FDR: American Badass!

"FDR: American Badass!" is a very frustrating movie. While I loved the audacity of the plot and loved some of the VERY low humor, the film, overall, is pretty bad. It looks like a film that really needed a rewrite here and there and the low humor was sometimes so low that it made me feel ashamed to watch it. In fact, eventually I just turned the thing off--it was that bad.

The film starts off wonderfully....really wonderfully. In fact, it was so good I was expecting to love the film. In this bizarre alternate reality, it's 1931 and Franklin Roosevelt CAN walk. However, he and his friends are attacked by a Nazi werewolf and FDR kills it--but only after it bites him and gives him polio!! These scenes and those in the hospital, though crude, made me laugh out loud several times. I was ashamed of myself...but it WAS very funny.

Unfortunately, what follows proved that although they had a great idea, the writers didn't have any more. The film was filled with too much scatological humor (I am talking about REALLY scatological--literally) and the repeated sexual references become boring and boorish. In fact, it starts to look like a movie written by a group of 7th graders--really, really crude ones at that. In fact, the film degenerated quickly to a totally unfunny mess. I turned it off when you see Roosevelt Jr. Taking a dumb in a pitcher (and they showed it). Why?! What's funny about this? Who would give them money to make this? Were they drunk or on acid when they made this?! I dunno--all I know is that after initially loving the film, I quickly tired of it and couldn't take any more.

Am willing to bet not one person of million who saw this movie has noted the reference to "World War I" during a scene that takes place in 1931. Since WWII did not begin until 8 years later, how did they know The Great War was "World War I"? The movie itself I thought was very funny, and enjoyed it. It's obligatory now that every third word has to be f this and f that, in order to accommodate the teenagers. Only thing is, for this moving, the teenagers likely would not be interested anyhow, never having even heard of President Roosevelt. I spoke with a young woman, "history major" in her high school senior class, and she had no idea what was Pearl Harbor, that it was attacked, etc. FDR...who's he?

I saw a screening of this in Portland and it is seriously one of the funniest films ever made. It reminded me of Airplane or Naked Gun. Partly because Barry Bostwick turns in a Leslie Nielson-esque performance, and more importantly, you believe him in the role of FDR. Don't get me wrong the dialogue is out of control and everything is played over the top, including the effects and werewolf costumes, but the cast seems to revel in it and act it out as if the words were Shakespeare. The surrounding cast around Bostwick really rose to level that he was playing his character, especially Ray Wise, Bruce McGill, and Ross Patterson. The filmmakers manage to pull off the low budget aspect and use it to bolster the film, so much so, that it seems like it was specifically written for that type of vibe. The film itself is extremely crass and involves blatant racism, but no one is safe from it. I for one LOVED this film and think it has the potential to be an instant cult classic, but I'm sure some people will be offended.

From the outset this film looks cheap and you might consider not bothering to watch it based on that but if you stick with it the great cast suck you into it's unbelievably ridiculous world. Barry Bostwick's performance Carry's the film. There's a lot of modern street talk that he manages to pull off, even though some of it is borderline to silly but at the same time he turns in some great speeches that would be worthy of a far more serious film.

There's not much point in explaining the film, it's far to daft to attempt an explanation but it works, that's mostly down to the cast, the production, direction is excellent too, given the low budget nature of the film they made the most of what they had.

After Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter another American president made his reputation defeating the great werewolf conspiracy to take over the world. I'll bet you didn't know that about Franklin D. Roosevelt also known as FDR: American Badass. With standards like these to live up to, no wonder future presidents have so much trouble.

It all starts when Governor FDR has a brush with a werewolf who bit him on the leg. Quick medical attention saved his life, but he was given a case of polio which left his legs paralyzed and shriveled. Also a definite turnoff for wife Eleanor played by Lin Shaye.

Barry Bostwick who plays FDR has the patrician accent, but a gutter sense of humor a lot like some of the low brow politicians who put him in the White House. After being diagnosed with polio he's relieved to hear his male member is still good for any kind of use he has in mind.

This was no accident however that a werewolf was on the grounds of Hyde Park. The leaders of Germany, Italy, and Japan are all werewolves and they've formed an axis to take over the world. FDR has a personal interest in ridding the world of this menace.

When war comes FDR takes the crusade to those werewolf powers and I do mean personally. Silver bullets have been issued to our troops on land and sea and air. In the end he gets the job done himself. A proactive war leader the way Lincoln was in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Speaking of Lincoln, when FDR is in a moment of crisis the White House butler tells him about George Washington's secret stash of hash. And while tripping out Kevin Sorbo as Lincoln gives him a trip like Peter Pan gave the Darling kids and Bostwick's duty is clear.

When I was young and growing with parents who lived through the Depression and World War II, FDR was one god like figure and you'd never see a film like this. Surviving people of the previous generation probably wouldn't appreciate this film and it's not the greatest comedy I've ever seen. Still a few laughs will be had.