By Robert Scucci
| Updated 6 seconds ago

1991’s Killer Nerd is exactly what it sounds like. If you need me to spell it out in a little more detail, it’s about a nerd… who kills people. That’s literally the whole thing. It’s Revenge of the Nerd, singular. But what is he getting revenge for? That’s the problem with films like Killer Nerd: this guy’s life isn’t great because he goes out of his way to make it not great. And when he realizes things aren’t going well for him, he gets very angry and makes everybody else pay for it.

Sometimes you get lucky and stumble across a film that functions as a form of wish fulfillment. Revenge arcs, or stories about somebody taking matters into their own hands, are inherently satisfying because you can live vicariously through these characters. Killer Nerd is no such movie because you go into the film hating the guy, and only continue to like him less as you get to know him better.

It’s Always The Quiet Ones

Killer Nerd tells the story of Harold Kunkle (Toby Radloff), a socially awkward misfit with no friends, no romantic prospects, and a domineering mother whose character archetype will be familiar to anybody who knows serial killer lore.

At work, Harold is ignored by his crush Sally (Heidi Lohr) and constantly mocked by his coworker Jeff (Richard Zaynor). On his way to and from work, he’s tormented by drug dealers TJ (Niko DePofi) and Leelee (Tony Zanoni).

One night, while moping around, Harold sees an infomercial for Slick Dicks’ School of Cool, which, for the low, low price of $79.95, promises to turn him into a babe magnet, or something to that effect. The biggest takeaway from the tapes is that Harold should get a cool (read: terrible) haircut and dress like a washed-up lounge singer. 

As you’d expect, Harold’s sudden makeover, along with his attempts to be too cool for school, is not received well, which only leads to more bullying. Harold then learns that Sally and Jeff are hooking up, and even the two women he meets at a nightclub while sporting his new look, Jenny (Lori Scarlett) and Lilac (Elizabeth Quinn), are similarly repulsed by him.

Refusing to be “that guy” anymore, Harold snaps and, as the title suggests, becomes the Killer Nerd we’ve been waiting for.

That’s Really All There Is To It

If you’re looking for a slow buildup of rage that leads to its obvious and inevitable conclusion, Killer Nerd might be a satisfying watch. Personally, I could never get fully invested because there’s really nothing to latch onto. Harold starts off as a bitter, lonely man, and the movie ends with him as a bitter, lonely man who’s now also a murderer. It never quite makes it into full slasher territory, but his rampage does come with a considerable body count. 

Some of the kills, which look terrible thanks to the film’s $12,000 budget, are fun because Toby Radloff fully commits to the carnage. The problem is that there’s never a moment where Harold is remotely likeable. A couple of pithy one-liners could have elevated it, but what we get is a bumbling Harold who can barely hold it together. 

His “makeover” reminds me of the time in South Park when Cartman tries to act nice, but instead just wears a nice sweater. When he’s called out on the fact that dressing nice and acting nice are two different things, he shrugs and admits he doesn’t know the difference. You get that same kind of clueless energy in Killer Nerd, but since Cartman is a lovable sociopath and Harold is just… Harold, the humor doesn’t land as much as I would have liked.

At the end of the day, Killer Nerd is pretty terrible. When you consider its production budget and the overall chaotic energy everybody brings to the table, there’s an undeniable charm because it plays like a group of friends with no filmmaking experience trying to make a feature-length film. It reminded me of the times my friends and I would film skits just to pass the time, and that nostalgia was cool. But I’d be lying if I said the quality, and the juvenile sense of humor we celebrated, wasn’t about the same as what you see in Killer Nerd.

As of this writing, Killer Nerd is streaming free on Tubi.

By Robert Scucci
| Updated 37 seconds ago

Shortly after Louis C.K.’s aptly titled 2017 special, 2017, made waves, he all but disappeared from the limelight. After publicly acknowledging the several sexual misconduct allegations that were made against him, he made himself scarce, and that was appropriate given the circumstances. While I don’t approve of the behavior that rightfully landed him in hot water, I was still bummed to hear the news because his specials leading up to the controversies are among my all-time favorites. I also don’t follow celebrity gossip too closely, so when the news broke, it took me by surprise.

His decade-long run from 2007 to 2017 is a masterclass in stand-up comedy, and his five-season run with his semi-autobiographical sitcom, Louie, was what I always considered to be a perfected version of the Seinfeld formula. And then, for a while, there was nothing. At least nothing that was widely available outside of his personal website.

While his latest special, Ridiculous, marks his return to Netflix, and I think it’s a solid follow-up to 2017 on the streaming giant, it pales in comparison to the run of lesser-known specials he released between his Netflix stints: Sincerely Louis CK, Sorry, Louis C.K. at The Dolby, and Back to the Garden.

It’s not that Ridiculous is a lackluster effort on C.K.’s part either. I think the issue is that if you haven’t been following his career closely and are only familiar with the material that’s available through Netflix, you have about a decade’s worth of blanks to fill, and he’s also that much older. His delivery is, as you would expect, more subdued, and his sense of humor is more morose than ever. It’s still classic Louis C.K., but he’s now very aware of mortality, especially his own as he approaches his 60s.

Ridiculous Is A Total Bummer

Don’t let the subheading fool you because Louis C.K.’s comedy has always been depressing, and that’s a feature, not a bug. When he was regularly belting out hour-long specials, there was a sense of energy and momentum that sucked you in because he was apparently at the top of the world, and there was no real indication that he’d ever have to pump the brakes. The sense of self-loathing came off as played up for comedic effect because he, and everybody else, knew he was in the freakin’ zone. It was an epic run that nobody can deny.

