Greg the Bunny - Best of the Film Parodies
The world probably does not need yet another parody ofPulp Fiction,Easy Rider, orThe Godfather. But if profane and perverse puppets perform them, well, then one more wouldn't hurt! Cats aren't the only ones with multiple lives. Greg the Bunny has gone from New York public-access-TV cult fave to Independent Film Channel interstitial personality tofailed sitcomstar. But there is life after Fox. Greg, along with Warren the ape and Count Blah, returned to IFC to contribute twisted takes on movies. This two-disc set contains 14 parodies that brilliantly capture the essence of such auteurs as Woody Allen (whoseAnnie Hallis recast as a love story between Greg and a lobster), Oliver Stone (Natural Born Killers), and, in the insanely creepy "Daddyhood," David Lynch (Eraserhead). Most of the approximately 15-minute episodes are funny on their own. You don't have to have seenAuto Focusto enjoy "Sex, Button Eyes, and a Video Ape," which charts Greg's Bob Crane-like descent into homemade video porn addiction. But it does help to be well versed in the Coen brothers' oeuvre to fully appreciate "Ya Know, for Kids," which comes complete with references toRaising Arizona's yodeling soundtrack,Miller's Crossing's John Turturro "squirting a few" to avoid execution, andFargo's infamous woodchipper. There are cheap laughs in hearing puppets drop the F-bomb, and inherent shock value in depictions of puppet sex , but in the best episodes, the genius is in the details that invite repeated viewings. In "Sex, Button Eyes, and a Video Ape," for example, there is a fleeting glimpse on a barroom TV ofShadow of the Vampire, starring Willem Dafoe, who also co-starred inAuto Focus. And it's a truly inspired moment in "The Godpappy" to cast Kermit the frog in the Johnny Fontaine part, crying to Don Blah how he can't get an audition with Jim Henson. Welcome back, Greg. It is comforting to know that you can't keep a good bunny down.--Donald Liebenson