There is a clear forerunner in American comic films at present. Surrounded by a core group of fellow comedians, Will Ferrell is the towering presence at the centre of many of the best comedies of this millenium, but go back almost 30 years and you'll find the secret to his success and the clear influence on his characters and films. Steve Martin, as 'The Jerk', is the blueprint for the modern trend of good-hearted simple folk who find success, fame or wealth, before realising that love is all they really need.
The story is that of Navin R. Johnson, a white man raised by a black family (believing he was himself black, just the wrong colour). One day he decides to leave and seek his fortune and manages to hitchhike his way to a gas station where he finds a job. One day he helps a customer by adding a handle to their glasses to make them stick to his nose. After coming under attack from an arbitrary gunman, he accidentally runs away with a carnival and gets a job guessing people's weight and driving the mini train, as well as becoming the female stuntbiker's sex slave. He meets a sweet girl, Marie, who he seduces but she rejects him as unable to meet her high standards. Determined to make something of himself he goes in pursuit of her, with the good luck of making his instant fortune when the entrepeneur whose glasses he fixed gives him his share. He lives the high life with Marie in a large mansion, before a suit led by the film's director, Carl Reiner, against Johnson for sending him cross-eyed with his invention robs him of his money and leads him to become a bum on a street.
Just as it seems, the film is incredibly random, with the oddest plot twists and tacked-on jokes. It almost seems that they made it up as they went along. The glue at the centre of the film is Johnson, but Steve Martin's peculiar performance is rather inconsistent and sometimes I couldn't be sure if Johnson really was stupid, or just acting stupid. He is often endearing, but then will suddenly be infuriatingly irrational in terms of the character's inner journey. One example is when he is discussing his properties with some shady gangster types (who have suddenly appeared with no explanation) and takes offence to their discrimination against blacks. Suddenly he strips down to a karate outfit and unleashes kungfu on everyone before kicking one of them between the legs and coming up against his Iron Balls. It just doesn't seem so funny when it's entirely irrational and inconsistent with the plot. One character, played by M. Emmet Walsh, is almost entirely irrelevant, as a madman who picks Johnson's name at random from the phonebook (which has just provided him with such joy for finally being somebody) and then tries to kill him, before returning as a reformed private eye, delivering him his saving grace of millions of dollars.
I acknowledge that that kind of randomness can be very amusing, but usually within a context that is designed for such digressions from the plot, but at the heart of 'The Jerk' is a very simple, linear narrative that requires development. It would be much cleverer to tie in any jokes with the plot, rather than stick them in from time to time. The inclusion of Carl Reiner as the deus ex machina, bringing around Johnson's downfall, is both intriguing and absurd. Potentially, it's cinematically daring, breaking down the fourth wall and revealing the artificiality of the comedy, but within the context of the film it's hard to see it as much more as an easy laugh with Reiner just joining in the fun.
Don't get me wrong, it's funny, there's some brilliant oneliners in there; "There's something about the blues that always make me feel so sad"; and some great visual comedy too; when Johnson believes the gunman is shooting cans he tries to run away only to find various cans all over the garage, and the shots following him. But this comedy always works best when it's a natural progression of the character and the typical position for his stupidity to place him in.
I think where Will Ferrell has been more successful, with films such as 'Anchorman' and 'Talladega Nights', is that the ignorance of his characters has always been more subtle and intriguing, rather than simply mentally retarded like Johnson. The closest relation to Johnson is Ferrell's Ricky Bobby from 'Talladega Nights', a simple guy with one passion, to race, who becomes a huge success and lives with great wealth, before it crashes down around him and he discovers his friendship and the love of a good woman is the true key to happiness. Anyone who loves the films of Will Ferrell, or even Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson and the rest of the current gang would be strongly advised to watch this film as part of the original collection of films by the Saturday Night Live graduates that includes 'Animal House', 'The Blues Brothers' and 'Trading Places'. No doubt you'll find it entertaining, I did, even if it was totally stupid.
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