And then nothing for a while, unless you were on his mailing list and paying close attention.

With Ridiculous, Louis C.K. comes off as humbled, older, and wiser, but also more cynical than ever. Most of his bits center around aging, placing his father in a retirement home with the help of his siblings, dating at 58 years old, and how the puffy bags under his eyes are so big that he has tan lines from them. If you’ve been out of the mix for a while, it’s jarring because in 2017 he had a bounce in his step and a relatively positive outlook on life, all things considered. You don’t see much of that in Ridiculous, but it’s also not coming from a “woe is me” kind of place.

It’s the same brand of humor you’re used to if you enjoyed his specials in the aughts and 2010s, but it also brings the same feeling you get when you haven’t seen a distant relative in a long time and, when you finally meet up, time has clearly taken its toll. I think that’s what was most jarring for me while watching Ridiculous.

A Return To Form, But The Form Has Changed

That is all to say that Louis C.K. is still doing what he does best in Ridiculous. But without the context of the self-released specials that bridged the gap between his Netflix runs, I could see this being a rough watch for the reasons above. If you were drawn to C.K.’s cynical humor back in the day, you’ll feel right at home here.

The problem is that his comedy is often confessional, or hinged on exaggerated versions of his own life, and without filling in the blanks from those lost years, you may feel like you’re missing out. It’s not that the humor is particularly high-brow or complex, but it is cumulative. Jumping into Ridiculous as a follow-up to 2017 will leave you wanting more, and it’s up to you to decide whether you want to support him directly by purchasing those self-released specials.

Louis C.K.: Ridiculous is a Netflix Original and can be streamed with an active subscription.

By Robert Scucci
| Updated 10 seconds ago

Did you know that Christian Slater, Val Kilmer, and Verne Troyer starred in a 2002 direct-to-video heist film called Hard Cash? I do, because it’s streaming on Tubi, and that’s where I live when I’m seeking out entertainment. It tells the story of a botched robbery that spirals far beyond out of control before pushing into increasingly ridiculous territory as matters continue to escalate.

The talent involved in Hard Cash is what’s most baffling because everybody brings the goods, but the story beats themselves are so far beyond saving that it’s a bit of a chore to slog through. The action sequences are low budget, and the dialogue is wooden at times, but there’s still enough charisma to keep you interested well into the third act.

I can’t in good conscience say that Hard Cash is a terrible movie because it isn’t. But it pains me to see how much potential is wasted on what could have otherwise been a solid crime comedy. In an alternate reality, I imagine a fully realized version of this movie that’s far superior to what we ended up getting: a high-stakes kidnapping story involving one man’s shot at redemption and going legit, with a healthy amount of comic relief hanging in the balance to keep things light when the going gets tough.

Instead, we get… this.

Immediately Makes No Sense, And Continues That Way

What’s most troubling about Hard Cash involves the logistics we’re supposed to get behind. When convicted thief Thomas Taylor (Christian Slater) gets released on parole, he’s immediately up to his old tricks and finds what he thinks is the perfect job: robbing an off-track betting office owned by mobster Bo Young (William Forsythe). He uses his paramedic job as a front to get close to the operation, which makes absolutely no sense. Correct me if I’m wrong, but if you’re just getting out of prison, it’s highly unlikely you can immediately fall back into this line of work.

I’m not saying criminals can’t be rehabilitated, contributing members of society who work these kinds of jobs, but the timeline here doesn’t add up by any stretch of the imagination. At least, there’s no scenario I can think of where a convicted felon immediately starts working as a first responder, regardless of their vocational history before getting thrown behind bars.

The money from the robbery ends up being marked, meaning a money laundering front needs to be set up. Working with his old crew, Thomas lays low and figures out his next move, but matters get complicated quickly when corrupt FBI Agent Mark C. Cornell (Val Kilmer), who had similar plans to rip off Bo, decides the best course of action is to kidnap Thomas’ daughter Megan (Holliston Coleman), who had been living under the care of Paige (Sara Downing), Thomas’ girlfriend, until his release.

What we get from this point forward is essentially a montage of misguided decisions, corruption, betrayal, and running from the law. Every once in a while, Verne Troyer’s Atilla, who’s working in collusion with the Russian mob (that’s a whole other can of worms), pops out of a suitcase with a gun because the Russians are also after the same stack of cash everybody else wants.

Oh, What Could Have Been

Hard Cash goes off the rails once it’s established because there are simply too many cooks in the kitchen. We have an ex-con trying to save his daughter from a corrupt FBI agent who’s after the same money he stole from a mobster, which is also the same money the Russians are after. Right in the middle of it all is a sweet little girl who doesn’t want her dad to steal anymore. In my mind, this is perfect “comedy of errors” territory, but the problem is that the film plays everything completely straight.

In a parody or straight-up action comedy context, Hard Cash could have thrived because the entire plot is inherently insane, and it should have leaned into that energy whenever the opportunity presented itself. There’s comic relief here, sure, but for a movie reportedly made for less than $5 million, Hard Cash would have benefited from embracing the camp instead of trying to establish itself as a balls-to-the-wall action thriller.

While I really want to rail on Hard Cash for failing to meet its potential, it remains a fun, action experiment that earns its keep thanks to the talent involved. Its biggest failing is that it doesn’t know what lane to stay in, and its attempts at seriousness are constantly undermined by the comedy it should have embraced.

As of this writing, you can stream Hard Cash for free on Tubi.