'Gang of Roses' is the kind of boneheaded travesty that would have given the boys over at 'Mystery Science Theatre 3000' something really delicious to sink their teeth into. How we would have howled at the skewering quips and devastating one-liners they would have come up with as they ripped this masterpiece of idiocy to shreds. Alas, as they are no longer around to lighten the load in cases such as this one, we are left to suffer through 'Gang of Roses' entirely on our own. The movie has been tagged as the first 'hip-hop Western,' which means, apparently, that it features a largely African-American cast in full Western regalia, backed up by modern dance tunes playing on the soundtrack. Ostensibly set on the 1890's frontier, the film tells the story of a band of former female bank robbers - four black and one Chinese - who come out of retirement to avenge the death of a sister of one of them at the hands of a roving band of killers.
Although admirable in theory, the idea of a virtually all-black Western makes about as much sense as an all-white version of 'A Raisin in the Sun' or 'The Color Purple.' But, even apart from that, the film is so badly written, directed and acted that the whole thing begins to play like one long bad joke, like a distended Saturday Night Live sketch or Amateur Night at the Bijou. I've seen junior high class projects that were more professional and cinematic ally accomplished than this embarrassing mess. Completely at a loss as to how to play this material, the filmmakers settle for lame brained anachronisms, with lines like 'Why you gotta be all that?' serving as the hallmark of the movie's attempts at authenticity.
I'm sure 'Gang of Roses' will eventually find its way into the Hall of Fame for unspeakably terrible movies, for it is a true classic of cinematic badness. All I want to know is where the MST3K dudes are when we really need them.
