Winner of the audience feature award at the 1999 Slamdance festival, Adam Abraham and Gibson Frazier's "Man of the Century" is a swell cinematic scoop, featuring Frazier as a peppy, fast-talking journalist who appears to have popped out of a time machine from the 1920s. Screened by the American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre in Park City, Utah, in an evening showcasing Slamdance winners, "Man" looked fabulous on the big screen.
While an adventuresome distributor might enjoy limited success with the swinging black-and-white farce, cable and festival playdates are a natural for this dizzy decade-bender.
Philadelphia-native Abraham's enthusiasm for the gab and garb of the Roaring Twenties is infectious, and with Frazier he has created a winning character surrounded by believable contemporary gals and guys in a tricky gambit that works like a charm.
Johnny Twennies (Frazier) writes a column for the lowly Sun-Telegram, a New York rag with a kindly but pressured editor who reluctantly gives the lead one last chance to break a major story or lose his job. Johnny's SoHo art-dealer girlfriend (Susan Egan) also gives him several chances to seduce her, but such things as 1990's increasingly lurid journalism and recreational sex are not part of his anachronistic persona and ethics (he doesn't drink alcohol because he believes prohibition is still in effect).
One glimpse of his mother, who is a 19th-century society matron straight out of an Edith Wharton book, and no further explanation of Johnny is required. He's just Johnny, with his three-piece suit, hat and post-World War I optimism, able to handle any emergency and insult with boundless energy and snappy comebacks.
In the course of the movie, Johnny is hounded by hapless thugs who try to force him to write a favorable column about their boss, resulting in the uncovering of a scandal. Occasionally sidetracked in the ensuing zaniness, he always has time to lead an impromptu musical number, or fidget the digit in his colorful parlance.
Many memorable characters come and go on the fly, with the fine cast filled out by the likes of Bobby Short, Marisa Ryan, Anthony Rapp, Frank Gorshin, Brian Davies and Dwight Ewell.
With homages to silent cinema throughout and such icons as Harold Lloyd in imaginative sequences, "Man of the Century" is a labor of love that pays off for those who appreciate vintage clothes, music and set designs. From Zeljka Pavlinovic's slick production design and Claudia Hill's natty costumes to Matthew Jensen's excellent cinematography and Frank Reynold's sharp editing, the film is visually the equal of Abraham and Frazier's delightful screenplay.
MAN OF THE CENTURY
Sun-Telegram Pictures
Director: Adam Abraham
Producers-screenwriters: Gibson Frazier, Adam Abraham
Director of photography: Matthew Jensen
Production designer: Zeljka Pavlinovic
Editor: Frank Reynolds
Costume designer: Claudia Hill
Music: Michael Weiner
Black and white/stereo
Cast:
Johnny Twennies: Gibson Frazier
Samantha: Susan Egan
Running time -- 77 minutes
No MPAA rating...
While an adventuresome distributor might enjoy limited success with the swinging black-and-white farce, cable and festival playdates are a natural for this dizzy decade-bender.
Philadelphia-native Abraham's enthusiasm for the gab and garb of the Roaring Twenties is infectious, and with Frazier he has created a winning character surrounded by believable contemporary gals and guys in a tricky gambit that works like a charm.
Johnny Twennies (Frazier) writes a column for the lowly Sun-Telegram, a New York rag with a kindly but pressured editor who reluctantly gives the lead one last chance to break a major story or lose his job. Johnny's SoHo art-dealer girlfriend (Susan Egan) also gives him several chances to seduce her, but such things as 1990's increasingly lurid journalism and recreational sex are not part of his anachronistic persona and ethics (he doesn't drink alcohol because he believes prohibition is still in effect).
One glimpse of his mother, who is a 19th-century society matron straight out of an Edith Wharton book, and no further explanation of Johnny is required. He's just Johnny, with his three-piece suit, hat and post-World War I optimism, able to handle any emergency and insult with boundless energy and snappy comebacks.
In the course of the movie, Johnny is hounded by hapless thugs who try to force him to write a favorable column about their boss, resulting in the uncovering of a scandal. Occasionally sidetracked in the ensuing zaniness, he always has time to lead an impromptu musical number, or fidget the digit in his colorful parlance.
Many memorable characters come and go on the fly, with the fine cast filled out by the likes of Bobby Short, Marisa Ryan, Anthony Rapp, Frank Gorshin, Brian Davies and Dwight Ewell.
With homages to silent cinema throughout and such icons as Harold Lloyd in imaginative sequences, "Man of the Century" is a labor of love that pays off for those who appreciate vintage clothes, music and set designs. From Zeljka Pavlinovic's slick production design and Claudia Hill's natty costumes to Matthew Jensen's excellent cinematography and Frank Reynold's sharp editing, the film is visually the equal of Abraham and Frazier's delightful screenplay.
MAN OF THE CENTURY
Sun-Telegram Pictures
Director: Adam Abraham
Producers-screenwriters: Gibson Frazier, Adam Abraham
Director of photography: Matthew Jensen
Production designer: Zeljka Pavlinovic
Editor: Frank Reynolds
Costume designer: Claudia Hill
Music: Michael Weiner
Black and white/stereo
Cast:
Johnny Twennies: Gibson Frazier
Samantha: Susan Egan
Running time -- 77 minutes
No MPAA rating...
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