I had high expectations for "Dangerous Men" at the onset of the Everything Is Festival. After all, the festival literature described it saying, "Forget Troll 2, forget the collective works of Ed Wood, forget The Visitor, forget Birdemic — Dangerous Men is THE holiest of all Holyfuckingshits." But after having seen "Ninja Annihilation War," the bar was just set too impossibly high, perhaps even too high for one of the "Ninja Annihilation War" ninja to jump. That's not to say "Dangerous Men" is a bad film—well, it is a bad film because that's what I watch, but it's not a bad bad film. I have to admit, my brain was pretty fried when I watched this. Four days of watching films and found footage not to mention the nuke of "Ninja Annihilation War" means that I'm pretty inured to a lot of things at the moment. If I had seen this before I watched "Ninja Annihilation War," I'm sure that I would have felt very strongly about this movie.
Again, how could I describe this film? Plot? I suppose it has one. Main character(s)? I guess? Perhaps it's best to use the presenter's own words. When he went to view this film in it's original theatrical run in all of 8 Southern California theaters in 2005 rented out by the producer/director/writer/editor/composer/set decorator/production designer/special thanks John S. Rad (full name Jahangir Salehi Yeganehrad), he asked the box office:
"How many people have seen this?"
"Mmmmflu."
"Two?"
"No, you."
Furthermore, he described the ending as containing characters in the movie who 45 minutes earlier had yet to appear in the movie.
The very good thing about this film was really how it induced a social atmosphere. People bond over this movie. The whole theater was clapping and singing along with the background music. Friendships were forged, and relationships cemented. That is the type of movie this is. Years from now people will remember it, fondly, and share their stories about having seen it. Aside from that, it is rather indescribable. Upon the final shot of the film, not a single person in the packed house could deny their euphoria.
So, instead of describing the movie, let me leave you with quotes from an interview with John S. Rad about the film:
"A friend of mine had a connection with someone who had a helicopter. So we fly everywhere. That’s why I located the best location which makes the viewer to feel good and enjoy…"
"Also the film has many layers that maybe people do not pick up right away when watching one time, that’s why they want to see the film again and again as each time enjoy it more than earlier time."
"In my opinion, when a film has been shot is not important. We have to see the quality of the film, how it is, what message it gives, what education we can receive, and if we have fun from it’s entertainmentship."
Rest in peace.
John S. Rad
1936-2007
My shitty movie review: 10 turds out of 10. "Dangerous Men" is truly deserving of 10 turds on the normalized scale. It should sit up there proudly alongside the likes of "The Wicker Man" and "Killdozer!"
