Bizarro

A film that attempted to fuse two very distinct story lines, but I think failed to give us any connections.

If we're supposed to be shocked by the people who frequent the bar, we're not. In reality, those people exist. However, even though they might think otherwise, they also may be helped by a few good people. They need not be forever lost. Few people are inherently perverse.

But that isn't my point here. The narrative of our protagonist (who admittedly doesn't speak much - although I'm not sure why. It might even have allowed us to partially understand his background.

The thing is, the collection of people around him are largely irrelevant.

The last few minutes are confusing, to say the least. Almost as if the director decided he was tired of the whole affair and just wanted it all to be done.

My take on it would have been a juxtaposition on the abnormality, but very real humanity, of the people who frequented the bar. Then it would have been possible to bridge the gap between our other characters.

Anyway, that's a long story.

The director doesn't understand people.

A French teenager gets a job at the burlesque club Bizarre in New York.

I had a vague idea of what to expect with this, that it would be arty, explicit and the explicitness would be largely gratuitous. It's certainly all that, and less.

A plot would have been nice. There is none, or nothing discernible at least. The teenager is really just a medium to show all the weird, pretentious stuff, as if it's a documentary and he's the historian.

It's all about weird stuff happening just for shock value sake and is totally devoid of any substance.

Avoid.

This is currently airing on Xfinity On Demand for Free. As a native Bklynite in one of the most famous cities...err Boroughs in the world, this was somewhat tedious at times. Its only saving grace was the natural acting ability from the entire cast, and having been shot on-location. The menage-a-trois shower scene (featured on the box cover) appears to have been cut from the film. They edited version only shows Maurice taking a shower, as one of the female owners barges in and leaves. Can only recommend as a late-night cable view.

The title is derived from Bar Bizarre in Brooklyn, a home for fetish performances that take place on stage for all to see! Homeless French teenager, Maurice, seems to be on the run. As luck has it, the female owners of Bizarre take Maurice in, creating a new and strange path in his life. What transpires is almost reminiscent of the Warhol / Morrissey films, FLESH (1968), TRASH (1970) and HEAT (1972), but with less talk and more visual aid in telling the tale. The standout in this curious piece is the stage performers of Bar Bizarre, and how strange indeed. As for the rest, you watch in wonder and get taken in with Maurice's affection with the feminine anorexia barman, Luka (stunning performance and not to be seen in anything else at the moment).

This is not a movie to be watched once. It won't make sense if you do not ponder the meaning beneath the images and scenes. It may look scattered and confusing with many plot lines interwoven through but you have to make sense of it. It is a subjective experience that must be savored more than once.