"
oh my god , i sounded just like a mother !
" mrs .
pascal , played with devilish wickedness by genevieve bujold , tells her son .
"
did n't i sound just like a mother ? "
" you are a mother , " her son marty tells her disgustedly .
"
i know , but i still ca n't believe it .
i look at you people and wonder , how did you ever fit in my womb ?
"
marty , you see , is a grown - up twin .
although his sister , who thinks she is jackie - o , is certifiably insane , marty fits right in with the rest of this highly dysfunctional family in the witty black comedy the house of yes . mother and daughter , played in a brilliant performance by parker posey , are both varying degrees of wacko .
most dysfunctional families in the movies are more angry and mean - spirited than diabolically abnormal as this one is .
the daughter 's fantasy of being jackie - o is probably the most sane part of her being .
mrs .
pascal is the sort that will not let
jackie - o keep a hairbrush downstairs since food is kept on that level .
she explains to marty 's new fiancee , lesly ( tori spelling ) , soon after their first meeting that jackie - o was holding marty 's private part when she came out of the womb .
the dialog by wendy macleod , based on the play by mark waters , is so sharp and biting that it seems in danger of cutting through the celluloid at any moment .
the script , reminiscent of a david mamet play , flows smoothly with its fast paced intelligence and mesmerizing set of bizarre characters .
the exaggerated setup has lesly and marty arriving at the family 's out of the way mansion during a thanksgiving day hurricane .
in this storm are two sane individuals .
the fiancee is a giddy , school - girl type , embarrassed by everything , a complete contrast to her rival jackie - o 's bitter pseudo - sophistication .
as the two twins ' younger brother , anthony , freddie prinze jr .
plays the all - america boy type whose only foible is his explicit obsession of bedding his brother 's fiancee that night .
"
we all have our secrets , " jackie - o tells her potential sister - in - law , and boy , does she have a few .
this is a house filled with them .
( when lesly calls it the family 's " home " to mrs .
pascal
-- they 've never had a visitor before lesly -- mrs .
pascal becomes discombobulated until she realizes that lesly is talking about their " house . " ) in a film that gives new meaning to the phrase , " made for each other , " the twin 's biggest , but not their only secret , is that they 've had a long - term incestuous relationship .
they do n't like to discuss it , although they are not particularly ashamed of it .
perfect for viewers who can appreciate perverse comedy , this story never pulls its punches .
jackie - o tries in many ways , few subtle , to show that she is a better match for marty than that ditzy fiancee of his .
in one scene marty and lesly are playing chop sticks together on the piano when jackie - o pushes her aside and starts playing a challenging classical piece for four hands .
marty joins her as his fiancee looks on with envy .
the chemistry between parker posey and josh hamilton is nothing short of amazing .
they put down their little brother and most of the other sane people in the world .
their ripostes are engaging filmmaking at its best .
director mark waters keeps the show 's energy level high and lets the leads sling zingers at each other at a furious pace .
his crisp direction ensures the movie has nary an ounce of fat on it .
jackie - o is temperamentally incapable of being nice .
and being jealous , she cuts lesly down mercilessly .
" were you poor ?
"
jackie - o asks her when she finds that lesly committed the crime of growing up impoverished .
"
did you eat pies ?
chicken pot pies ? "
" pancakes actually , lots of pancakes , " lesly replies with her usual sincerity .
" a donut king , so is she like the queen ? , " jackie - o cattily inquires of marty when she learns that lesly works at a donut king .
" are we entertaining royalty ?
" with rolfe kent 's whimsically sinister music it never seems clear where the story is headed .
will it end in a big emotional explosion , a murder , people slowly cutting each other up with words , a familial catharsis , a weather disaster or what ? the emotionally charged play is clearly going somewhere , and the engaging characters captivate the audience with their spell .
i 'll not say more except that the ending is perfect and a bit of a surprise .
the house of yes runs a blazing fast 1 : 25 .
it is rated r for sexual situations and conversations , mature themes , violent overtones and some profanity .
the movie would be fine for older and mature teenagers , i .
e .
, treat the movie as it were rated nc-17 .
Output: P