Slackers

BUZZARD (B-minus) - This is a film to be liked or promptly dismissed, about a foul-tempered, directionless young adult who acts like he was raised by wolves. It plays like a suburban teen's attempt at making a real movie, which gives it a certain charm.

Marty Jackitansky (Joshua Burge) is a dead-end temp at a bank, and he specializes in extremely low-level scams, such as taking office supplies back to the store for a refund. He not only too lazy to actually work for a living, but he's also too lazy to come up with a scheme that will net him more than $30 or $40 at a time. As a crook, he's a disappointment.

Meantime, he sits around playing video games and perfecting a glove that has blades for fingers, like Edward Scissorhands. A task at work tracking down the folks who's refund checks were undeliverable gives him an opportunity for another score, and his mom inadvertently provides him with a system for cashing the checks. But he soon botches the execution, and fearing the wrath of his boss, he goes underground.

He crashes for a while with a co-worker, Derek (Joel Potrykus, who wrote and directed), a total dork who hangs out in his father's basement. But soon, he's on the run again, crashing at a fleabag motel and eventually trying one last time to cash the rest of the unclaimed checks. Paranoia creeps in.

This is the second collaboration between the star, Burge, and the writer/director, Potrykus. I've yet to see their debut, "Ape," about a struggling, offensive comedian. They are obviously determined to rip off the protective veneer of society and expose the seedy underbelly of society and its unglamorous losers, the folks who have to not only watch their dollars but count their pennies. Potrykus owes a big debt to Mike Judge. This plays like "Office Space" on zero budget and starring Butt-head. (Potrykus' Derek even resembles one of those bit parts that Judge likes to play in his own movies.) Yet it has a gritty '70s street feel to it, as well. (I won't compare it to "Mean Streets," but I'll parenthetically mention it and leave it at that.) Little touches (and some great acting in bit parts) add humorous detail; Potrykus creates a whole character named Kubiak, just so "Koobs" can pop up from his cubicle for a throwaway sight gag, his only scene. Other one-off shots -- such as Marty in a monster mask dozing off at a movie screening -- seem random but are memorable.

Burge is a compelling figure, a bug-eyed Steve Buscemi type with attitude to burn. (Some will turn him off after 10 minutes.) During one of Marty's binges, he takes just about every dollar he has left and splurges on a fancy hotel room. He dances on the bed and lounges in a white robe. He spends his last 20 bucks on a plate of spaghetti and meatballs, and Potrykus lets the camera role as Marty watches an off-screen TV and stuffs his face with pasta. We see him eat nearly the entire dish, in one extended, inspired take. Marty has his Scissorhands glove on as he pigs out, and his face is a kaleidoscope of expressions. That scene is the entire film in a nutshell.

"Buzzard" is propelled by a metal-sludge soundtrack deployed in machine-gun bursts as if a psycho-killer had just showed up. It tracks along with a sad sack who doesn't have the basic skills to keep from drowning in the capitalist system. He's a helpless boy who defaults to his basest instincts to survive. It's both sad and funny to watch. It would break your heart if he weren't so repulsive.

BONUS TRACK
The appealing trailer: