mix tape for the journey, which manages to unite Culture Club, Joey Ramone, the Faces and .38 Special, not to mention R. Kelly, whose Bump 'N Grind intro sets up one of the picture's funnier sequences.
Without a Paddle
Paramount
Paramount Pictures presents a De Line Pictures production
A Steven Brill film
Credits:
Director: Steven Brill
Screenwriters: Jay Leggett, Mitch Rouse
Story: Fred Wolf, Harris Goldberg, Tom Nursall
Producer: Donald De Line
Executive producers: Richard Vane, Andrew Haas, Wendy Japhet
Director of photography: Jonathan Brown
Production designer: Perry Andelin Blake
Editors: Debra Neil-Fisher, Peck Prior
Costume designer: Ngila Dickson
Music: Christophe Beck
Music supervisor: Julianne Jordan
Cast:
Dr. Dan Mott: Seth Green
Jerry Conlaine: Matthew Lillard
Tom Marshall: Dax Shepard
Elwood: Ethan Suplee
Dennis: Abraham Benrubi
Flower: Rachel Blanchard
Del Knox: Burt Reynolds
MPAA rating: PG-13
Running time -- 93 minutes...
Sundance Film Festival
PARK CITY -- "Employee of the Month" is likely to be canned quickly by corrosive word-of-mouth, terminated before pick-up and relegated, if it's lucky, to a swing shift spot on an operation such as Spike TV.
Usually one must watch two football games worth of Dodge Ram or Coors Lite commercials to experience the level of bombastic swill that filmmaker Mitch Rouse has served up in this raucous, often nauseous comedy/caper. In essence, this Bull's Eye Entertainment is merely scattergun, gross-out comedy that manages only by its sheer assaultive volume to wing our funny bone at all.
Former Second City-ers Rouse and co-writer Jay Leggett have crammed together a third-rate monstrosity about a Los Angeles bank employee (Matt Dillon) whose life comes crashing down all at once: his cretinous boss fires him and his finance (Christina Applegate) dumps him on the same day. All the while, his best friend (Steve Zahn), a whacked-out goon, constantly rags him about selling out.
Structurally, "Employee of the Month" bumbles along in the manner of "Falling Down", where Michael Douglas went through a similar, albeit much deeper meltdown. Unfortunately, Rouse and Leggett's script hurls and rants at such a puerile level that any anti-establishment humor or social satire is obliterated by their jokes-on-steroids style.
The well assembled cast, primarily Dillon as the Job-like bank man and Applegate as his high-maintenance fiancee, are credible and even somewhat sympathetic. Zahn, whose inspired lunacy is often the highpoint of indie comedies, is shackled by the dunderheaded writing, as well as the overall cartoonish nature of the role. As such, Zahn comes across as an out-of-control lout, rather than as a sympathetic subversive.
Technical contributions are, like the production, heavy handed and unevenly realized, although Aaron Osborne's acid-drenched production design is smartly garish.
Credits...
PARK CITY -- "Employee of the Month" is likely to be canned quickly by corrosive word-of-mouth, terminated before pick-up and relegated, if it's lucky, to a swing shift spot on an operation such as Spike TV.
Usually one must watch two football games worth of Dodge Ram or Coors Lite commercials to experience the level of bombastic swill that filmmaker Mitch Rouse has served up in this raucous, often nauseous comedy/caper. In essence, this Bull's Eye Entertainment is merely scattergun, gross-out comedy that manages only by its sheer assaultive volume to wing our funny bone at all.
Former Second City-ers Rouse and co-writer Jay Leggett have crammed together a third-rate monstrosity about a Los Angeles bank employee (Matt Dillon) whose life comes crashing down all at once: his cretinous boss fires him and his finance (Christina Applegate) dumps him on the same day. All the while, his best friend (Steve Zahn), a whacked-out goon, constantly rags him about selling out.
Structurally, "Employee of the Month" bumbles along in the manner of "Falling Down", where Michael Douglas went through a similar, albeit much deeper meltdown. Unfortunately, Rouse and Leggett's script hurls and rants at such a puerile level that any anti-establishment humor or social satire is obliterated by their jokes-on-steroids style.
The well assembled cast, primarily Dillon as the Job-like bank man and Applegate as his high-maintenance fiancee, are credible and even somewhat sympathetic. Zahn, whose inspired lunacy is often the highpoint of indie comedies, is shackled by the dunderheaded writing, as well as the overall cartoonish nature of the role. As such, Zahn comes across as an out-of-control lout, rather than as a sympathetic subversive.
