In Waiting for Guffman, they were community theatre actors. Then Best in Show told a story of obsessive show dog owners. In this third and most recent collaboration between Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy, the two showcase the world of folk music and its icon wannabes. In a style reminiscent of 1984’s hugely successful This is Spinal Tap, Guest and Levy use a documentary format to tell the tale of three sixties singing groups together again for a reunion tribute to their recently departed producer.
Recently in Toronto to promote A Mighty Wind, actor/writer Eugene Levy spoke of his and Guest’s fondness for atypical subject matter. “All our films have been pretty similar—we like to go for a subject where people take themselves perhaps a tad too seriously in whatever it is, be it folk singing, dog shows, or community theatre playing. It’s an area that seems ripe for comedy. This one is only different from the other two in its subject matter.”
Levy plays Mitch Cohen, one half of the singing duo Mitch and Mickey, the latter played by his longtime counterpart Catherine O’Hara (SCTV, Home Alone). The two are former lovers who lit up the folk music scene back in its heyday but who have since split up and moved on. At least Mickey has. In an obvious failure to deal with the break-up, Mitch goes a little wacky and spends some time in a sanatorium. A quirky, offbeat character, his reunion with Mickey for the tribute is somewhat awkward, quite emotional—and very hilarious.
The other two musical groups are the politically passionate The Folksmen (Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer) and the New Main Street Singers, a bright and cheery “neuftet” who are showcased mainly at amusement parks. All eagerly anticipate the reunion concert as a potential vehicle to the stardom they never enjoyed in the first place.
Whenever Guest and Levy come together in a filmmaking endeavour, you know some offbeat humour will be involved and A Mighty Wind is no exception. What makes the film work is the undeniable chemistry that exists in the large cast, many of whom have worked together for years. In addition to the musical characters are Fred Willard, who plays kooky Mike LaFontaine, manager of the New Main Street Singers and Jennifer Coolidge, the big-breasted, small-brained PR rep Amber Cole, both of whom provide many laughs. Relying heavily on the use of improv, only a certain group of people can pull off such a film successfully, and Guest and Levy have obviously found that group. Levy spoke of the challenges involved in creating an improv-based film. “You have to come up with a story that’s solid enough that its going to hold an audience, detailed enough that it gives the actors enough information as to who they are and what’s going on in the movie, and structured enough so that on a scene-by-scene basis you know the story is moving along as smoothly as it should.”
Whoever thought a folk music mockumentary would meet all the criteria?
