To say that Mike Patton showed "poor acting" while playing his roles, you are to say that:1) YOU know the CORRECT way someone that rapes their own brother should act -AND- 2) YOU know the CORRECT way someone that thinks love is making your significant other genderless should actSo, for those of you who decided to say there was "poor acting" in this film, I'd like to know, What in the f*** is your story? Like any film that goes against the norm, odd types of characters and plots are what makes the film different. The directors and writers are trying to interpret what is going on with these characters by the story, and this is their depiction of how that character acts or how the plot should go. Am I saying that the writers and directors know what it's like to be a brother who rapes his own brother? No, but I'm sure they thought about it longer than you did.

A troubled young boy suffering at the hands of his abusive older brother seeks solace in the arms of a traveling burlesque circus singer in this surreal, true crime thriller that follows in the tradition of David Lynch's Blue Velvet and marks the acting debut of former Faith No More frontman Mike Patton. Jimmy (Jak Kendall) is a small-town dreamer who only seems to find peace while walking the candy-colored boardwalk of the traveling circus that has recently rolled into town. Emotionally shackled by his mother Eleanor's (Karen Black) religious fanaticism and physically intimidated by his alcoholic brother, David (Mike Patton), Jimmy leads a meek life of servitude and submissiveness from which he is powerless to escape. Upon glimpsing the exotic beauty of sultry singer Sandra (also Black), Jimmy furtively strikes up a friendship with the woman despite ominous signs that she is being held captive behind the microphone by sadistic circus ringmaster Frank (also Patton). When David goes missing and the horrors of Jimmy's home life are mirrored by the suffering of Sandra in the most unexpected ways, the perceived peace of small-town Kansas is forever shattered by the terrifying truth behind the wholesome, white picket-fence facade of suburbia

Saturday night live used to have a sketch called bad theater. usually some imitation of ibsen with a guy pushing a big stone wheel around and around while screaming. this movie is like that. all kinds of gimmics. some scenes are in black and white, some in color. probably for the dream world/reality thing. karen black, who looks older than dirt, plays a crazy mother and a mutilated singer. again some duality bull manure. one son is mean and over acts. the other son is shy and overacts. mean son gives it to shy son up the rear end for some reason. shy son kills mean son. the whole thing is a confused art house mish mash that is kind of cool to look at, meaning the photography is sometimes pretty but is a big fat waste of your life to watch as a movie.

This has to be the biggest waste of time that ever called itself a movie. It's one of perhaps 5 movies that I would never sit through, even for money. The only one in our family that seemed to enjoy it is our cross-eyed cat. It kept turning its head side ways until it finally fell over. Blockbuster should be ashamed of putting this movie on its shelf. I hated it and so did my dog, it causes him to hike his leg every time he hears the word "Firecracker" now. Karen Black was awful in this movie. The movie had no story line and looks like the local High School drama club shot it on a hand held home movie camera. The cast had no direction and the acting was pitiful. What a waste of time and four dollars.