This film is pretty good, in fact it has a lot of the characteristics that are in all of Downey's best work: the weird dialogue, the almost rhythmic way in which certain characters repeat phrases throughout the film, not so much a real plot as an assemblage of vignettes involving eccentric characters, and just the way a joke's punch line can leave one as much bewildered as amused, like coming in after the joke has already started...you don't get what the punch line refers to but it sounds funny in an absurd way. My favorite character was the main anchor man, played by Earl Thomashefsky, with the over the top hair piece, who still lives with his mother, always needs $10 for reasons never divulged, and yells as he reads the news. Michael J. Pollard as a womanizer is a hoot as well. Plus, Zack Norman really does pull off wearing a skirt and still looking manly and ready for "Action News". What drags this film down is the music which is straight up trite, especially the theme song. The score almost ruins certain scenes, silence would have been preferable. Plus Richard Belzer's comedy routine after he drives through the studio's brick wall during the news cast is not very funny, and it takes up way too much time, killing the rhythm mentioned earlier. Nevertheless, the film is not nearly as bad as many reviews would have you think. Downey's worst effort is still more enjoyable than a lot of other people's best films and it may not be PUTNEY SWOPE or even MOMENT TO MOMENT but AMERICA is very much worth checking out.
