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Simply Perfect

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Robbie Robertson a member of the famous roots rock group, The Band sang rural, pastoral country folk/rock with a touch of pessimism.Carny co-written and starring Roberson is a rather plot less and meandering film that needed a better and sharper director. However it carries on the themes of The Band as you enter the world of a travelling carnival in the south filled with strange people, the tallest, shortest, the bearded and the contortionist.Frankie (Gary Busey) is a twisted clown in the carnival, always winding up the punters as he sits on a dunk tank taunting them.Patch (Robbie Robertson) is a fixer at the carnival, he works the dunk tank with Frankie and smooths things over with locals and the carnival operators.Frankie hooks up with Donna (Jodie Foster) a rather bored young woman whose boyfriend Frankie humiliates. She joins Frankie at the circus although Patch is not too pleased about it and she initially works on the strip show before finding out that she is a natural conning the punters on the rigged games of skill.Patch and Frankie have to deal with one of the gangsters who is extorting money from the circus boss and whose henchman takes a shine to Donna.Foster is very sexy, she gives another mature performance and to think she was only 18 years old at the time. Just watch the scene when she hustles two lesbians, very sensual and natural!

Frankie (Gary Busey) is a dunk tank clown in a traveling carnival fair. Donna (Jodie Foster) is on a date and falls for Frankie or maybe just the excitement of running away with the circus. She's under-aged but they pretend she's 18. Patch (Robbie Robertson) is his best friend who keeps the circus going patching up the wild unruly group and the little towns they travel through. First Donna starts working as a side girl but Patch sabotages her and it goes badly. Then she works one of the games under Gerta (Meg Foster)'s supervision.The plot meanders and it's hard to see what's the point. The characters aren't compelling. What this movie has is a lot of information about the traveling carnival. Robbie Robertson's low key performance doesn't really help. Gary Busey is holding up his end of the bargain by being a barely restrained clown. Jodie Foster is doing her spunky runaway character. It would be much better if her character is running away from something interesting that drives this movie. The movie kind of meanders and stumbles from one interesting carny scenario to another without really going anywhere.

Carny is an interesting low-key film. It doesn't really have much of a plot. It works far more on atmosphere. The story is about a direction-less teenage girl (Jodie Foster) who runs away with the carnival after she meets a clown there. This leads to some friction between the manager and the clown; while later the carnies have to deal with some vicious local officials. As I say, it's not really much of a story and in order to appreciate Carny you need to find something in the feel of the movie.I guess you could describe the set-up as a love triangle but only to a certain extent, as there really isn't a lot of emotion invested in the romantic side of the story; at the same time, there is a thriller element introduced towards the end and while that was quite good fun, it doesn't really fit all that well and could easily have been omitted. But as I say, the film still makes a mark and that is probably a result of the gritty recreation of carnival life and the good performances underpinning it. Best of the actors is Gary Busey who steals the show in his role as the abusive clown; moreover, the film begins very memorably with close-ups of him applying his clown make-up like it was war paint. In a sense it is, as he is extremely confrontational and goads his audience into throwing balls at him in sheer anger. In fact, the film depicts the carnies in general as primarily fuelled by a desire to fleece whoever enters their lair as they travel from town to town.Carny is an interesting character-driven mood piece. It definitely falls into the cult movie side of the spectrum, as its unusual setting and dynamics will always mean it'll not appeal to everyone but will definitely connect with quite a few who are lured in to sample its wares.

Hopefully a cult-classic by now, this '80 beautiful little gem passes muster. Robbie Robertson (who I think produced it) gives a fathomable, realistic performance for a GREAT MUSICIAN, Jodi Foster is wonderful as usual (the main character), and Gary Busey, a couple of years after THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY wipes the floor of the sideshow. A fascinating delving-into slice of "somebody's life" on the road with great supporting characters. An 8 out of 10. Best performance = Gary Busey.Little-known then, it courses the veins without trapping you into bog-ville for a small flick. Find this one for sure and you won't be disappointed. A jewel!