The Slammin' Salmon

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source: The Slammin' Salmon

The Broken Lizard team aren't one for conventional plots, and The Slammin' Salmon - set entirely in a restaurant - is no exception. In fact, almost the entire film takes place over the course of one evening, and most of the dramatic tension centers around waiters competing with one another for a bigger paycheck. It sounds implausible, but they pull it off pretty well, by making great characters, then relying on them to entertain us. If you've seen Super Troopers, Beerfest, or Club Dread, you'll know what to expect. The characters are likable, memorable, and generally well conceived. And just like all their other films, they all could generally have used some more character development. Is it just me, or do Jay Chandrasekhar's characters never get enough screen time? Unfortunately, Slammin' Salmon contains even more slapstick than their past works, and it really brings down the overall tone of the film. We're not watching you for slapstick! We want more awkward tension, more wit, and more character development. They also moved across the jokes too quickly. The writers really set up some very funny situations, and then move on without capitalizing on them. For example, they set up a humorous interracial relationship between Cleon's sister and Rich, but spent literally only a minute on it before moving on and never returning to it. Take the time to develop your jokes! Imagine the potential dialogue there, between Cleon, his sister, and Rich. We'll never know. When it comes down to it, Slammin' Salmon is funny. If you go into the movie wanting to hate it, Michael Clarke Duncan will make you laugh anyway. I just think that we could expect more out of these guys.

I really want to like Broken Lizard's movies, Super Troopers is one of the best comedies I have ever seen, but none of their subsequent movies even comes close to matching it. In The Slammin' Salmon the waitstaff of a high end seafood restaurant compete against each other to win $10,000 for selling the most food in one night. The eccentric former heavyweight boxer turned restaurant owner (Michael Clark Duncan) is amusing throughout the movie, as are the waitstaff themselves, but only for the last 40 min or so of the film. The big problem with The Slammin' Salmon is that it takes too long to really get going. Its not until the waitstaff finally get fired up about the contest and start sabotaging each other the film becomes truly funny. It's not a bad movie, and it is pretty funny at times, but it really could have been so much better.

The latest effort by the comic troupe known as Broken Lizard, "The Slammin' Salmon" is a fitfully amusing comedy set in an upscale seafood restaurant in Miami owned and operated by a flamboyant ex-boxer known as - what else? - The Slammin' Salmon (delightfully played by Michael Clarke Duncan). To pay off a gambling debt, the boss sets up a competition among his staff of waiters and waitresses to see who can bring in the most money in a 24-hour period. Chaos and mayhem ensue. As directed by Kevin Heffernan (who also appears, alongside his fellow Broken Lizard writers and actors, as one of the waiters), "The Slammin' Salmon" is not the most sophisticated or highbrow comedy you'll ever see, but its breezy style and high-energy performances go a long way towards making something uniquely unhinged and genuinely fun out of the material. Despite all the crazy antics, the movie never has to strain too hard to get its laughs, and even when the jokes clatter to the floor - as they are wont to do from time to time - the cast is always there to pick up the pieces and run with them. A few well-known faces - Will Forte, Vivica A. Fox and Morgan Fairchild - also stop by to add to the laughs.

Rich (Kevin Heffernan) always had an tough time standing up to his boss, an former boxer turned restaurant owner Cleon "Slammin'" Salmon (Michael Clarke Duncan). His restaurant is named "The Slammin' Salmon". Which Rich is also married to Salmon's sister. One day, Salmon asks Rich if he can make him $20,000 in one night. Because Salmon owns money to the head of Japanese Yukuza. Rich thinks it is impossible solution but his eager staff of waiters (Jay Chandrasekhar, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, Erik Stolhanske, Cobie Smulders and April Bowlby) are willing to work their butts off for a prize... It is going to be one long, hard, working, outrageous night at "The Slammin' Salmon". Made by first-time director:Kevin Heffernan does an good job with his directorial debut, he handles comedy well...probably nearly as good as Jay Chandrasekhar. Previously Chandrasekhar directed all the "Broken Lizard" productions. Duncan is fun as the intimidating if slightly inane boss. As the "Broken Lizard" gang:Chandrasekhar, Heffernan, Lemme, Soter (In a two different roles) and Stolhanske are fun to watch as usual. The five lead actors have their moments as well but Smulders and especially Bowlby have some funny moments of their own. The movie does have an few mean-spirited gags but in the end... it is all in good fun. The Canadian Blu-ray has an sharp anamorphic 1080p Widescreen (1.78:1) transfer and an good Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. But sadly, there is no special features. Unlike the Anchor Bay Blu-ray has all the special features like two commentary tracks, an featurette and an theatrical trailer. The movie has some amusing cameos like Lance Henriksen, Will Forte, Olivia Munn, Vivica A. Fox and more. Including some cast-members of the previous "Broken Lizard" movies appears in cameos. "The Slammin' Salmon" is the least seen movie from their work along with "Puddle Cruiser". But die-hard fans of the comedic gang will want to see their latest work. Written by Chandrasekhar, Heffernan, Lemme, Soter and Stolhanske. (****/*****).

