The Big Tease (1999)

Flamboyant Glasgow hairdresser, Crawford Mackinzie, gets a letter from the World Hairdresser International Federation inviting him to its prestigious annual contest in L.A. Filmmaker Martin... See full summary »

Director:

Kevin Allen

Writers:

Sacha Gervasi, Craig Ferguson

Stars:

Craig Ferguson, Chris Langham, David Rasche

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Craig Ferguson	...	Crawford Mackenzie
Chris Langham	...	BBC Interviewer
David Rasche	...	Stig
Frances Fisher	...	Candy
Mary McCormack	...	Monique
Donal Logue	...	Eamonn
Isabella Aitken	...	Mrs. Beasie Mackenzie
Kevin Allen	...	Gareth Trundle
Angela McCluskey	...	Senga Magoogan
Francine York	...	Elegant Woman
David Hasselhoff	...	Himself
Drew Carey	...	Himself
Cathy Lee Crosby	...	Herself
Bruce Jenner	...	Himself
Nina Siemaszko	...	Betty Fuego

Storyline

Flamboyant Glasgow hairdresser, Crawford Mackinzie, gets a letter from the World Hairdresser International Federation inviting him to its prestigious annual contest in L.A. Filmmaker Martin Samuels is making a fly-on-the-wall documentary about Crawford; he and the crew go too. After maxing out his credit card at the Century Plaza Hotel, Crawford discovers he's been invited to participate in the audience, not the contest; he tries every angle imaginable to get in the competition: he phones fellow Scot Sean Connery, he gets a union card, he asks the reigning champion for help, and he connects with Connery's publicist, who's having a bad hair day. Will he succeed, for the little people?

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Plot Keywords:

hairdresser | competition | reference to liberace | scotland | homosexual | 

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Taglines:

He saw. He combed. He conquered.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 January 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Je M'Appelle Crawford

Filming Locations:

Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$29,010 (USA) (28 January 2000)

Gross:

$185,577 (USA) (31 March 2000)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Crawford P., I Should Coco Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The script was snapped up by Warner Brothers after a five-day bidding war.

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Goofs

Crawford rents a car that was apparently stolen from a Korean cook named Chokko. When Crawford visits Chokko's house, the camera pans and reveals a sign above the doorway on the ground floor displaying what seems to be 'Asian' characters. However, it's neither Korean nor any other Asian language. The characters are entirely fictitious.

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Quotes

Stig: Hey, Scottish. From my salon, right?
Crawford Mackenzie: Yeah
Stig: Still looking for a job, eh?
Crawford Mackenzie: ...yeah
Stig: Hey, I tell you what. Next month, it's loser's day! You come back and I piss on your head!

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Connections

References Masterpiece (1971)

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Soundtracks

"All Over My Face"
Written by Arthur Russell, Steven D'Acquisto, Vince Montana (as Vincent Montana, Jr.) and Nellee Hooper
Performed by Dysfunctional Psychedelic Waltons
Produced by Nellee Hooper
Courtesy of Meanwhile Records Ltd. and Virgin Records America, Inc.
Contains Samples from:
'You're Just The Right Size'
Written by Vince Montana (as Vincent Montana, Jr.)
Performed by The Salsoul Orchestra
Courtesy of Salsoul Record Corp.
'Is It All Over My Face'
Written by Arthur Russell & Steven D'Acquisto
Performed by Loose Joints
Courtesy of West End Records
By Arrangement with Bug Music

User Reviews

Amusing mockumentary with absurd humour

The documentary filmmaker Martin Samuels joins Scottish hairdresser Crawford Mackenzie as he sets out for LA to take part in the Platinum Scissors Hairdressing competition. On arrival he runs up a large hotel bill before discovering that his `invitation' is not to compete but to attend in the audience. Out of his hotel and out of money, Crawford tries to get into the competition and wins over the trend setters of Beverly Hills and, with a little bit of luck and deceit tries to work his way into the contest

I had never heard of this film prior to it's TV premier in the UK, I imagine it's the same with a lot of people – it's a British comedy but it never managed to get the same high profile as more notable successes. However this is not to take from this film as it is pretty funny and gently amusing. The plot is nonsense but I think that is the point – it's is increasingly absurd – just like the actual competition and Hollywood lifestyle that Crawford finds himself thrust into. The comedy is rarely hilarious but it is consistently funny nonetheless – being more amusing than rip-roaring. The sheer wit and energy of the film manages to carry it over the odd dry spell.

Ferguson is suitably flaming as Crawford and is sweetly naïve for the most part. Langham is very dry as Samuels and I wanted him to have more screen time than he did – many other mock-documentaries have successfully made much better use of the dry humour of the interviewer. The support cast are good on the whole and don't mind making fun of themselves. Rasche is good as the two-faced Stig. While comedy cameos from Drew Carey and David Hasselhoff work well. Miller is always value for money and is good in his brief scene.

Overall this is a nice short little comedy that is lively and absurd. It is rarely hilarious but you'll watch it with a consistent smile on your face. Perfect if you're in a silly mood and looking for something with a bit of fizz.