What makes The Concessionaires Must Die! appealing is the winningly silly side plots and visual gags that keep cropping up. A trio of underage kids won’t give up in their quest to sneak into an R-rated picture. Jon (John M. Keating), the somewhat older, wiser Monarch employee, catches the would-be gatecrashers each time. At one point, he shares a sympathetic moment with them, waxing on about his adolescence. He understands that they love the cinema, just like he did when he was a kid, and they desperately want to experience a real movie made for grown-ups. Then one of the youngsters sets him straight. “We just want to look at boobies,” the kid says.
Young deftly plays on the theme of media-consuming youths who’ve become pop-culture-obsessed adults puzzled by the ways of the world. Discussing the imminent demise of the Monarch, Scott can’t figure out why Gabby won’t simply keep the money-losing business going. Ashley, somewhat impatiently, explains to him, “Do you know how exhausting it is to fight a constant uphill battle for your dreams?” She looks at him doubtfully and adds, “You’ve seen movies about people who do, so picture that.”
“…winningly silly side plots and visual gags…”
Genre and pop-culture spoofing films are at their best when created by fans of stuff that they’re poking fun at. It shows in titles such as This is Spinal Tap, where keen observations about the silliness and eccentricities of rock music are what makes it so special. That classic’s pitch-perfect, albeit exaggerated, tone connects with an audience who are themselves fans of the music. The same could be said for this good-natured dive into the world of movie geekdom.
The Concessionaires Must Die! isn’t quite up to the comic genius of Spinal Tap — though its biting satirical wit sets the bar awfully high. But it aims at a similar target as the aforementioned rock’n’roll spoof — people stranded on the cusp of adulthood who resist giving up the trappings of their youth. Fortunately, the filmmaker manages to land quite a few direct hits.
"…good-natured dive into the world of movie geekdom."
