Postal

While Uwe Boll has garnered a reputation as one of the worst directors of all time, I can only surmise that those particular critics either have a very limited awareness of cinema (and clearly have not seen any films by Ulli Lommel...or Eli Roth), or are so embittered by their profession that they cannot see the insane, driven vision beneath the surface of the German mastermind's work. Those who have followed his career with masochistic pleasure have concluded that his current works have shown a legitimate upgrade in quality, and "Postal" is one of his most impressive films; while yet another loose take on a video game, Boll's proficiency with narrative structure (he co-wrote the script with Bryan C. Knight) has gotten better, as has his scene composition (few out-of-nowhere edits away from the action); and placed on the grounds of an absurd satire (a genre that many filmmakers bungle), Boll shows unfettered confidence and drive, even if the end result comes up short. Ditching the nauseating sitcom-structure that has turned Judd Apatow's films into crudely saccharine cinematic gold-mines, Boll goes for the subversive, anti-commercial jugular with "Postal"--he seems on a mission to top one offensive gag with one even more offensive, and the film (true to its title) is an onslaught of un-PC humor from start to finish. While I will say I laughed often at "Postal" and its politics (which echo the anti-consumerist diatribes that made "Fight Club" a cult classic), the comic timing is probably only spot-on about half the time; the remainder of the film's humor flows out of the absurdity of its premise: Dude (Zack Ward, the red-haired bully from "A Christmas Story") is an unemployed, lower-class guy having a bad day--in a pinch for cash, he and Uncle Dave (Dave Foley) concoct a plan to steal a shipment of Krotchy dolls from a Nazi-themed amusement park (run by Boll himself in a hilarious cameo); meanwhile, Osama bin Laden and the Taliban (camped out in the back of a convenience store, natch) are also converging on the coveted toy. Yet the plot is really just an excuse for Boll to let loose with a skewering of stereotypes, history, and blue-collar madness: while "Postal" could have merely been tasteless and humorless, its own sensitivity toward mankind's collectively repressed id shows a greater existential curiosity toward our "post-9/11" society than any Oscar-nominated tearjerker to come down the pike.

After all the crap Uwe Boll made, I really had very low expectations for this one. And those were not just met, but exceeded. The guy actually has a sense of humor. A dark sense of humor. But few people like that thing, so it's understandable that many don't like it. It goes against most common movie taboos, which is good, it doesn't favor any side, and makes fun of itself as well. There are a few drawbacks, though, like the music and some scenes could've been better, but overall it is above average.

The movie is random, it is senseless, but it is also fun. I never thought Id say this, but if you like dark humor, go see this Uwe Boll film.

If we forget for a minute that this film was directed by Uwe Boll, the discussion of this film would be very different. It's hard not to remember other video games he's responsible for bringing to the screen ("Alone in the Dark," "Bloodrayne") that really really sucked.

Boll has said he looked inward to write about his own frustration with the world for this. And it's very different. It doesn't compare to his other films at all - is closer to "Kentucky Fried Movie" than to "Alien Vs. Predator." It's a comedy, presumably his first intentional one since his debut film 15 years ago, and it goes to a place he hasn't shown us before.

It's based on the spirit of the game "Postal" already politically incorrect, cartoony, out of control, and not really serious (not even as "Vice City"). In a post 9/11 world, how do you make a film about an urban terrorist who's just "p--ssed off" without addressing terrorism, racism, and everything else that are hot buttons in the world...that create the madness that might make someone go...well, you know.

Boll has channeled the politically incorrect attitude and turned it on its ear. He doesn't mind making everyone look the fool, do things they shouldn't for the wrong reasons, kill the wrong people, overreact, act out clichés, etc. Everything and everyone is fair game in this film, and we must remember that - it's a FILM. It's fake, folks. Everyone in it takes themselves too seriously and thinks killing someone solves their problems. They're crazy, wrong, and in this film, they're laughable. Having fun yet? This is really a kitchen-sink movie. Every possible joke, high and low, sexual or sociological, is jammed in, with varying degrees of success. A lot of it's quite funny, some is stupid and offensive (but weirdly, in a good-natured way. It's not mean-spirited at all.) Ultimately it's a lot of fun. I agree that's it's too long towards the end, if only because Boll didn't have the resources to make the final shootout as epic as it should have been, and it begins to feel cramped.

