Movie Review

Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector (PG-13)

Brian Marder

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Hollywood.com Says
Fart jokes? Check. Bowel jokes? You betcha. Toilet paper jokes? Covered. Fart noises? The best. Cockroaches/rats in kitchens? Sure, throw ‘em in. Actual humor? Uh…what’s that again?

Story
Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector opens with a man scratching his plumber’s-crack, re-using a cotton swab to clean his ear and wearing the sleeveless shirt he uses as a towel. Naturally, this is Larry (the Cable Guy), a health inspector. Halfheartedly inspecting the local food joints, he’s leading the life that suits him well. But when his boss (Thomas F. Wilson) assigns him a serious-minded female partner (Iris Bahr), his world is turned upside down--or at least made less comfy. Larry’s called in to investigate “some fartin’ Jewish folks” at a swankier restaurant and learns that it’s not an isolated incident. While Larry’s unorthodox methods manage to arouse the interest of a waitress (Megyn Price) with bowel habits that he adores, his tactics arouse the ire of the restaurateurs he investigates, and it costs him his job. Now he’s forced to do whatever it takes to prove his innocence.

Acting
Even the D-listers here must’ve gone straight to confession upon accepting these roles to help cushion their bank accounts. Let’s start with Larry the Cable Guy (of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, “Git-R-Done” fame), who is one of the most successful stand-up comics today. He’s right in his element, seemingly with fart blanche on toilet humor, but to the unconverted, he’s a little more than grating. Speaking of grating, the (hopefully) affected voice of Bahr makes the movie mostly unlistenable in addition to being unwatchable. But take pity on her, for this is no way to jumpstart a movie career. Tony Hale, clearly still reeling from the potential cancellation of TV’s Arrested Development (on which he plays Buster), also lowers his star and integrity with an ambiguous character here. And Joe Pantoliano shows his face. The once great character actor reaches a new low with this one, even if his performance isn’t all bad.

Direction
Health Inspector masters the art of the fart. But more disgusting than the settings with which the farts are juxtaposed is the ad nauseam (pun intended) level of over-usage. So congratulations go to, along with fart Yoda Larry the Cable Guy, director Trent Cooper, who makes his feature directorial debut. And might we add, what a fart-tastic debut it is! But it’s not all farts, ladies and gentleman--all forms of gross-out humor are exploited unlike ever before. On the, er, serious side, the collection of running jokes adds to a few legit laughs. Cooper helms a story that naturally doesn’t work, deferring instead to Larry’s natural, um, charisma. The script offers no segue into Larry’s stand-up persona, but anyone who sees this here flick ain’t lookin’ for no dang Oscar winner. Clearly, Health Inspector will appeal to Larry’s following but is not meant for those of sound mind.

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