Technical contributions are, like the production, heavy handed and unevenly realized, although Aaron Osborne's acid-drenched production design is smartly garish.
Credits...
Sundance Film Festival
PARK CITY -- "Employee of the Month" is likely to be canned quickly by corrosive word-of-mouth, terminated before pick-up and relegated, if it's lucky, to a swing shift spot on an operation such as Spike TV.
Usually one must watch two football games worth of Dodge Ram or Coors Lite commercials to experience the level of bombastic swill that filmmaker Mitch Rouse has served up in this raucous, often nauseous comedy/caper. In essence, this Bull's Eye Entertainment is merely scattergun, gross-out comedy that manages only by its sheer assaultive volume to wing our funny bone at all.
Former Second City-ers Rouse and co-writer Jay Leggett have crammed together a third-rate monstrosity about a Los Angeles bank employee (Matt Dillon) whose life comes crashing down all at once: his cretinous boss fires him and his finance (Christina Applegate) dumps him on the same day. All the while, his best friend (Steve Zahn), a whacked-out goon, constantly rags him about selling out.
Structurally, "Employee of the Month" bumbles along in the manner of "Falling Down", where Michael Douglas went through a similar, albeit much deeper meltdown. Unfortunately, Rouse and Leggett's script hurls and rants at such a puerile level that any anti-establishment humor or social satire is obliterated by their jokes-on-steroids style.
The well assembled cast, primarily Dillon as the Job-like bank man and Applegate as his high-maintenance fiancee, are credible and even somewhat sympathetic. Zahn, whose inspired lunacy is often the highpoint of indie comedies, is shackled by the dunderheaded writing, as well as the overall cartoonish nature of the role. As such, Zahn comes across as an out-of-control lout, rather than as a sympathetic subversive.
Technical contributions are, like the production, heavy handed and unevenly realized, although Aaron Osborne's acid-drenched production design is smartly garish.
PARK CITY -- "Employee of the Month" is likely to be canned quickly by corrosive word-of-mouth, terminated before pick-up and relegated, if it's lucky, to a swing shift spot on an operation such as Spike TV.
Usually one must watch two football games worth of Dodge Ram or Coors Lite commercials to experience the level of bombastic swill that filmmaker Mitch Rouse has served up in this raucous, often nauseous comedy/caper. In essence, this Bull's Eye Entertainment is merely scattergun, gross-out comedy that manages only by its sheer assaultive volume to wing our funny bone at all.
Former Second City-ers Rouse and co-writer Jay Leggett have crammed together a third-rate monstrosity about a Los Angeles bank employee (Matt Dillon) whose life comes crashing down all at once: his cretinous boss fires him and his finance (Christina Applegate) dumps him on the same day. All the while, his best friend (Steve Zahn), a whacked-out goon, constantly rags him about selling out.
Structurally, "Employee of the Month" bumbles along in the manner of "Falling Down", where Michael Douglas went through a similar, albeit much deeper meltdown. Unfortunately, Rouse and Leggett's script hurls and rants at such a puerile level that any anti-establishment humor or social satire is obliterated by their jokes-on-steroids style.
The well assembled cast, primarily Dillon as the Job-like bank man and Applegate as his high-maintenance fiancee, are credible and even somewhat sympathetic. Zahn, whose inspired lunacy is often the highpoint of indie comedies, is shackled by the dunderheaded writing, as well as the overall cartoonish nature of the role. As such, Zahn comes across as an out-of-control lout, rather than as a sympathetic subversive.
Technical contributions are, like the production, heavy handed and unevenly realized, although Aaron Osborne's acid-drenched production design is smartly garish.
- 1/19/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Matt Dillon and Steve Zahn are in negotiations while Christina Applegate is in talks to topline Bull's Eye Entertainment's dark comedy Employee of the Month, written by TV scribes and actors Mitch Rouse and Jay Leggett. Rouse will make his directorial debut on the project, which will go into production June 2 in Los Angeles. Employee is being described as in the vein of Raising Arizona with a twist ending not unlike The Usual Suspects. It stars Dillon as David Wells, whose day spirals from bad to worse when he gets fired from his dream job at the bank and is dumped by his fiancee Sara (Applegate) after she discovers that he's been cheating on her with a co-worker. David's best friend Jack (Zahn) tries to convince him it's for the best, but the opposite occurs when bank robberies and millions of dollars become part of the day from hell.
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