Read Time:2 Minute, 2 Second
I grew
up in Michigan. In other words, I grew up in a place where pretty much everyone owned a
rifle—which they took along with them each fall when they packed up their pick-ups and
tromped through the woods, chasing down pheasants and deer and (most often) chipmunks.
While I didn’t grow up in a hunting family (though my brothers did often shoot at pesky
squirrels in the back yard), I grew up thinking of November 15th as a major holiday—the
beginning of deer hunting season, a day when the halls at school were eerily quiet. And
for weeks thereafter, the local paper would report on the big hauls of the season. So
for me, Escanaba in da Moonlight is absolutely side-splitting.
Based on the play by Jeff Daniels, Escanaba tells the story of
Reuben Soady (played by Daniels), Escanaba’s famous “Buckless Yooper” (for those of you
who don’t know, a “Yooper” is a resident of Michigan’s upper peninsula, known as the UP).
At 43, Reuben is humiliated by the fact that he’s been hunting all his life and has yet
to bag his first buck. All of Escanaba is convinced that Reuben is cursed. But as he
drives out to the Soady Deer Camp, Reuben is determined to make this The
Year.
On the first night of deer camp, everything seems to go wrong.
Reuben’s dad’s (Harve Presnell) homemade whiskey is nothing but sap. The Euchre cards
mysteriously become nothing but 2s, 3s, and 4s. And a DNR ranger (Randall Godwin) shows
up and claims to have seen God out on the ridge. And even though they won’t admit it out
loud, Reuben’s family is convinced that it’s all because of Reuben’s
curse.
Escanaba in da Moonlight is quirky and bizarre—and
absolutely hilarious. Those of you who loved Daniels in Dumb and Dumber will want
to run right out and find yourself a copy (and you’ll most likely play the fart scene
over and over and over until you wear out the DVD). If you live in deer hunting country,
you’ll totally identify with this movie—but even if you’ve never seen a rifle or eaten a
venison burger, you’ll still enjoy it. All that’s required is a sense of humor and a
love of the peculiar.
For more information about Escanaba
see EscanabaTheMovie.com.
Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it.
Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course.
As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com).
Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.
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Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it.
Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course.
As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com).
Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.
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