Tusk

"The walrus is far more evolved than any man I've ever known. Present company included." Howard Howe (Michael Parks)

Tusk may be the most accessibly bizarre film you will see this year. Writer/director Kevin Smith, not known for subtlety, has crafted a smart horror film that comments on humanity, relationships, and obsession. If you're not into philosophizing or theme hunting, you can still enjoy his expert use of horror-film tropes to satisfy your macabre urges.

Podcaster Wallace Bryton (Justin Long) travels to Manitoba to interview Howard Howe, an eccentric adventurer claiming to have great adventures to tell. Before long, Wallace is kidnapped by Howard for the purpose of transforming him into a walrus. That's weird, of course, but Parks and Smith make it a believable obsession, as John Lennon made the lyrics of I am the Walrus sound as if he actually was saying something profound. Based on the Lewis Carroll poem, the Walrus and the Carpenter, Lennon's lyrics picked the villain of the duo for his title while he really meant the good guy (the carpenter).

Anyway, the walrus motif here is part absurd and part profound, the latter relating to the reduction of a foul, motor-mouthed podcaster into the animal he really is (witness his blathering egotism with his girlfriend, Ally Genesis Rodriguez and his more important mockery of a YouTube self mutilator). For me, a dilettante compared to knowledgeable freak geeks, the makeup used in that Walrus bit is effective—so much so I had to look away even though it wasn't grotesque. It just fit perfectly in the man-is-an-animal theme.

Smith again shows his low-brow versatility when he humorously slams both Canadians: "I don't wanna die in Canada!" (Wallace Bryton) and Americans (see the carryout sequence).

For fans of the comedic horror genre of Andy Warhol's Frankenstein and Dracula, and for the brave souls who enjoyed the sickening chills of The Human Centipede, comes Kevin Smith's entry into the twisted and freakish. Sometimes hilarious, occasionally mysterious, and often dramatically thrilling, this small gem is quite out of the ordinary, and not for everyone, but it contains a robust script with a near plausible mad scientist story. Definitely for the art film crowd who tend to lean towards the chillingly wierd.

The very definition of "not for everyone", Tusk is an oddball, absurd, twisted midnight movie that plays more like a demented fever dream than a horror or comedy film. I'd never recommend it to anyone I intend to ever speak to again.

Here are the reasons why you won't like it:

1) It's unexpectedly surreal, with little interest in the laws of reality, or at least modern medicine and police work. And it's not directed in an obviously surreal, arty fashion like, say, a David Lynch picture, which makes it even harder to wrap your head around.

2) It's got an odd tone. There's comedy, sure, but it's mostly a slower, more cringe- inducing variety than Kevin Smith is typically known for. There's suspense, and a bit of gross-out, but the film evokes more unease than outright scares, and the grotesqueries are more evocative of a nightmare after eating one too many sliders than, say, Saw. And it swings freely between the two with no warning at all.

3) You haven't seen Tod Browning's "Freaks", a classic bit of cult cinema that Smith has made references to in other films. In fact, you probably don't even know it exists. (Cinephiles will notice rather direct references to many of Kev-O's other favorite movies as well, including Silence of the Lambs and Jaws.)

4) You're Canadian, and your country and culture are No Laughing Matter.

If for some reason none of the above applies to you, may I recommend "Tusk"? It's oddball, gonzo, at times self indulgent and slow, but also occasionally very funny and strangely thought-provoking, provided you're willing to go along for the ride. It'll make an impression...especially if your short-term memory "isn't what it used to be."

I watched when it first came out on DVD... Haven't watched since... bought the DVD... still in shrink wrap. This isn't to say I don't like the movie, but I don't know when I'm going to feel ready to 'attack that beast' again

It really opened up the important question - what WOULD you do if your partner were turned into a walrus?

Being from Bifrost Manitoba myself, the accents make no sense.. we sound nothing like them. That aside, this movie is so different and unique in it's own way. It creeped me out big time! Also some weird comedy included