Poor White Trash

This movie is for fans of Russ Meyer films! I was cracking up at this silly, wacky low-budget masterpiece. The cinematography was great and purposefully bad! The acting was hilarious. The story was chaotic and a pretty good representation of weird things that happen in a small American town. Jamie Pressly is truly funny and superb in this. If you don't 'get' this movie, that is really too bad for you. 10 out of 10!

This movie was shot almost entirely in Franklin County, Illinois. When the crew came to town they told authorities their working title was Good Morning Sunrise. The locals anxiously cooperated in the production, including use of police uniforms and equipment to use of the Courthouse at night for filming courtroom scenes. (Although the Franklin County Courthouse in Benton was used for interior shots, exteriors were taken in front of the Jackson County Courthouse in Murphysboro. Many local officials auditioned for bit parts, and I was personally disappointed that a local police chief that had a noticeable stutter wasn't cast. When the movie came out with it's title Poor White Trash, the locals were infuriated and the film was blasted in the local papers. A side note- Mr. Snack's is an actual restaurant which was closed at the time of the film. It has since reopened and still stands on Route 14 in Christopher, Illinois. And one of our county judges proudly displays an autographed photo of M. Emmett Walsh.

I was interested to see this movie, because I grew up in Southern Illinois and ran around in Benton as a teenager. Yes, I was a Carbondale Saluki and I believe I know some of the people Mr. Urba and Addis based their characters on. The scary part of the movie is (even if other didn't like the acting of the cast) that really is how most of the people in the local area act. Here's some trivia, local people were mad because the title of the movie was changed from something nice to something degrading, accurate, but degrading. I am also wondering about how Mr. Addis got so many good actors to be in a low budget, bad movie. I know the film has no A-list stars, but I wasn't aware that the actors in it were so disparate for work. Even a Malkovich was involved in the production. Luckily, the only good thing about this movie was seeing Jamie Pressly in the same frame as the old stomping grounds and the fact I don't live there anymore. Stay down and dirty, Slugdriveruh1

With a name like Poor White Trash, this movie easily could have been mistaken as a low-grade comedy with stereotype characters telling stupid jokes. Instead, it develops characters as real people, with few cliches. Yes, there is a trailer park and trailer trash, but that is the real world, and real people live there. The writers do not make fun of their character's living condition, but rather use it to help understand them. The young men live in a world where stealing cheap beer and chasing cheap girls pass for culture, and they understandably want out. You're rooting for them, especially when things start to go wrong. Oh, and it's funny, and even poignant. Jaime Presley is beautiful and Sean Young is sharp and witty. To her credit, she's not afraid to play a woman her age, and she does so with dignity and grace. Buy the DVD and impress your friends with it in a few years when the young cast become major stars.

If I ever get homesick when I move to Chicago, all I need do is pop this in. We don't live far from southern Ilinois, here. The characters are so expertly unpolished as to make one forget they are watching a movie and not sitting in their neighbor's trailer. I could smell the greasy fries and burgers in the fast food joint they 'robbed', and even felt the need to wash my face and hands after the 'oh so could be me or a neighbor' bungled murder scene. The absurd desperation and nefarious persistence of most of America's less than fortunate, but quite numerous population of us 'Poor White Trash' was funny without insulting, for it showed we have quite a drive to thrive no matter what! Thank you for the snickers and snorts! Cherry Cola

A must see for the kitch lovers, airstream clubbers, or just plain folks, an excellent study of the absurd but true to life story and characters. Great chance to see 2 actors from Blade Runner strut their stuff years later, but neither lessened by those years.