''Greaser's Palace'' is a 1972 American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film written and directed by

Robert Downey Sr. Robert John Downey Sr. ( Elias Jr.; June 24, 1936 – July 7, 2021) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He was known for writing and directing the underground film '' Putney Swope'' (1969), a satire on the New York Madison Ave ...

It stars Allan Arbus as Jesse, a man with amnesia who heals the sick, resurrects the dead and

tap dance Tap dance (or tap) is a form of dance that uses the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion; it is often accompanied by music. Tap dancing can also be performed with no musical accompaniment; the sound of the taps is its ow ...

s on water on the

American frontier The American frontier, also known as the Old West, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the Geography of the United States, geography, History of the United States, history, Folklore of the United States, folklore, and Cultur ...

. A parable based on the

life of Jesus in the New Testament The life of Jesus is primarily outlined in the four canonical gospels, which includes his Genealogy of Jesus, genealogy and Nativity of Jesus, nativity, Ministry of Jesus, public ministry, Passion of Jesus, passion, prophecy, Resurrection of J ...

, the film has been described as an acid Western.

Plot

Jesse ( Allan Arbus) paraglides into a town on the

run by a saloon owner named Seaweedhead Greaser ( Albert Henderson), a tyrant who collects the town's

taxes A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...

while keeping his mother and favorite

mariachi Mariachi (, , ) is a genre of regional Mexican music dating back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, two ...

band in cages, and suffering from chronic

constipation Constipation is a bowel dysfunction that makes bowel movements infrequent or hard to pass. The Human feces, stool is often hard and dry. Other symptoms may include abdominal pain, bloating, and feeling as if one has not completely passed the ...

. Jesse has amnesia and remembers nothing except that he is anticipated by

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainm ...

Morris, telling people that he's on his way to

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, where he will become a singer, dancer and actor. Greaser murders his son, Lamy Homo Greaser (Michael Sullivan), for being a homosexual, and Jesse resurrects the dead man. Subsequently, Jesse heals the sick and

s on water. Greaser's saloon is losing money due to the declining popularity of his daughter Cholera ( Luana Anders)'s performances, so he hires Jesse to sing and dance at the saloon. Jesse concludes his act with him bleeding stigmatically from his hands. The audience loves it, but the talent agent pans the act. Jesse begins a relationship with a woman (Elsie Downey) who ultimately crucifies him so he can resurrect her son (

Robert Downey Jr. Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965), also known as RDJ, is an American actor. One of the highest-grossing actors of all time, his films as a leading actor have grossed over $14 billion worldwide. In 2008, Downey was named by ''Time ...

), who was killed by Indians.

Cast

* Albert Henderson as Seaweed Head Greaser * Luana Anders as Cholera Greaser * James Antonio as Vernon * Allan Arbus as Jesse * Toni Basil as Indian Girl * Don Calfa as Morris * Woody Chambliss as Father * Pablo Ferro as Indian *Stanley Gottlieb as Spitunia *Joe Madden as Man With Painting *George Morgan as Coo Coo *Ron Nealy as Card Man / Ghost *Michael Sullivan as Lamy "Homo" Greaser *

Hervé Villechaize Hervé Jean-Pierre Villechaize (; April 23, 1943 – September 4, 1993) was a French actor. He is best known for his roles as the evil henchman Nick Nack in the 1974 James Bond film '' The Man with the Golden Gun'' and as Mr. Roarke's assistant ...

as Mr. Spitunia *Lawrence Wolf as French Padre *Elsie Downey as The Woman *Jackson Haynes as Rope Man *Alex Hitchcock as Nun *John Paul Hudson as Smiley *Larry Moyer as Captain Good *Don Smolen as Gip *Rex King as Turquoise Skies Cast notes: *

, the son of the writer-director of the film, has an uncredited role as a child. Elsie Downey who played "the Woman" was Robert Downey Sr.'s wife. Also in the cast were Allyson Downey and Stacy Sheehan, Downey Sr.'s daughter and niece.

Production

''Greaser's Palace'', which was shot on location in

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

, was produced by Cyma Rubin, a neophyte Broadway producer who gave Downey a million dollars to make the film.TC
"Notes"
/ref> Downey had previously made the cult hit '' Putney Swope'' (1969) as well as lesser-known films such as '' Pound'' (1970), ''Babo 73'' (1964) and ''

Chafed Elbows ''Chafed Elbows'' is a 1966 still image film directed by Robert Downey Sr. A manic comic parody underground film made for $12,000, ''Chafed Elbows'' was a commercial success. The film was premiered at The Gate Theater in New York City and ran for ...

'' (1966).Stafford, Jef
"Greaser's Palace" (TCM article)
/ref>

Reception

Although ''Time'' magazine's

Jay Cocks John C. "Jay" Cocks Jr. (born January 12, 1944) is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is a graduate of Kenyon College. ''Greaser's Palace'' did not receive generally good critical reviews. Thomas Meehan, writing in the '' Saturday Review'' said "Robert Downey seems to have absolutely everything it takes to be a successful movie director except talent," and thought that this film was "even worse than his earlier pictures – an absurdist, incomprehensible Western that mixes in scatology, William Morris agents and the second coming of Christ." Kevin Thomas, the critic for the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote of it "...the film is so utterly devoid of wit and imagination that the unremitting gross behavior and language it wallows in is quickly revolting." Kathleen Carroll, critic for the ''

New York Daily News The ''Daily News'' is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, New Jersey. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson in New York City as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in Tabloid (newspaper format ...

'' asked "Does this weird concoction of

Harvard Lampoon ''The Harvard Lampoon'' is an undergraduate humor publication founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Overview The ''Harvard Lampoon'' publication was founded in 1876 by seven undergraduate ...

parody, half-serious symbolism and silly slapstick really work?" The film, which was presented at the

Telluride Film Festival The Telluride Film Festival (TFF) is a film festival held annually in Telluride, Colorado, during Labor Day, Labor Day weekend (the first Monday in September). The 51st Telluride Film Festival, 51st edition took place on August 30–September ...

in 1976,Allmovi
"Awards"
/ref> was not a commercial success.

References

Notes

External links

* * {{Robert Downey Sr. 1972 films 1970s English-language films 1972 comedy films 1972 Western (genre) films Films scored by Jack Nitzsche Films directed by Robert Downey Sr. Films with screenplays by Robert Downey Sr. American Western (genre) comedy films 1970s American films Acid Westerns English-language Western (genre) comedy films