OxfordPress.com

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

Verdict: This Scottish-themed film takes the low-comedy road.

Details: Starring Craig Ferguson. Directed by Kevin Allen. Rated R for profanity and implied sexuality. 1 hour, 26 minutes.

Rate it: Write your own review

Review: To echo the Scottish vernacular that's one of its more winning aspects, there's a wee bit of fun to be had with "The Big Tease," a mockumentary about a Glasgow hairdresser's determination to win an international stylist competition.

Our protagonist, Crawford Mackenzie (Craig Ferguson, a regular on "The Drew Carey Show"), is the proverbial big fish in a small pond — a fact of which he remains blissfully unaware. As he tells us early in his "Rocky"-esque tale of unlikely triumph over the odds, "You can't dominate Glasgow and the five surrounding regions and not get invited to L.A."

So when an invitation does arrive from America's West Coast, he hops the next plane, ready to win the coveted Platinum Scissors and defeat the reigning champ, Stig Ludwigssen (David Rasche, delivering a hilarious parody of a snobbish Beverly Hills styling god, down to the long hair, gofers and requisite Euro-trash accent).

One small problem: The invitation asked Mackenzie to be part of the audience, not be in the contest.

The competition's coordinator (Mary McCormack) tries to get rid of him by promising a seat between Daniel Day-Lewis and Carrot Top, but Crawford is dead set on representing Scotland in front of the world. All he needs are some contacts, a few lucky breaks and his own Scottish stubbornness.

Frances Fisher is amusingly on-target as the hard-bitten Hollywood agent who eventually befriends him, as is McCormack as a pandemic Tinseltown type who changes her attitude on the turn of a dime once Fisher pulls a few strategic strings.

But, overall, the film lives up to its title. That is, it teases us with an occasional good line, sharp observation or well-placed cameo. Then a tepid 10 minutes or so pass before anything catches our attention again.

As a result, the movie feels long, even at a brisk 86 minutes. Still, it doesn't aspire to anything more than sheer silliness. Plus, every so often, Ferguson, who co-wrote the script, comes up with a line worthy of Libby Gelman-Waxner, Paul Rudnick's alter ego in Premiere magazine. The term "schmooze," Crawford confides as part of his new insider's status, is a Jewish word meaning "to talk and have a snack at the same time."

— Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Cox News Service

[an error occurred while processing this directive]