An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn

An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn

Watched on Blu-Ray

It was quite a lot that the British director and scriptwriter Jim Hosking put you through when he dipped an old man in fat and then went on a manhunt in his first feature film "The Greasy Strangler". A film event that you may not have had to like, but it left a big impression.

So big, in fact, that Hosking's second feature film features a surprising number of well-known actors. Well, Aubrey Plaza is known for not being too shy for fun and is also familiar to a genre audience thanks to productions like "The Little Hours" and "Legion". She is joined by Jemaine Clement, with whom she already worked in "Legion", and Craig Robinson. These two are also no strangers to this somewhat heartier and more offbeat form of humour. Only Emile Hirsch falls a little out of the cast frame, is actually less known for comedies. Especially not comedies like this. But he too obviously had fun testing the limits of normality.

Compared to its predecessor, "An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn" is still comparatively ordinary, almost mainstream. So Hoskings actually has a story to tell this time. You just have to wait a bit for it. Before the film turns into the home stretch and reveals more about what this titular gentleman with the woman's name is all about, there is first a lengthy courtship over the money. This could almost be called a crime comedy, if only all the people here weren't so terribly stupid. Whether they are busy making idiosyncratic dance moves or proving their masculinity to each other, everyone here is deliberately weird to the point of being stupid.

Speaking of masculinity, you'd better not have a problem with a more hairy male chest. Because it is often and gladly held up to the camera. Otherwise, however, "An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn" is much less tasteful than the greasy serial killer. Where Hosking two years earlier relied heavily on the gross-out factor to drown out the minimalist story, in the film released in 2018 he exclusively gives final vent to the retro bias he already displayed back then. When exactly the film is to take place is not revealed. But one may feel transported back in time a few decades in view of the disconcerting facial hair and conspicuous clothing.

That is not without charm. And at least now and then, "An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn" is actually funny in its surreal impression and the lustfully exaggerated depictions. Particularly since Hosking has meanwhile moved away somewhat from wanting to constantly ride the jokes to death. Once again, he doesn't manage without repetition, but this time it's less noticeable. The fact that the story of a broken couple is at least partly worth seeing is of course also thanks to Plaza, who not only shows off her now perfected passive-aggressive alter ego here, but also brings a surprising emotionality. This is still not enough to make it an actually good film, because the whole thing drags too much for that. But it is quite watchable - although it is unclear whether that is a compliment or an insult.

Block or Report

IronWatcher liked this review

' ].join(''); if ( adsScript && adsScript === 'bandsintown' && adsPlatforms && ((window.isIOS && adsPlatforms.indexOf("iOS") >= 0) || (window.isAndroid && adsPlatforms.indexOf("Android") >= 0)) && adsLocations && adsMode && ( (adsMode === 'include' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) >= 0) || (adsMode === 'exclude' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) == -1) ) ) { var opts = { artist: "", song: "", adunit_id: 100005950, div_id: "cf_async_6abffe9c-69d4-4927-acbd-d2eacacaa03e" }; adUnit.id = opts.div_id; if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } var c=function(){cf.showAsyncAd(opts)};if(typeof window.cf !== 'undefined')c();else{cf_async=!0;var r=document.createElement("script"),s=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];r.async=!0;r.src="//srv.tunefindforfans.com/fruits/apricots.js";r.readyState?r.onreadystatechange=function(){if("loaded"==r.readyState||"complete"==r.readyState)r.onreadystatechange=null,c()}:r.onload=c;s.parentNode.insertBefore(r,s)}; } else { adUnit.id = 'pw-6abffe9c-69d4-4927-acbd-d2eacacaa03e'; adUnit.className = 'pw-div -tile300x250 -alignleft -bottommargin'; adUnit.setAttribute('data-pw-' + (renderMobile ? 'mobi' : 'desk'), 'med_rect_btf'); if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', (event) => { adUnit.insertAdjacentHTML('afterend', kicker); window.ramp.que.push(function () { window.ramp.addTag('pw-6abffe9c-69d4-4927-acbd-d2eacacaa03e'); }); }, { once: true }); } } tag.remove(); })(document.getElementById('script-6abffe9c-69d4-4927-acbd-d2eacacaa03e'));
' ].join(''); if ( adsScript && adsScript === 'bandsintown' && adsPlatforms && ((window.isIOS && adsPlatforms.indexOf("iOS") >= 0) || (window.isAndroid && adsPlatforms.indexOf("Android") >= 0)) && adsLocations && adsMode && ( (adsMode === 'include' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) >= 0) || (adsMode === 'exclude' && adsLocations.indexOf(window.adsLocation) == -1) ) ) { var opts = { artist: "", song: "", adunit_id: 100005950, div_id: "cf_async_0d6339b4-1cf7-4d6d-ae5c-f2b84c73e5b8" }; adUnit.id = opts.div_id; if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } var c=function(){cf.showAsyncAd(opts)};if(typeof window.cf !== 'undefined')c();else{cf_async=!0;var r=document.createElement("script"),s=document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0];r.async=!0;r.src="//srv.tunefindforfans.com/fruits/apricots.js";r.readyState?r.onreadystatechange=function(){if("loaded"==r.readyState||"complete"==r.readyState)r.onreadystatechange=null,c()}:r.onload=c;s.parentNode.insertBefore(r,s)}; } else { adUnit.id = 'pw-0d6339b4-1cf7-4d6d-ae5c-f2b84c73e5b8'; adUnit.className = 'pw-div'; adUnit.setAttribute('data-pw-' + (renderMobile ? 'mobi' : 'desk'), 'sky_btf'); if (target) { target.insertAdjacentElement('beforeend', adUnit); } else { tag.insertAdjacentElement('afterend', adUnit); } window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', (event) => { adUnit.insertAdjacentHTML('afterend', kicker); window.ramp.que.push(function () { window.ramp.addTag('pw-0d6339b4-1cf7-4d6d-ae5c-f2b84c73e5b8'); }); }, { once: true }); } } tag.remove(); })(document.getElementById('script-0d6339b4-1cf7-4d6d-ae5c-f2b84c73e5b8'));