The Good Humor Man (2005)

A mischievous high school sophomore faces a conflict of conscience vs. character when his best friend becomes linked to the death of a youth from another clique in suburban Middle America circa '76.

Director:

Tenney Fairchild

Writer:

Tenney Fairchild

Stars:

Nathan Stevens, Cameron Richardson, Jorge Garcia

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nathan Stevens	...	Jay
Cameron Richardson	...	Wendy
Jorge Garcia	...	Mt. Rushmore
Jason Segel	...	Smelly Bob
James Ransone	...	Junebug
Jason Dill	...	Hambone
John William Simmons	...	Richie Rubin
Claire Titelman	...	Barfetta
Lenny Hirsh	...	Bogus Chuck
Charlie Babcock	...	Van Herkey
Athena Cansino	...	Jill
Rhia Bassett	...	Rhonda
Elise Robertson	...	Mrs. Skibness
Kelsey Grammer	...	Mr. Skibness
Michael Emanuel	...	Officer May

Storyline

Boys behaving badly. Jay, a middle-class high-school sophomore, hangs out in his L.A. suburb with slackers, dopers, petty thieves and punks. Everyone has a nickname; his is Worm. His best friend, John, aka Mt. Rushmore, severely beats another student at a wedding Jay and his pals crash. At the wedding, Jay falls for Wendy, one of the jock clique. Jay has his code: no ratting out your friends. So, when the beating victim dies, Jay doesn't help the cops. Meanwhile, his relationship with Wendy develops quickly into a first love. With knives, whiskey, and drugs close at hand, can Jay navigate assaults on his manhood, the strains of friendship, and the whispers of commitment?

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Plot Keywords:

friend | wedding | high school | slacker | jock | 

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Taglines:

Cliques don't mix in '76.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive language, substance abuse, sexual content and some violence

Details

Official Sites:

M-80 Films

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 March 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

A humor forrása

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

M-80 Films, Grammnet Productions, Showtime

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Goofs

The movie is set in 1976, but the Chevrolet van-based ambulance which takes Jay to the hospital has a grill which indicates that it is a 1978 or later model year vehicle.

User Reviews

Destined to be a cult classic

I saw "The Good Humor Man" at Methodfest awhile back and then I heard it was going to be on TV. I watched it again and remembered just how good it was.

The overall feeling I had is that I was watching a film that had been lost in the 70's, gathering dust on a shelf in the back of an office, and someone found it and said, "maybe folks could relate to this today." It seems more as if it was made in that period rather than trying to evoke it. The production values definitely said "indie" to me (in a good way). I loved the transition from the well-lit, perfectly blocked and shot interiors to the grainy, almost home movie look of the exteriors. A less experienced director would have used a lot more hand-held and faster cuts. That would have been the easy way out. But Tenney Fairchild let the story dictate the shots and not the other way around. The script was brilliant, and I can see it becoming an instant "cult classic" in the most complimentary sense of the term. So many great lines -- I kept thinking, "I've got to remember that line," then there'd be another, and another...

Of course, the music had me from the word go, but I knew that it would going in. How can you go wrong with a score by Robin Trower? Everything about the look, of course -- the hair, clothes, cars, appliances, Pop-Tarts...

The juxtaposition of the raw, almost jarring language of the stoners (I didn't know there were that many slang terms for sex acts and body parts -- I should count next time -- actually, I'll bet someone has) with the tender, innocent, almost childlike relationship between the lovers was what made it like a perverse Afterschool Special. At its heart, it's really an old-fashioned romance.

I was rolling on the floor more than once -- at some point I started thinking, "man I wish I made this." I found myself wanting to rush things along at the start -- it felt a bit slow. By the end, I was looking at the clock thinking, "damn, that's it?" I didn't want it to end. I could stay with those kids another couple of hours.

The kids were great. It didn't feel scripted, for the most part. To me a great director doesn't "direct" so much as let the actors do what they do best. That's what I felt from opening to closing credits.