Here are two challenges in life that a man strives to succeed in: family and his job. Oftentimes, the paths intersect. Or even become one. But what happens when a man has to choose between family and finance? Filmmaker Alex Kahuam breeches that theme in Hitchcockian style. Failure! Follows Ted Raimi over the course of an hour where he must make that choice - a decision that includes the all-too easy answer of murder. Kahuam presents it all in a single take giving Raimi the spotlight for the entirety. Failure! Is inventive and captivating, but for all the anxiety-driven build up, ultimately lands a little too softly.
Failure! Follows James (Raimi - Ash vs Evil Dead, SeaQuest 2032) who has a big debt with an honest bank while being blackmailed over some shady deals. On top of all this? His daughter is getting married and she wants the complete princess package. What can one man do? Well, killing any pesky troublemakers is certainly one way to go.
Kahuam follows in handheld precision as Raimi delivers, at its base, a one-man play. Raimi infuriates on the inadequacies of his staff and how incompetent members of his daughter's wedding party are. Sometimes the ping-pong style plays like a top match. Other times, like a murderous conclusion, it is comedically abrupt.
Raimi's James gets his finale but the wash around him never truly settles. Failure! Makes for a good exploration of ideas and presents Raimi's finest performance to date yet the story's speculative culmination prohibits Failure! From being a Success!.
