In 1975, “Jaws” made people fear the ocean. In 1986, “Crawlspace” made people fear Klaus Kinski. In 1999, “The Blair Witch Project” made people fear camping. And in 2007, “Cup of Joe” made people fear shitting their pants on the way to work. Oh, the horror.
During his morning commute, just as traffic slows to a halt, Joe’s stomach gurgles, his pooper starts kissing his underwear and it becomes frighteningly apparent that his breakfast is wanting to climb into the seat of his pants. A juicy fart confirms this. The sweat starts pouring as Joe begins his long, agonizing scramble to find a place to relieve himself before tragedy strikes. The mission is painful, but things soon get way worse than a simple threat of shitting one’s trousers. Let’s just say that the title isn’t necessarily referring to the coffee Joe has with his breakfast.
Okay, so it’s a poop movie. What’s more, it’s a poop in the pants movie, so the film has more class than just your average, every day poop movie. The key to this film’s greatness is its attention to the fine details. If you’ve ever been caught in this situation, where you suddenly feared crapping your pants more than you feared death, then “Cup of Joe” has plenty you will be able to relate to – the bizarre breathing patterns, the mad chanting, the funny walk or trot, the hallucinations, the way elevators tend to move oh so slowly when there’s an emergency. These things and much more round out Joe’s search for a restroom.
“Cup of Joe” would be classified a horror film if it wasn’t so funny, so funny that it almost makes shitting your pants cool.
