directed by:
Alexander Cooper written by: Alexander Cooper genre: Comedy |
"Okay – so you're literally talking about big dicks?" #IWasEquallySurprised
Indeed we are! From the mind of director Alexander Cooper & the help of many interview guests, we've got "Big Dick Energy" in mockumentary form. Taking on a persona you might be familiar with, Alexander becomes Vladimir Putin, and for whatever reasons they might be that are somewhat unknown to us, he's on a one-man mission to get to the bottom of what BDE is really all about. If you haven't had a chance to Google the term yet, or possess it yourself in your daily life, you might benefit from this exploration into what "Big Dick Energy" is and what it isn't…and it'll probably help you to bring a sense of humor with you when you watch. This isn't knowledge that should go to waste, and you'll get to learn all about BDE from various perspectives in this discussion no one expected to have this year. All-in-all, "Big Dick Energy" is a lot to take in at once, so you might need to pace yourself. I can sit through quite a bit when it comes to what I watch personally, but I'd readily admit that a string of interviews can be one of the tougher challenges in that regard. Alexander plays this smart - by having such a range of guests with all kinds of personalities as well as many insights to contribute to this important conversation - including the Terminator himself. In addition to other celebrities that show up along the way, it still really takes some focus from the viewers' end to stick with it for the full ninety minutes. Much like the character of Putin doing the interviews, none of the celebrities are actually who they say they are, but you do see the similarities. With a little suspension of disbelief, you can have some fun along with them in this pretend documentary surrounding a discussion that most people would not have predicted they'd be having. To Alexander's credit, nothing we see seems scripted at all – which is great in the sense that you never really know what will come up as an answer in response to this bizarre topic of choice, but by that same token, it can also be what makes the film drag a bit in spots in terms of its pace. I liked how we never knew what would come next in this movie, who might appear in one interview after another, and that someone decided to make this zany film, to begin with! I spent half my time watching "Big Dick Energy" in awe of Alexander's commitment to this project. There are areas where I'm confident Cooper will continue to evolve and build on what he's capable of as a director, but when it comes to his dedication and ability to follow through, he's all aces. Is he the best Vladimir Putin impersonation I've ever seen or heard? No, not really…but I also don't think he was meant to be the movie's main focus so much as the vehicle for what little plot centered around. He's the host, and he serves the role in that regard well in keeping things moving, and he has some great questions for the guests that appear – but accent-wise and character-wise, he's a lot closer to something you'd find in a man on the street video, crossed with Borat, crossed with your Tik Tok videos. So it's honestly hard to say precisely how many folks out there will commit to watching "Big Dick Energy" despite the effort it takes to make something like this work. At the end of the day, Alexander would know better than anyone that a concept like this isn't going to BE for everyone, and I'm sure he's comfortable with that. If you want to come along for the ride, enjoy a bunch of people discussing some of the good ol' dirty topics right out in the open - instead of safely behind closed doors where this stuff is usually found - far away from the ears of the public, I'd imagine you'll still find yourself enjoying more than enough of "Big Dick Energy" to stick with it from start to finish. Like any random batch of interviews would be, either in a documentary, a workplace environment, or any other reason you can think of, some are better than others – that's the stone-cold reality of how interviews go; ask anyone that's done 'em.
Alexander's idea could perhaps be better served by shortening things down with each guest and being more ruthless with his editing, but that takes real experience to know where that line is, and it's not a skill that's achieved overnight. I learned things – like I had no idea what a "Bulgarian Tickler" was or "Nadvil," and now I'm confident that I'll never forget either of these things among so many other slang terms Vladimir was able to enlighten us with. So, there's that. You might learn a lot more than you'd ever think in that regard - outside of Urban Dictionary online. I was entertained, I was amused, and I did laugh at points, but I am immature too, which I'll readily concede is one of my better qualities. I think the pacing cost "Big Dick Energy" a little if I'm being honest with you – I felt like that was what prevented this idea from going from good to great. Still, I did enjoy this tongue-in-cheek, comedic discussion on BDE and the sincere effort taken to get to the bottom of this syndrome that seems to affect so many parts of the society we share. I'm going with a two and a half stars out of five here, but with the belief that the next time we'd see something from Alexander Cooper that he'd create something even stronger than what we found here – the man does have courage and he's got a gift for getting people talking about the strangest of things. I think he probably just needs to be a bit more brutal in the editing room, sending a little more of the content to the cutting-room floor. Preserve the best of the best and keep the laughs coming consistently and continuously, but I feel he's got the right talent to get there. Like I said earlier – his dedication certainly isn't in question; he's got plenty of that – and if he can follow through on this project, he's probably capable of all kinds of extraordinary things in the future. |