Say what you want, but the disenfranchised are great subjects for comedy. The Farrelly brothers discovered long ago that you can milk laughs in any situation from the overweight and the elderly, among others.
So shame on you, David Spade, for turning what could have been groundbreaking material, using a classic bit of American comedy, into an far-from-funny mess. Jeff Foxworthy fans all over the world must be crying in their Miller High Lifes.
“Joe Dirt” concerns the adventures of a redneck. For those unfamiliar with the comedic gold of a “redneck,” they’re often associated with mullets and trailer parks.
Spade’s latest extended “Saturday Night Live” skit hits on every one of the stereotypes, with painfully bad aim.
Instead of providing the audience plenty of laughs at the downtrodden only to feel guilty about it later, Spade gives us a sob story.
Joe Dirt, as he has been called since his parents abandoned him at the Grand Canyon, is a disrespected soul working as a janitor. He lives in a boiler room, drives a jalopy and sports one of those oh-so-crazy mullets.
It takes a lot of talent to suck the humor from a bad haircut, but Spade gets help from a bored-looking Dennis Miller, who plays a radio shock jock so amazed by Joe’s ignorance, he invites him on the show.
What should have been five minutes of dead air turns into three days of the worst plot contrivances you’ll see.
Joe flashes back for nearly the entire movie to search for his parents. Along the way, he falls in love with Brandy (Brittany Daniel), befriends Clem (Christopher Walken) and gets into scuffles with Robby (Kid Rock).
Eventually, radio listeners across America fall in love with Joe. And with good reason.
The poor guy gets knocked around and falls from a tower. Things go so badly for him he even has a Dave Matthews Band tune for background music.
Unfortunately, with all the time spent feeling sorry for Joe, we forget to laugh. Spade puts too much effort into being lovable, and almost none into self-deprecation.
Joe’s struggle for acceptance in a mean world drowns out just about every attempt at being funny.
Spade, once the sly wit, forsakes the whole “sarcasm” thing for something a bit more marketable.
“Joe Dirt” is proudly presented by the makers of “Big Daddy” and “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo.” So it should appeal to those who like to hear Adam Sandler yell a lot and Rob Schneider look like a schmuck.
But “Saturday Night Live” movie fans will be sorely disappointed. As will rednecks looking for a hearty laugh at themselves.
And if you’re a David Spade fan, well, there’s not much anyone can do.
