First the good news: “H.R. Pukenshette” is not a vulgar parody of the old Sid & Marty Krofft TV show “H.R. Pufenstuf”. Fans of Witchiepoo & Co. do not have to fear the desecration of that classic bit of psychedelic kiddie television.
Now the bad news: “H.R. Pukenshette” is not really about anything at all. A loser gets dumped by his girlfriend, drinks himself nauseous, and pukes all over his coffee table. The vomit coagulates into the title character, depicted as a triangular puke-puppet with goggle eyes and a terrible French accent who takes the upchucking loser into the world for some anti-social merriment (which includes urinating from a tree on a couple having a picnic and stealing the bikini top from a sunbathing babe). Ho Ho No!!! The film runs 10 minutes and seems like an eternity, with nary a laugh to be found.
“H.R. Pukenshette” is too stupid to be funny and too unimaginative to be vulgar. Yet the film is not without a redeeming factor. The sole saving grace is Sabrina Gennarino as the girl whose rupture of the relationship kicks off the film. She is a damn sexy woman who takes over whenever she saunters into view. This is an actress who clearly belongs on camera–and watching her strut across the screen raises thoughts whether she wandered into the wrong film by mistake. If her brief on-screen time is any indication, she should be able to find steady and frequent work in real films and perhaps “H.R. Pukenshette” is only a muddy little stepping stone on her path to celebrity.
