One hears a lot about "independent cinema" these days, films made outside the mainstream studio system that reflect the individual voices of their creators. Film festivals are devoted entirely to "independent films", such as "The Sundance Film Festival". There is even an "Independent Film Channel" on cable television. Well, "The World's Greatest Sinner" really IS an "Independent Film". Timothy Carey wrote, produced, directed and starred in "The World's Greatest Sinner". Filmed on location with whatever actors and equipment he could get, int took three years to complete because he had no budget and made the movie whenever time permitted between professional acting jobs. In fact, the story of the making of "The World's Greatest Sinner" would make a pretty compelling subject for a movie in itself, much as was done some years ago to "Plan 9 From Outer Space".
This movie is about unrestrained ego. The main character is an insurance salesman who wants to become something more. By turns he transforms himself into a rock & roll star, an evangelist and a presidential candidate. During that process his ego enlarges exponentially until it becomes clear that his ultimate goal is nothing less than to become God. Oh, and as if all that were not bizarre enough, the sound track was written and performed by Frank Zappa, early in his career, years before he became famous as the leader of "The Mothers of Invention".
Nobody is ever going to say that this movie has the best production values. Apart from everything else, the three-year production time inevitably created some continuity issues. Nevertheless, this is a film that has something to say which no other would dare to say, and says it emphatically. Furthermore, despite the fact that matters frequently go over-the-top, the story is frighteningly plausible and believable. Yes, one cannot escape the conviction that the events depicted really could happen.
Although "The World's Greatest Sinner" is never going to be everyone's cup of tea, or indeed was ever intended to be, it definitely deserves a place on the list of movies everyone should see at least once before they die.
