The Big White

Amazon.com

In The Big White, a failing Alaskan travel agent hopes he's found the answer to his problems when a couple of thugs leave a dead body in a dumpster outside his business. The lack of a body has prevented Paul Barnell (Robin Williams, The Birdcage, One Hour Photo) from claiming his missing brother's life insurance. Unfortunately, the thugs who dumped the body in the first place (Tim Blake Nelson, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and W. Earl Brown, Deadwood) want it back, so they kidnap Barnell's wife (Holly Hunter, Raising Arizona), who may or may not have Tourette's Syndrome. Meanwhile, an obsessive insurance agent (Giovanni Ribisi, Saving Private Ryan) smells something fishy and thinks he's found the case that will get him and his phone psychic girlfriend (Alison Lohman, White Oleander) transferred to warmer climes, and Barnell's long-missing brother (Woody Harrelson, White Men Can't Jump) returns, a bit perturbed to learn he's dead. The Big White suffers from an overload of quirkiness--phone psychics, Tourette's, and possibly gay hit men are a lot of whimsy for one movie--but the actors commit themselves to their roles with gusto. The movie misses the bullseye that Fargo hit, but fans of macabre comedy may enjoy The Big White. --Bret Fetzer

Product Description

Outstanding performances are delivered by an all-star cast in this quirky black comedy centered on Paul Barnell (Robin Williams), a down on his luck Alaska travel agent who's on the brink of bankruptcy and whose beloved wife, Margaret (Holly Hunter), is on the brink of insanity. Special Features include: Behind the Scenes Featurette, and Photo Gallery.

Customer Reviews:

Check Out "The Big Empty" Instead.......2007-09-11

I don't need much of a budget to write a review of a film, only a little bit of my time for watching and writing. That said, I'm confident that if I had "The Big White's" $16 Million budget, indie director's dream cast, and lame "Fargo" inspired script; I could have made a better and more entertaining film. My first move would have been to throw some of the budget into a major script re-write, maybe just sending the thing off to the Coen brothers themselves for a quick IQ transfusion.

The "Fargo" rip-off comparisons are valid, but that does not mean that there is much about "The Big White" with which "Fargo" fans will connect. The similarities are pretty much confined to setting (Alaska instead of Minnesota), production design (white), and basic plot elements (two bumbling hoods, financially desperate businessman, kidnapped and bound wife), and a side story featuring an odd domestic couple (an insurance investigator instead of a female sheriff).

The "Fargo" disconnects are more subtle. Instead of a crime thriller with black comedy elements, "The Big White" is a black comedy with crime thriller elements. Which would not be a problem except that "Fargo's" occasional ironic comical moments have several times more amusement value than "The Big White's" frenzied efforts to inject some humor.

Secondly, on its most fundamental level "The Big White" is mean spirited. While "Fargo" parodied the great white north culture of Minnesota, the characters themselves were comfortable inhabitants of their strange white world; they had grown up there and were well suited to their environment. In "The Big White", the conflict and the character motivations stem from a desire to escape from a remote Alaskan town that seemingly has no virtues.

In The Big White, a failing Alaskan travel agency owner (Robin Williams playing his Jack Dundee character from "The Best of Times-1986) schemes to collect on his missing brother's life insurance policy by claiming that a dead body in finds in a dumpster is that of his brother. Things become complicated when two bumbling (possibly gay) hoods (Tim Blake Nelson and W. Earl Brown) kidnap his wife (Holly Hunter) because they need the body to prove that they have carried out a contract killing. Hunter's character may or may not have Tourette's Syndrome, a psychological condition which may or may not have comic potential in a feature film. But we will have to wait for a better script and a better to director to find out because the results are inconclusive here.

The main side story involves an obsessive insurance investigator (Giovanni Ribisi) and his air- headed telephone psychic girlfriend (Alison Lohman). Their scenes together provide the film's best moments and the only times when it manages to duplicate "Fargo's" almost poetic humor. Ribisi is solid in all his scenes and you wish a bigger part for Lohman.

If you like small off-kilter films (with big name actors having fun with their performances) you would be far better served by "Dummy" (2002) and "The Big Empty" (2003). "The Big White" tries for the feel of these two films but falls short.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

Excellent film marred by ridiculous ending........2007-08-09

This film is a Coen Brothers wannabe. Quirky characters abound, and there are two dead bodies. The characters and the plot are very interesting, especially with heavy hitters like Robin Williams, Holly Hunter, and Woody Harrelson.

