God Bless America (2012)

Making America a better place, one murder at a time

Loveless, jobless, possibly terminally ill, Frank has had enough of the downward spiral of America. With nothing left to lose, Frank takes his gun and offs the stupidest, cruelest, and most repellent members of society. He finds an unusual accomplice: 16-year-old Roxy, who shares his sense of rage and disenfranchisement.

To say there are troubles with modern day America is akin to saying there are French people in France. Bobcat Goldthwait has made an admirable attempt to deliver some wish fulfillment to the viewers, by having Frank and Roxy kill the types of people who regularly annoy most, but it doesn't live up to its potential.

It feels like there always has to be a lecture given about today's generation, and despite bringing up some good points, they're buried within an overly preachy attempt at social commentary, making the each lecture more tedious as the film goes along. There are also too many scenes of the characters sitting down, listing all the types of people they hate, which does little other than add to the runtime.

Frank is a hard character to care about. Attempts are made, by showing how awful his life is and by having him voice the problems of today, but he's too cynical to care about, and more of a voice for Bobcat Goldthwait's rants and lectures rather then a proper character. Roxy is little more than an annoying sidekick, who gives off rants also, but hers feel like filler, not about making a statement but more about being condescending.

They've got my vote

Frank justifies his actions by declaring he's only killing those that he believes deserve to die, but most, if not all, of the people he and Roxy murder are not deserving of death. While disruptive people in cinemas, spoiled 16 year old girls who regularly throw abuse at their parents and people who double-park their car are annoying and deserve some form of comeuppance, getting shot to death is a bit extreme. It's also rather glaring how there's little police presence in a film about two serial killers who don't hide their identities, have had their faces shown on the news and drive around in a bright yellow car.

Bobcat Goldthwait attempts satire by showing what's wrong with modern-day America, but it comes off as cynical, dull, condescending & overly preachy. Perhaps in better hands, this film could have fulfilled its potential.