God Bless America (2011)

On a mission to rid society of its most repellent citizens, terminally ill Frank makes an unlikely accomplice in 16-year-old Roxy.

Director:

Bobcat Goldthwait

Writer:

Bobcat Goldthwait

Stars:

Joel Murray, Tara Lynne Barr, Mackenzie Brooke Smith

5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joel Murray	...	Frank
Tara Lynne Barr	...	Roxy
Melinda Page Hamilton	...	Alison
Mackenzie Brooke Smith	...	Ava
Rich McDonald	...	Brad
Maddie Hasson	...	Chloe
Larry Miller	...	Chloe's Dad
Dorie Barton	...	Chloe's Mom
Travis Wester	...	Ed
Lauren Benz Phillips	...	Donna (as Lauren Phillips)
Guerrin Gardner	...	Tampon-Throwing Tuff Gurl
Kellie Ramdhanie	...	Melissa Tuff Gurl (as Kellie Marie Ramdhanie)
Aris Alvarado	...	Steven Clark
Romeo Brown	...	John Tyler
Sandra Vergara	...	American Superstarz Judge

Storyline

Loveless, jobless, possibly terminally ill, Frank has had enough of the downward spiral of America. With nothing left to lose, Frank takes his gun and offs the stupidest, cruelest, and most repellent members of society. He finds an unusual accomplice: 16-year-old Roxy, who shares his sense of rage and disenfranchisement.

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Plot Keywords:

blackberry cell phone | brat | long feminine hair cut | knife in stomach | anti materialism | 

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Taglines:

Taking out the trash, one jerk at a time.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R18

Did You Know?

Trivia

Steven Clark was based on the real American idol contestant William Hung, who's audition went viral and was mocked to the point of making him perform on stage in the finale. He didn't know they were mocking him and laughing at him. He believed they were cheering him on.

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Goofs

When Frank steals his neighbor's car and heads to Virginia, he can be seen driving north on Interstate 81 in Syracuse when he should be going south.

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Quotes

Frank: Frank: "I refuse to objectify a child... I mean, that's part of what's wrong with everything. I'm not American Apparel, I'm not the creep that came up with those Bratz dolls. I mean, fuck R Kelly, fuck Vladimir Nabokov, and fuck Mary Kay Letourneau while we're at it. Fuck Woody Allen and his whole 'the heart wants what it wants' bullshit. Apparently that erudite genius' heart wants what every run of the mill pedophile wants, a young hairless Asian. Nobody cares that they damage other people.

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Crazy Credits

The character that tries to buy Roxy at the diner is listed as "The Pancake Eating Pedophile".

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Connections

References Jackie Brown (1997)

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Soundtracks

American Superstarz Theme
Written and Performed by Matt Kollar

User Reviews

I really wanted to love it

Instead, I liked it and would gladly watch it again. God Bless America had so much potential. Its first half an hour or so goes as you expect, over the top dark humor with non-stop truth hitting relentless social commentary and then...Roxy walks into the movie. From this point on, unfortunately, without saying much, the movie falls into several paradoxes and loses its focus.

At its core, GBA is a good social satire with nonstop commentary on the problems with pop culture and society, but on the same coin, the movie tries so hard that it feels like a rant by an angry liberal rather the good satire it initially set out to be. Furthermore, Roxy becomes one of the characters you want dead as the movie goes and her character, along with her and Frank's relationship, appears so idealized and forced, that it just affects the movie for the rest of its running time.

The good, however, lies in the great shooting scenes, some of the great commentary made by Frank (most of what Roxy says makes you roll your eyes if not question what in the world the movie was going for), the dark humor, the targets for satire, the over the top story, its entertainment, and overall its a solid 9/10 movie but...

The bad lies in the second act, on Roxy's faulty and forced character, its endless rants between our two main character that makes you want them to kill themselves as the next person on their killing spree, the people targeted (whats wrong with high fives and country music? When did this movie become about taste rather than appropriate satire part?) and so on...it just bit itself in the tail.

I really wanted to love this movie. I almost did. Instead every time I went to smile and applaud the commentary, something matter of taste or the character discontinuity got in the way...good movie, definitely one everyone should watch, but sadly, for what it could have been and set out to be, very flawed.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 September 2012 (New Zealand)

Also Known As:

Armados y cabreados

Filming Locations:

The Fonda Theater - 6126 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$27,308, 13 May 2012

Gross USA:

$122,550

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$393,880

Company Credits

Production Co:

Darko Entertainment, Jerkschool Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1