Fool's Fire

1992 TV movie

Rating: 16/20

Plot: See "Hop-Frog," by E.A. Poe.

Wanting to be a Michael J. Anderson 1992 film completist, I had to watch this television adaptation of E.A. Poe's "Hop-Frog" short story about a crippled dwarf jester getting revenge on a king and his court. It's one of Poe's whiny tales written as a not-so-subtle attack on his critics or literary enemies. If this movie has a weakness (other than the murkiness which might have been more of a problem with the YouTube version I watched), it's that it retains Poe's classical language which at times is a little awkward. Of course, without that, we wouldn't have gotten "Ah! A distressing odor! I seem to feel my bowel moving," and since that will likely replace "The smeller's the feller" or high-pitched giggling as my go-to after a particularly offensive unleashing of flatulence, I guess I'm glad the language is like that.

I'm also fond of "I say there is no arse-wiper like a well-downed goose. Take my word for it." I will, grotesque puppet. I will.

Did I mention this movie has puppets? There are essentially two human actors, and the rest of the cast is rounded out with these grotesque puppets. One scene even has the puppets (really people in costumes, I guess) watching a puppet show, and if you don't think I had an erection during that scene, you really don't know me at all. The puppets look cool, not far from characters you might expect to see in The Dark Crystal or something. They're definitely not your grandchildren's puppets.

This was Julie Taymor's debut, and the chances she's taking and allowed to take for a television movie always keep this interesting. She's visually creative, and this early work is no exception, especially evident in her transitions. I was all-in before hitting play because I knew this had both Michael J. Anderson and puppets, but the opening shot of a rat eating through a cloth or something to reveal the characters behind it would have hooked me anyway. Another great example is where she transforms a characters neck into a tree trunk.

Michael J. Anderson is terrific in this. There's one scene where he makes a chair and this has this shirtless meltdown accompanied by a looped wind noise, and it's just fantastic. If this guy doesn't win my Billy Curtis award this year, something is probably wrong. His love interest is played by Mireille Mosse whom you would likely recognize from City of Lost Children. She's also really great!

I don't know if I did a good enough job selling this one, but it's highly recommended.