Corky Romano

Saturday Night Live may be responsible for a revolution in television comedy, but the show and its actors are also responsible for some of the worst films ever made. In a body of work that includes the undistinguished likes of It’s Pat, Tommy Boy, A Night at the Roxbury, Little Nicky, Superstar, Ladies Man, Cops & Robbersons, Stuart Saves His Family, Dr. Detroit (and believe me, that’s just scratching the surface) you would think it would be nearly impossible to lower the bar. That is, until you see Corky Romano.

The story (such as it is) is about a weird veterinarian who comes from a mob family and has to join the FBI.  This so-called plot is really just window-dressing for this wannabe star vehicle.

Chris Kattan is an amazingly bland leading man (even on SNL, it’s almost impossible to distinguish between him and Jimmy Fallon.) He knows this, so he tries to be constantly moving and grimacing like a sugared-up kid with ADD. It makes you notice him, but it sure doesn’t make you like him.

The sad thing is he has dragged some truly talented actors – including Peter Falk, Christopher Penn and Peter Berg – into this morass. The film just ends up being a long series of Kattan tripping over stuff or mistakenly shooting guns, periodically broken up by kitschy songs from the eighties.  (10/01)

Alex Diamond