The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang (2006)

Director:

Tim Skousen

Writers:

Tim Skousen (screenplay)
Tim Skousen (script)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

An epic tale of nerds and turds.

Plot:

Young, fantasy/sci-fi aficionado Gavin Gore and his friends stumble onto some huge footprints in the woods. A local cop, reporter and a renowned Sasquatch authority investigate, while two of Gavin's dim-witted neighbors hatch a scheme to profit from the situation. |

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Jeremy Sumpter	...	Gavin Gore
Justin Long	...	Zerk Wilder
Carl Weathers	...	Dr. Artimus Snodgrass
Rob Pinkston	...	Maynard Keyes
Joey Kern	...	Shirts
Hubbel Palmer	...	Hobie Plumber
Michael Mitchell	...	Shane Bagwell
Veanne Cox	...	Lenora Gore
Ray Santiago	...	Crone
Stephen Tobolowsky	...	Ernie Dalrymple
Addie Land	...	Sophie Suchowski
Jeff D'Agostino	...	Dagan
Jon Gries	...	Officer Ed Chillcut
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Don Burns	...	Dentist
Lindsay Chestler	...	Classmate
Sydney Chestler	...	Classmate
Lorinda Christene	...	Onlooker
Brenna Haukedahl	...	Girl in amusement park
Carter Haukedahl	...	Boy in amusement park
Nurmi Husa	...	Angry Neighbor
Val Landrum	...	Blondeen
Aleeza McKarem	...	Classmate
Abby McKinney	...	Classmate
Anberlin McVey	...	Classmate
Daniel Nelson	...	Boy in Woods
David Nelson	...	Boy in Woods
Elijah Nelson	...	Boy in Woods
Eric Newsome	...	Shirt's Dad
Katie O'Grady	...	Candice Cane
Sarah Christine Pletcher	...	Classmate
Lance Rich	...	Melvin
Margaret Santoro	...	Vanessa
Hayley Skousen	...	Roxie
Todd Skousen	...	Frankie
Lauren Stocks	...	Shirt's Mom
Nico Varela	...	Boy in Classroom

Also Known As:

The Sasquatch Gang (USA) (new title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for crude humor and language.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:PG | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Banks, Oregon, USA

Company:

Jeremy Coon Productions

Trivia:

While filming in a residential area in Portland, Oregon, residents were allowed to participate as extras.

Goofs:

Continuity: Obvious cast of the dung, since the big kid hit the dung, and it stayed the same shape.

Movie Connections:

References Jason and the Argonauts (1963)

A poor man's Napoleon Dynamite – but with a better narrative structure

Writer/director Tim Skousen recreates the cultish small-town culture of Napoleon Dynamite with equally absurd but deft strokes. Although The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang largely proves a rehash of the latter, it boasts of a refreshingly crisp non-chronological narrative structure which, in many ways, makes it a more complete film that NP was.

The story is also more focused, zooming in on a nerd gang that stumbles upon Bigfoot findings in the woods. They decide to tell the police and media about it to see if the tracks actually belong to the mythical Sasquatch. It is set in an unnamed small town in America during an unnamed decade. For conflicting clues, the video store only carries VHS format – but ebay.com exists. The nerd gang is headed by Gavin (Jeremy Sumpter) who regrettably never truly embodies the nerd his character is made out to be. By contrast, all other characters gleefully channel Napoleon Dynamite and its sprawling surge of geekdom in the form of recording fantasy films, hanging out in the video store, doing amateur detective work and engaging in medieval sword-fighting.

Let us talk about structure. Clever comic book montages are interjected at the beginning of each new segment and each of these segments tells the story from one or two character's point of view, covering the chain of events with a fresh perspective. The film is only 84 minutes long and it feels every bit as condensed, giving us no remotely disposable passages. Central to all detours and diversions is the mighty Bigfoot and the level of seriousness with which people regard this phenomenon is hilarious. The humour in general is often in-tune and arguably the consistently bare-chested "Shirts" (Joey Kern) sits in the front row for laughter in the film. Indeed, the The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang tips over into absurdist humour with the same frequency as Napoleon Dynamite but it sadly never manages as funny as the latter. This can best be attributed to the lack of novelty of the dark indie quirkiness two years later.

The acting is generally atrocious, it needs to be said. Great comedy often stems from this, but in the end the hamminess of the performers is simply awe-inspiring as they choke on line after line and overdo the absurdity of the situations. Of course, stellar acting is not in focus in a film like this these shortcomings are easily overlooked. I think Tim Skousen has done something rather safe but still enjoyable here: he has taken a big gulp out of nerd culture, nodding politely to Napoleon Dynamite, and plugging his product in with cameos by John Heder and Jon Gries. The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang is funny, quirky, short, sweet and forgettable enough to watch over and over again.

7 out of 10