""I wanted to provide a well-balanced diet, make the audience laugh, cry, get an erection, and then throw up in their laps"-it's safe to say that Hey, Happy! director Noam Gonick wasn't aiming for the mainstream with his first feature. Indeed, even 25 years on from premiering at the Sundance Film Festival, revisiting its transgressive blend of apocalyptic sci-fi, queer romance, and bad-taste comedy still has the power to spark such visceral reactions (only those with very specific kinks, however, are likely to feel aroused)."
"But this is a very different beast, a countercultural end-is-nigh tale set within an industrial Winnipeg wasteland populated by waifs and strays. This motley crew spend their final days browsing outdoor markets specializing in second-hand smut ("no lips below the hips" comes the manager's anti-frisky warning), getting beauty treatments in junkyards (other than a few bathroom scenes, everything in the movie happens al fresco), and preparing for a drug-fueled rave that aligns with the fall of civilization."
"getting beauty treatments in junkyards (other than a few bathroom scenes, everything in the movie happens al fresco), and preparing for a drug-fueled rave that aligns with the fall of civilization. Spanky (Clayton Godson), a truly repugnant club kid who shrieks, sneers, and slithers his way across the landfill landscapes like a cross between Sid Vicious and Gollum, is our gateway into this tweaked-out hellscape."
Noam Gonick's Hey, Happy! premiered at Sundance 25 years ago as a transgressive blend of apocalyptic sci-fi, queer romance, and bad-taste comedy. The film is set in an industrial Winnipeg wasteland populated by waifs and strays preparing for civilization's fall. Characters browse outdoor markets of second-hand smut, get beauty treatments in junkyards, and plan a drug-fueled end-times rave. Spanky (Clayton Godson), a repugnant club kid, serves as the audience's gateway, shrieking and slithering across landfill landscapes. The film stages most action outdoors, favors shock value, and deliberately courts visceral reactions.
Read at Queerty
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