''The Dark Backward'' (also known as ''The Man with Three Arms'') is a 1991 American
black comedy
Black comedy, also known as black humor, bleak comedy, dark comedy, dark humor, gallows humor or morbid humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally ...
film written and directed by
Adam Rifkin
Adam Rifkin (born December 31, 1966), sometimes credited as Rif Coogan, is an American filmmaker and actor. His career ranges from broad family comedies to dark and gritty urban dramas. He is best known for writing family-friendly comedies like ...
. It stars
Judd Nelson
Judd Asher Nelson (born November 28, 1959) is an American actor. After a lead role in the film '' Making the Grade'' (1984), Nelson had his breakout with a starring role in the coming-of-age teen film ''The Breakfast Club'' (1985), which caused ...
,
Bill Paxton
William Paxton (May 17, 1955 – February 25, 2017) was an American actor, filmmaker and musician. A versatile character actor known for his distinctive Texan drawl and everyman screen persona, he was a four-time Golden Globe Award and a Prime ...
, and
Wayne Newton
Carson Wayne Newton (born April 3, 1942), also known as Mr. Las Vegas, is an American singer and actor. One of the most popular singers in the United States from the mid-to-late 20th century, Newton remains one of the best-known entertainers in ...
. It follows a
garbage man
A waste collector, also known as a garbage man, garbage collector, trashman (in the U.S), binman or dustman (in the UK), is a person employed by a public or private enterprise to collect and dispose of municipal solid waste (refuse) and recycl ...
who tries his hand at
stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage (theatre), stage and delivers humour, humorous and satire, satirical monologues sometimes incorporating physical comedy, physical acts. These ...
, failing miserably until a third arm mysteriously grows from his back.
The film was given a
limited theatrical release
__FORCETOC__
Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...
in the United States on July 26, 1991, by Greycat Films. It received mixed reviews from critics and underperformed at the box office, but has since become a
cult film
A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage in repeated ...
.
For his performance, Newton was nominated for the
Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor
The following is a list of Saturn Award winners and nominees for Best Supporting Actor (in a film). Burgess Meredith, Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis are the only actors that have won the award twice, while only Javier Bardem, Heath Ledger, and ...
.
Plot summary
Marty Malt (
Judd Nelson
Judd Asher Nelson (born November 28, 1959) is an American actor. After a lead role in the film '' Making the Grade'' (1984), Nelson had his breakout with a starring role in the coming-of-age teen film ''The Breakfast Club'' (1985), which caused ...
) is an unhappy garbage man who moonlights as an atrociously unfunny
standup comic. He lives in a dark, grimy, garbage-strewn urban netherworld, where a company named Blump's apparently owns everything. His best friend and fellow trash collector, Gus (
Bill Paxton
William Paxton (May 17, 1955 – February 25, 2017) was an American actor, filmmaker and musician. A versatile character actor known for his distinctive Texan drawl and everyman screen persona, he was a four-time Golden Globe Award and a Prime ...
), is the only one who laughs at his jokes, and his sincerity is questionable. The obnoxiously exuberant Gus plays an
accordion
Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...
, which he always carries with him. Marty is seeing Rosarita (
Lara Flynn Boyle
Lara Flynn Boyle (born March 24, 1970) is an American actress. She is known for playing Donna Hayward in the television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991). After appearing in Penelope Spheeris's comedy ''Wayne's World (film), Wayne's World'' (1 ...
), a waitress, but she doesn't seem too interested in him.
One day, Gus convinces a
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 ...
, Jackie Chrome (
Wayne Newton
Carson Wayne Newton (born April 3, 1942), also known as Mr. Las Vegas, is an American singer and actor. One of the most popular singers in the United States from the mid-to-late 20th century, Newton remains one of the best-known entertainers in ...
), to check out Marty's act. Jackie isn't impressed. Marty's luck seems to take a turn for the worse when a large lump starts growing on his back. He goes to a
quack doctor
Quackery, often synonymous with health fraud, is the promotion of fraudulent or ignorant medical practices. A quack is a "fraudulent or ignorant pretender to medical skill" or "a person who pretends, professionally or publicly, to have skill, ...
(
James Caan
James Edmund Caan ( ; March 26, 1940 – July 6, 2022) was an American actor. He came to prominence playing Sonny Corleone in ''The Godfather'' (1972), for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Academy Award an ...
), who calls him a wimp and puts a
Band-Aid on the lump. The lump continues to grow, eventually becoming a full-sized
arm
In human anatomy, the arm refers to the upper limb in common usage, although academically the term specifically means the upper arm between the glenohumeral joint (shoulder joint) and the elbow joint. The distal part of the upper limb between ...
. While Gus uses Marty's newfound freakishness to impress his
morbidly obese
Obesity is a risk factor for many chronic physical and mental illnesses.
The health effects of being overweight but not obese are controversial, with some studies showing that the mortality rate for individuals who are classified as overweight ( ...
girlfriends, a horrified Rosarita breaks up with Marty, and he gets fired from the club where he does his act.
