Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn
Hypocrisy of the landscape is the setlist Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn looks to divulge and describe. It dives deep into the heart of revenge and madness, and the Golden Bear winner looks to do so without much humorous tact or storytelling abilities. It and director Rada Jude are clutching at comedic straws as they barrel through a variety of genres, stylistic choices and gags that, when isolated, have potential. But the riotous consequences are what could have been. The reality is further afield, and Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn loses its way, not through a lack of understanding, but through understanding too much.
Its necessity and desire to be at the forefront of so many scenes, riffs, and jokes are admirable but unbalanced. Jude never captures that creativity with much consistency, and Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn soon turns stale, not through a lack of ideas, but through the frustration of where to place them. Katia Pascariu provides a strong leading role, guided primarily by the wild and unhinged comedy that takes place in the life of Emilia Cilibiu. Pascariu offers up a character who can take a stand, knock through the harder times and find some semblance of respect when engaging with a subject that, while not controversial, would be embarrassing to many. It is the direction of Jude that must pave the way here.
But the cold open into a sex tape, the opportunity to comment on the coronavirus and countless opportunities fly by and make Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn, if anything, a bit awkward. Its humour comes from the awkward shuffling of feet, the look away from the screen as the worst is yet to come. That blend of humour is a once in a lifetime achievement, a rare offering that, here, feels despondent and cold. Jude makes up for that with his eye for direction. Characters wander through bustling streets, making their way to the forefront, rather than the camera approaching them. It is a simple switch but an effective one. Jude’s humour appears to be shock value and nothing more. Hearing dark and militaristic music as the camera pans towards Paw Patrol is a visual gag that lingered on for too long and with little sense. Extras dressed as bears and rabbits for no good reason. Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn hopes to confuse and excite, but all it does is dribble out coronavirus woes.
As far as Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn is concerned, though, it is one of the first and definitely few comedies to adapt the coronavirus into comedy so early on. Death to 2020 didn’t manage that, but Jude has found a harsh and exciting way of appealing to everybody. He captures the confusion and the anger, the mistrust and the frayed nerves of living life in the pandemic. That much is adapted well and sincerely created. People hate one another for no real reason at all, and Jude revels in that ability to create conflict in the calmest of places.