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The enormous popularity and strong cult following of the brilliant Canadian vérité-style TV show Trailer Park Boys ensured a feature-length motion picture would eventually materialise - and it has arrived in the form of the gleefully crass and unapologetically non-PC Trailer Park Boys: The Movie. While this film doesn't necessary jive with some of the continuity established in the long-running television show, it's easily forgivable since the humour is in the same vein and the characters are still their usual selves.
For those who require a little context, Trailer Park Boys chronicles the get rich quick schemes of Ricky (Wells), Julian (Tremblay) and Bubbles (Smith); three inhabitants of the Sunnyvale Trailer Park in Nova Scotia. Ricky is the loser of the group who lives in his car, drinks liquor out of cat dishes and is a small-time pot farmer. Julian is the smart one who is unable to succeed due to Ricky's sheer idiocy. The strange bespectacled Bubbles cares for stray kittens and makes money by stealing shopping carts, fixing them, and selling them back to the mall. The trio are also accompanied by their sidekicks Cory (Bowles) and Trevor (Jackson), who aim to please Ricky no matter how much trouble he gives them. The trailer park is watched over in Gestapo-like fashion by alcoholic former police officer Jim Lahey (Dunsworth) and his perpetually shirtless, hamburger-eating, former male prostitute right hand man Randy (Roach). A few new faces are introduced in the film too, such as Hugh Dillon as the owner of a local gentlemen's club, and Nichole Hiltz playing a dancer who has eyes for Julian.
Towards the beginning of the movie, Ricky and Julian are at the tail end of a gaol sentence. They're let out early because Ricky is skilled at hockey, and the guards believe that getting rid of him will help their chances in the hockey tournament. Back in Sunnyvale Trailer Park, the boys (now reunited with Bubbles and the rest of their companions) begin to plot a way to earn a living. They begin contemplating what comes to be known as "the big dirty"; a heist that will allow the boys to retire from their life of crime forever. When it occurs to Julian that coins are untraceable and aren't as prosecutable as notes, the gang attempt to rob a few parking meters, which ultimately leads to the theft of a giant change container at a local cinema. Meanwhile, the everlastingly drunk Mr. Lahey tries to get the trio evicted.
Prison, car homes, theft, perpetual drinking, weed, skanks and shambolic cat accommodation decorate this fly-on-the-wall tale of these trailer park lowlifes. As absurd and off-putting as it is to follow the lives of proud hobos, the clandestine wit combined with a certain base humour will quickly ensnare tentative viewers. From the get-go, the protagonists say and do undeniably stupid things, but manage to come up with brilliant scams to get themselves out of trouble. While jokes and situations from the original show are recycled here, it all fits. After all, each episode of the TV show concerned the boy's latest scheme or latest dilemma - this just follows that tradition. Like all TV-show-to-movie conversions, this just feels like an extended episode. But considering the unhinged fun on offer, who really gives a shite?
The Trailer Park Boys big screen debut is a success no matter how you look at it. The gags are very funny, and contain the right mix of sweetness, natural warmth and crassness. The television series always maintained a sense of humanity and heart (otherwise the show would just seem like a showcase of unpleasant characters who trade verbal jabs for the hell of it), and this is thankfully retained for Trailer Park Boys: The Movie. Better, the characters are never degraded or glorified. Meanwhile the excessive profanity in addition to the drug and alcohol-laced humour works extraordinary well because the characters are all developed nicely, and this type of comedy suits their personalities. The laughs never feel forced; instead, they all seem to be a natural extension of the film's key players. Ricky, for instance, never finished school, drinks excessively and gets stoned frequently, and therefore the way he mucks up words and swears a lot feels appropriate. The only noticeable flaw is that the film drags from the 60-minute mark until about the 80-minute mark. In all likelihood, this is a side effect of being accustomed to viewing the show in 30-minute episodes, or it could be a side effect of laughing so damn hard for the first hour.
Like the TV show, a mockumentary style has been employed, meaning there are to-camera asides and extensive use of handheld camera. The movie was lensed on gritty 16mm film, which lends itself well to the documentary aesthetic. Trailer Park Boys: The Movie is not a visually impressive film at all, but it doesn't need to be or aspire to be - it's more concerned with pace and comedic timing. Stylistically, the only deviation from the television show is the fact that the testimonials have been cut down considerably, and the camera crew are not actual characters. Interestingly, while fans of the TV series will appreciate this movie much movie, it's still an enjoyable watch for the uninitiated (though they'd probably find the movie funnier the second time around).
The entire cast is wonderfully committed and appear to be having one hell of a fun time. As Ricky, Rob Wells has an overripe Elvis handsomeness (with a gut to match) as well as a hysterical single-mindedness in his determination to do two things: get back to gaol to win an important hockey tournament, and return to his former life of domestic bliss when he grew & sold weed. John Paul Tremblay plays Julian with a terrific deadpan comic persona, and is NEVER seen without a glass of rum & coke. Meanwhile Mike Smith's performance as Bubbles is endearing and downright hilarious. His semi-autistic shtick fits the character perfectly. Lucy Decoutere is winning as Ricky's ecdysiastically enthusiastic love interest, as is Lydia Lawson-Baird as Ricky's pre-teen daughter Trinity. It would take all day to list the rest of the brilliant cast members, so it'd be easier to sum them all up - they all embody their characters perfectly, and carry out their duties superbly.
Trailer Park Boys: The Movie has received largely dismissive reviews, but as far as caper films go, this one is perfectly serviceable and highly enjoyable. It's unpretentious and eager to please.
7.7/10
