Recently Reviewed

The Tripper

By JUSTIN CHANG

'The Tripper'

A Coquette Prods. release presented in association with RAW Entertainment and Na Vinci Films. Produced by Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Evan Astrowsky, Neil Machlis, Navin Narang. Executive producers, Jay Cannold, Craig Cannold, Thomas Jane, Steve Niles. Co-producer, Rick Shephard. Directed by David Arquette. Screenplay, Arquette, Joe Harris.
 
With: Richmond Arquette, Paz De La Huerta, Balthazar Getty, Redmond Gleeson, Lukas Haas, Stephen Heath, Brad Hunt, Thomas Jane, Jaime King, Jason Mewes, Christopher Nelson, Paul Reubens, Marsha Thomason.
 

Bloodthirsty moviegoers who felt President Reagan's legacy was viewed through rose-colored lenses after his death may draw some twisted consolation from "The Tripper," a low-budget horror-satire that gleefully tosses hippies, rednecks and all manner of bizarre political notions into a woodland bloodbath. Apart from the memorably grisly image of a chainsaw-wielding maniac wearing a Reagan mask, David Arquette's directorial debut is a mostly dull-blade exercise that offers little to think or scream about, and will likely satisfy a few schlock addicts in theaters en route to DVD paydirt.

With a resume that includes the "Scream" trilogy, a WCW world heavyweight championship and a shingle with wife Courteney Cox (his producing partner on FX's "Dirt" and this film), Arquette is certainly one of Hollywood's oddest renaissance men. Still, the combo of political carpet-bombing and old-school bloodletting in "The Tripper" makes for a fascinating first feature, even if the pic's attempt to merge carnage with content eventually runs off the rails.

Brief but bloody prologue is set in a heavily forested region of North Carolina in 1967. A disturbed young boy, nursing a bizarre obsession with Reagan (then governor of California), applies a chainsaw to the neck of an environmental activist during a tree-huggers' protest. (Talk about slashing and burning.)

Fast-forward to the present day, as three couples, all hippies in their 20s, are on their way to a Woodstock-esque music festival in that same patch of forest. Naturally, they encounter trouble -- first from a trio of hicks (one of whom is played by Arquette), then from a maniacal killer with a disturbing resemblance to the Gipper and an alarming array of sharp instruments.

For anyone who's ever wanted to see a bunch of 'shroom-smoking, free-love-espousing flower children get picked off one by one, "The Tripper" has undeniable appeal. But the cynical script by Arquette and Joe Harris also has various axes to grind with conservatives, the Iraq War and, most pointedly (and absurdly), Reagan's policies toward mental patients. Don't be fooled by the semi-serious veneer; this is a movie whose idea of political humor is an attack dog named Nancy.

Perfs are strictly functional, though Thomas Jane provides a reliable anchor as a local sheriff and Paul Reubens is suitably ratty as a hardened capitalist in beatnik's clothing. As a disturbed hippie heroine, Jaime King spends most of the pic flailing about in an acid-induced haze; the visual-effects team follows suit by OD-ing on swirly, kaleidoscopic colors.

Full-frontal nudity and bright, ketchup-hued entrails give the pic its exploitation-movie cred, though actual scares are virtually nonexistent. Tech package is modest but decent.

. Camera (FotoKem color), Bobby Bukowski; editor, Glenn Garland; music, Jimmy Haun, Dave Wittman; additional music, Fishbone; music supervisor, Amanda Scheer Demme; production designer, Linda Burton; art director, Christopher M. Ridino; costume designer, Van Ramsey; sound (Dolby Digital), David MacMillan; supervising sound editor, Trip Brock; sound designer, Peter Lago; re-recording mixers, Kelly Vandever, Mark Rozott; visual effects, David Bledny, David Berry; stunt coordinator, John Molo; associate producers, Jeff Rowland, Cheryl Spencer; assistant director, Curtis A. Smith Jr.; casting, Johanna Ray. Reviewed on DVD, Los Angeles, April 18, 2007. MPAA Rating: R. Running time: 97 MIN.