The climactic scene ties up all the loose ends in a neat and tidy package, but I found the staging quite artificial and contrived, for which I am docking the movie's rating. A man passes a dead body he finds in a dumpster off as his brother, who has been missing for 5 years, in order to collect on his brother's life insurance policy. Meanwhile, the two-bit hoods who killed the guy need a body to prove they carried out their assigned hit so they kidnap the man's wife and set up and exchange; his wife for the body. Once they complete the exchange, everyone just stands around waiting, and this was the part I found very contrived. No one would be hanging around after they did such an exchange. I don't appreciate movies in which the characters do stupid things that no reasonable person would do.

Worth watching despite the ending.

Very unique movie!.......2007-07-23

Robin Williams and Holly Hunter are always great, but the supporting parts make the movie. Very intriguing and surprising story line. Not for young children.

black and white .......2007-01-12

the big white is a black comedy shot in a white setting....just like life.

This genre is one of my favorites and in spite of it's flaws this film does not disappoint.
Other reviewers have written of the plot and summarized the story but I don't think they give the dialogue the credit it deserves nor the commentary on topics such as love,psychics,syndromes,relationships etc.
Sure there were flaws and the ending was a bit corny but with all the laugh out loud moments it was worth it.

Great Performances In A Picture That Tries Really, Really, Really Hard To Be Both Outrageous And Lovable.......2006-12-28

Mark Mylod's largest film to date has been "Ali G Indahouse," a sporadically funny (but often silly) Sasha Baron Cohen character picture. For those now on a "Borat" high, you might want to catch up on another Cohen creation. Ali G can be an amusing hip-hop poser, but the film done as a conventional narrative lacks much of "Borat"'s imagination or ingenuity. So, several years later, it's impressive that he has aligned a cast of such magnitude as was assembled for the black comedy "The Big White." We've got Robin Williams, Holly Hunter, Woody Harrelson, Tim Blake Nelson, Giovanni Ribisi, and Alison Lohman in a comedy of murder, kidnapping, insurance fraud, phone psychics, and mental illness. Set in a small Alaskan hamlet, many people would like to compare this film to "Fargo." While the film shares some of the same comic sensibilities and a similar wintry locale, it's kind of like comparing "Casablanca" to "Pretty Woman." Both films may have a certain appeal, but they are definitely in different leagues.

Williams plays a down-on-his-luck travel agent with financial difficulties and a wife with Tourette's (Hunter). Needing cash, he tries to collect on his missing brother's insurance policy. Ribisi, as the insurance investigator, informs him that his brother has not been missing long enough to be considered legally dead and there's nothing that can be done. In a coincidence, a couple of amateur hitmen dump a body in the dumpster outside Williams' agency. Williams, on discovering the corpse, masterminds a plot to get his brother declared dead. The hitmen, then, are ordered to retrieve the body (which is now missing) and all types of mayhem ensues.

I will say that "The Big White" has a lot going for it, and I can imagine some people really enjoying it. For myself, however, the picture was always trying too hard to be outrageous--it's not grounded in the reality, heart, and subtlety that accompanied "Fargo." Yet it isn't played as an outright comedy either, it does expect you to care about the characters (which I really didn't, except as a mild diversion). I give all the actors credit for giving robust and committed performances. While not a huge Ribisi fan, I actually thought this was one of his better performances. And Tim Blake Nelson, as one of the hitmen, continues to be an underrated presence in any movie. A few words for Holly Hunter, whom I miss as a major actress. She is appealing, as always, in a cringeworthy conception--the Tourette's as a "cute" disease syndrome.

There are plenty of funny bits, some macabre humor--but there is so much going on (there's another story involving Ribisi's home life, and then there's Harrelson), the picture always felt slightly off balance. I certainly didn't regret watching "The Big White," it just never engaged me the way I wanted it too. A mild recommendation (especially if you like the actors), it might be a slight and enjoyable romp for you. About 3 1/2 stars. KGHarris, 12/06.

Average customer rating:

Very Funny
Hilarious

The Big Black Comedy Show 2
Starring: Mo'Nique , Rodman , Sexy Marlo , Ralphie May , and Vince Morris
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

General | African American Cinema | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( B ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Comedy | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B0007PAM42
Release Date: 2005-05-24

Description

The Big Black Comedy Show Vol. 2 is the second in a series of DVD films of large venue, live comedy concerts. Volume 2 is hosted by Mo'Nique with co-host Rodney Perry and features a talented lineup of today's most popular African-American comics.

Customer Reviews:

Very Funny.......2007-05-18

This was one of the best comedy shows I've seen! Not too vulgar and very funny, especially the last two comedians.

Hilarious.......2007-01-19

I have watched this so many times now. It is by far the best of the series. It is really really funny.

DVD:

DVD

DVD