At the recent US Comedy Arts Festival, "Super Sucker" was the winner of the Audience Award for Best Feature. In the fictitious Midwestern town of Johnson City (which looks a whole lot like Jackson, Michigan, where this film was made) two competitive door-to-door vacuum cleaner sales teams often have a contest. The winners have steak dinners bought by the losers, who have to eat a large bowl of beans. After a small riot breaks out in a restaurant between the two sales teams, the district manager decides to have a 30-day contest, in which the prize is an exclusive territory for the winner. That means, winner takes all!
The competing sales managers are Fred Barlow (Jeff Daniels of "Dumb and Dumber," "Speed," "Fly Away Home," "Pleasantville," "Blood Work" and "The Hours," and the soon to be released "Gods and Generals") and Winslow Schnaebelt (Harve Presnell of "Saving Private Ryan" and "Mr. Deeds"). The passion they have for their job and to make the sale, by providing real value and a bit of entertainment thrown in, almost makes you want someone to come knocking on your door hustling you to accept the offer of the day.
Winslow's group is off to a fast start and appears to be the certain winner, until Fred discovers a unique use for a vacuum cleaner attachment that dramatically changes the sexual dynamics in the bedroom.
"Super Sucker" is an intelligently raunchy (I know, an oxymoron) comedy for adults that has the polish of a Hollywood studio film but without "dumbed down" humor. Now, that does not mean the comedy aspires to the subtlety of British humor. It's far from that. More than simply punch lines, the dialogue tells a story which tends to have multiple interpretations. You get a chance to laugh now and even later.
Like "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," this is a Midwestern based comedy that will have wide appeal. Unlike MBFGW, the appeal is less to the 40/50-year-old set than to the college and 30 something's, who are looking for slightly irreverent comedy with a definite edge. But then I'm past 50 and I thought the movie was a hoot. It contains some of the funniest sexual innuendo humor I've seen in years.
Some of you will be familiar with Jeff Daniels' first project "Escanaba in da Moonlight." Folks are always saying they are looking for something fresh and this is it.
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