If you're a fan of Broken Lizard (Super Troopers and Beerfest) then you will absolutely love this movie. I am one of those fans and must say that not only do the 5 members of Broken Lizard impress as always, but the other additions of Cobbie Smulder, April Bowlby and of course Michael Clark Duncan are fantastic. The Slammin' Salmon is a restaurant owned by a former boxer (MCD) where the the wait staff leader (Farva - Heffernan) is told that if they don't make 20k, the restaurant will close. He decides to offer a prize for the top server and the competition begins. This movie works because it clicks on many levels. It has humor that's cheesy, dirty and clever mixed in with one liners. The contrast of Jay's craziness, MCD's anger and Cobbie's innocence meshes so well it would be hard for any person who likes to laugh to hate this movie. I would recommend this movie to everyone except for those taking their girlfriends to a romcom.

Following up the excellent comedies 'Super Troopers,' 'Beerfest,' and 'Club Dread,' the comedy troupe of Broken Lizard finally returns after a few years' hiatus with 'The Slammin' Salmon.' The story focuses on a restaurant owned by boxing legend Cleon "Slammin'" Salmon (Michael Clarke Duncan of 'The Green Mile' fame). When he loses an expensive bet to the Yakuza, he forces his restaurant's manager Rich (Kevin Heffernan) to make up the losses with a big night at the restaurant. To do this, the staff (including all the usual Broken Lizard cast) is bribed with vacations, money, and Norah Jones tickets. As expected, chaos & hilarity ensue as the crazy crew of waiters and busboys screw up just about everything possible throughout the night. Before anyone gets into watching 'The Slammin' Salmon,' they should first visit the other Broken Lizard productions to know what they're getting into. 'The Slammin' Salmon,' while not as funny, creative, or perverse, as the troupe's previous films, does have its fair share of comedy. This comes from what seems to be some unusually standard writing from a group that usually creates very wacky situations in their other movies. Like another similar film 'Waiting…' (with Anna Faris and Ryan Reynolds), 'The Slammin' Salmon' hits most of the typical "restaurant" jokes, but never goes as deeply crazy and hilarious as 'Beerfest' or 'Super Troopers.' This was probably the biggest issue the film had. After waiting three years for another Broken Lizard release, I thought this would be just as perversely ridiculous as their past releases, but they seemed to have tamed themselves a bit. The performances made up for the "typical" writing and dialogue with some spot-on comedic performances. Jay Chandrasekhar as Nutz/Zongo was an absolute riot and took the film to a whole new level of funny. No one, however, matched the hilarity of Michael Clarke Duncan as the Slammin' Salmon himself. His over-the-top madness was absolutely the shining element of this film and alone makes it worth watching. Overall, the film has quite a few laugh-out-loud moments but is consistently entertaining all the way through, with the final act coming out as the highlight of the film. Fans of the other restaurant comedy 'Waiting…' along with Broken Lizard's previous releases should certainly give it a watch. Final Verdict: 7/10. -AP3-

Restaurateur and retired Heavy-Weight champion Cleon 'Slammin' Salmon (Michael Clarke Duncan) threatens and beats his wait staff into up-selling their customers so that they can earn 20 grand in one evening to pay off his gambling debt. As the stakes are continually raised, so too are the antics that ensue as each waiter tries to outdo one another, earn the ten thousand dollar cash prize, or save themselves from a brutal beating - while all anxiously await the passing of a diamond ring the manager had swallowed. This is an enjoyable edition to Broken Lizards filmography. Like their other films, The Slammin' Salmon features excellent, quirky, and weird characters, and an outlandish plot. Here one can also see and appreciate the group's maturity as there is more situational humor, far less shtick, and relatively little scatological humor as compared to their previous films. This is also Kevin Heffernen's amicable debut as a director. The Slammin' Salmon has fairly good pacing, though it does slow down at times, there are still lots of laugh out loud moments throughout the piece. Of course the true strength of this movie is in the writing and performances. As per usual, the Lizards play a host of characters with personality flaws galore, such as 'Zongo' the OCD/Schizophrenic waiter; or Donnie the alcoholic bus boy with low self esteem. These quirky characters are joined by great performances form Michael Clarke Duncan as 'the champ', April Bowlby as the upbeat 'little train that could' waitress, to the always level-headed Tara, played by Cobie Smulders. This film could have used a better soundtrack, which had been a staple in other Lizard productions. Although they did write a humorous take off of "The Eye of the Tiger" which is featured during the credits. I also found the scenes in the kitchen and waiter prep area to be altogether unbelievable. Though I've not worked as a cook or a waiter, I've scene the frenetic goings on in the kitchen and prep areas, just passing by on the way to the restroom. They didn't capture that feel nor fully capitalize on this norm as these scenes are most always calm and free of frenzy. This, I believe is one major element that makes the film slow down. I enjoyed the film. And a fan of the Broken Lizard troupe, I agree with others that it is not as good as Super Troopers. However, with a piece such as great as that, it will be difficult for them to ever match it. An excellent comedy, well worth watching.

I saw part of this on tv a long time ago and didn't really like it but after watching the whole thing I have definitely changed my opinion. This might not be as funny as Super Troopers but it's a good movie. See it.