For Your Consideration

I suppose comedy really resides in the eye (and gut) of the beholder, but I do not share the critical consensus that this latest from Christopher Guest and his repertory company is not up to the standard set by Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind. To me it’s very much of a piece, and of particular interest since it skewers the movie business and the whole Oscar mania. An idiotic piece of Southern schmaltz called Home for Purim starts to generate Oscar buzz while still in production, and several of the actors start to lose their sanity in lust for the golden, little ball-less man: Catherine O’Hara as the dying mother/queen Esther, Harry Shearer as the dad trying to make a comeback from his fame as the foot-long weenie in tv commercials for hot dogs, and Parker Posey (looking startlingly like Katherine Hepburn in period dress and coif) as the prodigal lesbian daughter returning to reconcile before her mother’s death. All the usual Guest troupers (plus new guests such as Ricky Gervais) march through, contributing their own largely-improvised cameos, and covering a lot of satirical ground in under 90 minutes. Frankly, some of the deleted scenes ought to have been included. Much of the satire is gentler than Borat’s but almost as cringe-worthy. This may not be the best Guest visitation, but I wager you would find your share of laughs here. (2006, dvd, n.) *7* (MC-68.)