Marty is despondent until Gus brings him to see Jackie, who, it turns out, has always dreamed of finding a real three-armed comic. Re-christened "Desi the Three-Armed Wonder Comic," and with Gus now providing musical accompaniment, Marty gets a fresh start on his career. Marty and Gus have a few semi-successful shows and eventually meet
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
talent agent Dirk Delta (
Rob Lowe
Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American actor, filmmaker, and entertainment host. Following numerous television roles in the early 1980s, he came to prominence as a teen idol and member of the Brat Pack with starring roles in ...
), who offers them a job. Marty, Gus and Jackie celebrate this big break and everything seems to be looking up until Marty wakes up the following morning and discovers his third arm has inexplicably vanished.
He goes with Gus to see Jackie, who is furious at first but calms down and decides to tell Dirk the truth upon Marty's suggestion. After calling Dirk and telling him the bad news, Dirk surprisingly asks them to send Gus to fill the spot with his accordion playing. Gus is ecstatic and leaves almost immediately. Marty is sad but gets his job back at the club and uses the story of his third arm in his act and finally gets a few laughs from the crowd.
Cast
Production
''The Dark Backward'' was the first screenplay that
Adam Rifkin
Adam Rifkin (born December 31, 1966), sometimes credited as Rif Coogan, is an American filmmaker and actor. His career ranges from broad family comedies to dark and gritty urban dramas. He is best known for writing family-friendly comedies like ...
ever wrote. He was just 19 years old when he was inspired to write it after watching a night of stand-up comedy in 1985.
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
began on August 14, 1990, in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, and concluded in mid-September 1990.
Release
Theatrical
''The Dark Backward'' had its world premiere at the
Santa Barbara International Film Festival
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) is an eleven-day film festival held in Santa Barbara, California in February annually, since 1986. The festival screens over 200 feature films and shorts from different countries and regions. ...
on March 9, 1991. It was released in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
on July 26, 1991, and in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
on November 22, 1991.
Home media
The film was released on
VHS
VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s.
Ma ...
in the United States by
RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video in 1992.
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc. (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home entertainment distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony.
Background
SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures libra ...
later released a
special edition
The terms special edition, limited edition, and variants such as deluxe edition, collector's edition or expanded edition are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as b ...
DVD on October 3, 2007.
Reception
Box office
''The Dark Backward'' grossed only $28,654 in North America.
Critical response
Janet Maslin
Janet R. Maslin (born August 12, 1949) is an American journalist, who served as a film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1977 to 1999, serving as chief critic for the last six years, and then a literary critic from 2000 to 2015. In 2000, M ...
of ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' stated, "''The Dark Backward'' concentrates only on stomach-turning trivia and on the kind of exaggeratedly stupid behavior that amounts to directorial condescension.
��The film's efforts to say something about success and its capriciousness never succeed in rising above an elbow-in-the-ribs obviousness." Maslin opined that
Judd Nelson
Judd Asher Nelson (born November 28, 1959) is an American actor. After a lead role in the film '' Making the Grade'' (1984), Nelson had his breakout with a starring role in the coming-of-age teen film ''The Breakfast Club'' (1985), which caused ...
"gives the film's best performance, which is not to say anything pleasant about the others."
Kevin Thomas of 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, "''The Dark Backward'' is ultimately a tale of liberation with the notion that only when you are truly free can you be truly funny. These may seem awfully sober thoughts for what looks to be a candidate for a
midnight cult movie. However, for all its gross-out humor ''The Dark Backward'' is a work of real craftsmanship that builds well and boasts superlative production design, incorporating thrift-store kitsch from the past couple of decades, fine moody camera work and a driving, cockamamie carousel music score."
Peter Travers
Peter Joseph Travers (born June 27, 1943) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film i ...
of ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason.
The magazine was first known fo ...
'' commented, "Adam Rifkin wrote the script for this comedy six years ago when he was nineteen. The result would be more excusable if he had written it nineteen years ago when he was six." Travers also stated, "Instead of the high satire of ''
How to Get Ahead in Advertising
''How to Get Ahead in Advertising'' is a 1989 British black comedy fantasy film written and directed by Bruce Robinson, and starring Richard E. Grant and Rachel Ward.
In the film, an advertising executive has a nervous breakdown and finds hi ...
'' (in which a boil on Richard E. Grant's neck grows into a talking head), Rifkin has conjured up a new low in cinematic ineptitude."
The film has gained a
cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...
over the years. In 2018, Rifkin said that "''The Dark Backward'' is and forever will be my sentimental favorite. It is the only thing I ever wrote that isn't influenced by outside voices. Every script you write, to some degree, is influenced by the business at large.
��I wrote it purely from my heart. It was something I wanted to write because it was something I wanted to see. Because that will never ever happen again, that's why it holds such a place in my heart."
Accolades
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dark Backward, The
1991 films
1991 black comedy films
1991 independent films
1990s American films
1990s English-language films
1990s satirical films
American black comedy films
American independent films
American satirical films
Films about comedians
Films about entertainers
Films about friendship
Films directed by Adam Rifkin
Films set in California
Films set in Los Angeles
Films shot in Los Angeles
Films shot in Santa Monica, California
Films shot in Venice, Los Angeles
English-language black comedy films
English-language independent films