The portrayal of Osama bin Laden (by "soup Nazi" Larry Thomas) is inspired. Zack Ward and Dave Foley are both great and very comfortable in their roles. Uwe himself has a great no-punches-pulled cameo along with the original maker of the game "Postal" at one point.

I wonder if this will ever translate to a wide release or if it will remain something we see on DVD (unrated, we can only hope) and laugh over. It is up to us to support any film that gets to the uncomfortable part of our world.

And amazingly, Uwe Boll wrote and directed it. Good job. Not the best film in the world, but one to remember. I don't think Paul W.S. Anderson or Eli Roth (to pick other famous "hacks") could possibly have pulled something this off. Boll is off the worst-director-ever list after this.

Let's hope after "Bloodrayne 2" he does something else more personal.

Disclaimer: Let me start by saying that I was neither drunk nor high when I watched this movie. I watched it stone cold sober, alone, in my living room.

Amazingly I just gave an Uwe Boll film 8 stars, I know, I can't believe it myself. If I were twelve years old and still read MAD Magazine I'd probably have given it ten stars.

There are plenty of "zany" pop culture riffing movies out there, (Meet the Spartans, Super Hero Movie, Date Movie, etc.) but the difference here is Postal works. I laughed throughout the entire movie, with the exception of about seven jokes which didn't make sense or just didn't work. But it doesn't matter that these seven jokes failed because the movie is an endless stream of jokes, sight gags, bikini clad cult members, machine gun battles, and bad taste in the vein of John Waters/Troma Films earliest efforts.

It's too bad Uwe Boll got himself involved in a petty internet pi**ing contest over this film. I think had he just been modest, kept his mouth shut, and let the film speak for itself it may have been a minor success. The old Hollywood saying about there being "no such thing as bad publicity" doesn't work for you when all you get is BAD PUBLICITY.

That said, the only real problems with the film are the low budget production values and a few of the minor performances, but even those problems just add to the humor of this film.

The plot actually made sense.

The actors played it straight without being too zany too often.

And the jokes, although in bad taste and definitely not for everybody, were never so mean spirited that I was turned off by them.

I think Uwe Boll knew what he was doing with this picture. The satire and parodies worked well, and there were even a few jokes that made me want to cheer. I know, crazy huh?

After being laid off from his factory job, getting snubbed at the welfare office, and witnessing his bedridden wife cheating on him with his next door neighbour, the once mild-mannered Postal Dude (Zack Ward) visits his Uncle Dave (Dave Foley) to take part in a plan which entails stealing and re-selling loads of items from the hot new toy craze of Krotchy dolls. Little do they know, that a small group of Taliban members is also planning the same heist at the same time.

Could it be? Uwe Boll finally pulls through with a great video game adaption? Well. . . no. But, he did finally manage to make a good and entertaining one! Say what you will about Boll and his complete lack of artistic talent (and I'll agree with it), but he does know how to stir up some controversy. Whether it's threatening Michael Bay, boxing critics, or making an extremely offensive and perverse new comedy, Uwe can cause problems. Now, obviously, as it's an Uwe Boll film, you're going to have to expect many of the negative elements that go with it: poor acting/writing/etc. However, as the film is so obviously meant to simply offend at any cost, it's not hard to overlook a lot of the flaws and just sit back and laugh at the stupidly ridiculous spectacle that is Postal. I mean, Uwe Boll actually stands onstage in his own film, playing himself, and says all of his movies are funded using Nazi gold and that children in the crowd arouse him. At least he's finally be honest, ya know? Anyway, if Tom Cruise, 9/11, cults, crap, trailers, racism, swearing, Dave Foley, police brutality, fat people, hicks, the handicapped, and over-the-top violence (often against children) sound like things worthy of a laugh, then you'll probably love this. If you're easily offended or reserve your giggles for a more sophisticated type of humour, then just keep on walking because this film is not for you.

Final verdict: 6/10.

-AP3-