In director Nick Gomez's dyspeptic and dysfunctional whodunnit comedy DROWNING MONA, he manages to do a couple of things. First, he assembles a notable cast (headed up by the always dependable Danny DeVito, Bette Midler, and Jamie Lee Curtis) to spearhead his offbeat, assorted bunch of misguided characters into this merry-minded, warped murder misadventure. Secondly, Gomez borrows heavily from previous blueprints (think of the cinematic version of the board game Clue or even DeVito's and Midler's delightfully twisted 1986 comedy "Ruthless People") to energize this callow, quirky, off-kiltered farce. Given the intentional off-balance and nuttiness of DROWING MONA's premise, this comedy seems to generate this self-serving smirkiness that presents the film as somewhat gauche. It's all rather conventionally boisterous and self-congratulatory. The film is so busy being outlandish for its own sake that it forgets to include the audience in on its self-indulgent, sluggish sardonic wit.
In the quaint fictitious New York town of Verplanck, we are introduced to a quiet little haven where nothing seems to be of any particular interest. The residents of this venue are content in doing what comes natural such as driving around in their Yugo cars and looking forward to the annual knife-throwing contest. This hick town is so lackadaisical in nature that it makes Andy Griffith's Mayberry seem like a metropolis. In any event, Verplanck to some extent has its excitable moments. Enter Mona Dearly (Bette Midler), an insufferable, incorrigible, miserable woman who simply turned people's stomachs with her badass disposition. To use this understatement lightly, Mona was not well liked at all. Then tragedy struck (or as the residents of Verplanck would call it...a celebration) when it was discovered that miscreant Mona drove her Yugo into the Hudson River therefore causing her imminent death. The film's gag pretty much focuses on how indifferent the town is to the infamous Mona's departure. Soon, what was thought of as an accidental vehicular mishap turns into a murder investigation. Hmmm, who would want that loudmouth lass Mona dead?
Forced to investigate the recent demise of Mona Dearly is the town's police chief named Wyatt Rash (Danny DeVito). Rash's job seems rather complicated because the folks he's bound to contend with are all possible suspects. After all, the late Mona Dearly wasn't so endearing to many residents whose path she crossed. And so the list of twitchy candidates are profiled. Bed-hopping and chain-smoking waitress Rona (Jamie Lee Curtis) enjoyed playing footies with both Mona's weak-willed husband Phil (William Fichtner) and her son Jeff (Marcus Thomas). Jeff's business partner Bobby (Casey Affleck) and Bobby's galpal/Police Chief Rash's daughter Ellen (Neve Campbell) had unfortunate run-ins with the brash Mona. This woman even infuriated the local deputy Feege (Peter Dobson) to the point that he may have wanted to terminate her. And so this woozy and wacky film belabors the point about which dipstick in this seemingly sleepy town was dubious enough to send Mona to her eternal dirtnap resting place. The shtick plays itself out after a while and simply lingers on like someone telling a dirty joke without trying to hurry up and get to the punchline.
Nick Gomez ("Laws of Gravity") no doubt takes his wink-wink approach to the material with inspired insanity. But the film's comedic timing feels boorish and kitschy. We are supposed to bend over in hilarity over the unexplainable trivialities of the film's characters and their incredulous antics. The whole town drives Yugos. Chuckle. DeVito's Police Chief Rash loves quoting musicals as an anecdotal personality flaw. Chuckle, chuckle. Nasty Mona has a contradictory surname "Dearly". Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle. Obnoxious Bette Midler plays obnoxious Mona with pronounced vindictiveness which gives her permission to offer a variation on this type of role she has beat to death numerous times before. Been there, done that. Jamie Lee Curtis plays an acerbic vamp. Gee, talking about a stretch. Overall, the cast seems more interested in overplaying small town ding-a-lings who get to act up in loony exaggerated fashion rather than concentrating at bringing along the film's pace to match the players' show-offy shenanigans that are being displayed.
DROWING MONA occasionally has the comic pulse but it seems to pump its watered-down pomposity in the misplaced areas of overdrawn, misinformed characters. Gomez is saddled with a transparent script that it as routinely original as blaming the butler in a standard murder mystery. Although meant to be bombastic in its sheer sneer, DROWNING MONA submerges itself without any regard to reaching for a life preserver of legitimate laughs.
Frank rates this film: ** stars (out of 4 stars)
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