SCOTLAND, PA —** 1/2 — James LeGros, Maura Tierney, Christopher Walken, Kevin Corrigan, James Rebhorn, Thomas Guiry, Amy Smart, Andy Dick, Timothy "Speed" Levitch; rated R (profanity, violence, drug use, sex, brief gore, vulgarity); exclusively at the Tower Theatre.
Given all the numerous rehashes of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" and "Romeo & Juliet" we've seen in the past couple of years, it was inevitable that someone would finally get around to updating "Macbeth" as well.
What wasn't as obvious was that it would get such irreverent treatment as it does in the highly uneven dark comedy "Scotland, PA," in which writer/director Bill Morrissette uses the Bard's classic tale of deceit, duplicity and murder to indict American consumerism.
And despite the drastic change in locale and time period, the film is much more faithful to its source material than, say, "10 Things I Hate About You," the teen comedy loosely based on "The Taming of the Shrew." (Though, curiously, as with that film, this one runs out of steam after a promising first half.)
This film's title refers to the U.S. city where Mac and Pat McBeth (James LeGros and Maura Tierney) live, circa 1975. They're highly unsuccessful thirtysomethings — he's now working as a fry cook, while she's employed as a counter girl at the same burger joint. But they both think they're destined for better things.
Unfortunately, their boss Norman Duncan (James Rebhorn), has other ideas. Rather than rewarding them for their loyalty, he turns the restaurant over to his son, Malcolm (Thomas Guiry), who doesn't want the business. So Mac and Pat plot to rob Duncan — though their plan goes awry when Duncan is scalded to death in a deep-fat fryer. However, they are able to cover up the murder and Malcolm agrees to sell them the restaurant.
Their triumph may be short-lived, however. A certain Detective McDuff (Christopher Walken) is snooping around. And he may have a potential witness in Banko (Kevin Corrigan), Mac's former best friend, who's become resentful of the McBeths' success.
Morrissette's screenplay is filled with funny touches — Pat's accursed "spot" is actually a deep-fat burn on her hand, while the fortune-telling witches become a trio of stoners (Andy Dick, Amy Smart and performance artist Timothy "Speed" Levitch).
But as Mac, LeGros' performance is a bit underwhelming. You can't really tell if he means to play the part as a bit of a dullard or if he just can't get a grip on his character. Fortunately, Tierney (Morrissette's real-life wife) is better as his devious, scheming spouse. But it's Walken who steals the shows as the loopy vegetarian McDuff, who's not as dense as he seems.
"Scotland, PA" is rated R for frequent use of strong, sexually related profanity, violence (gunfire and a tussle), simulated drug use (marijuana), simulated sex, brief gore and some crude sexual humor and references. Running time: 103 minutes.
E-mail: jeff@desnews.com