Film REVIEW

A group of used car salesmen find themselves in a desperate situation. A slow summer has resulted in a plethora of stagnant inventory. Desperate times require desperate measures. In economically downtrodden Memphis, the panacea is "The Slasher" or so these poor souls hope. The Slasher is a mercenary, a gun for hire, and a guru. Can this cold, calculated selling machine act as a catalyst to move countless lemons off the lot?

The Slasher (a.k.a Michael Bennett) has a gift for transforming these lemons into lemonade. Utilizing a multitude of ingenious and psychologically manipulative techniques, the Slasher dupes countless naïve consumers into purchasing a vehicle they didn’t even know they wanted. Prancing, scantily clad bimbettes, a rock DJ, $88 cars, prizes, and an unrelenting, hard-selling assault are but a few of the weapons in the Slasher’s arsenal.

In his debut as a documentarian, director John Landis (Animal House) gives full access to their bizarre and twisted world. Bennett and his crew (comprised of the aforementioned DJ and another salesmen) is bomb dropped into various locales across the country for slasher sales. These events resemble gymnasium style "pro" wrestling events. The partially naked hostesses, the DJ, and chants of "Slash It! Slash It!" round out this elaborate game of smoke and mirrors. The only thing missing is someone getting blasted in the head with a steel chair. Somehow all of this over-hyped absurdity seems appropriate given the long and illustrious history pro wrestling has had in Memphis.

Landis does an excellent job of quickly and eloquently establishing the impoverished community in which the slasher sale takes place. Quick cuts of rundown BBQ restaurant signs, dilapidated shotgun homes, and obese youth in tattered clothing are but a few of the indications. An $88 car for many of these folks is steep. Landis astutely chooses to follow several of the saps foolish enough to purchase vehicles from the Slasher’s lot only to find that there is a legitimate reason why the price should be slashed on their car, it can barely make it into their driveway before collapsing lifeless in a heap by the side or the road.

In a fashion that is vaguely reminiscent of a certain popular science fiction film (download life wallpapers from your favorite films), the Slasher can’t be reasoned with, he can’t be bargained with, and absolutely will not stop until you buy. Bennett is riveting on screen. His mouth moves so much faster than his brain, that he simply does not have the capacity to filter any thoughts prior to their verbal escape. His voice can best be described as painfully combustible whiskey massaged delicately with sandpaper. His constant beer drinking and chain smoking does little to make Bennett’s abrasive banter more soothing on the ears. Frenetic, intense, and unflappable, the Slasher can’t sit still. Something is always moving with Bennett. His hands are shaking, his feet are tapping, his face is twitching, or as is often the case, his lips are flapping. However, Landis does an excellent job of showing Bennett as much more than a one-dimensional selling machine. Bennett is clearly haunted by a painful childhood that involved time in a penitentiary. The Slasher is gifted at what he does, but it’s questionable as to whether or not Bennett could be successful in any other endeavor. Bennett’s life is inordinately exhausting and filled with pressure. Constantly on the road, Bennett is far too often removed from his wife and two daughters. While Bennett’s amorality and lack of ethics in selling vehicles to the poor and naïve is not endearing, Landis manages to capture some of the other facets of the Slasher that make him a more sympathetic character.

Slasher confirms many of the clichés about used car salesmen as smarmy, swindling, and disingenuous. However, Landis goes beyond the clichés in delving into the personal life of Michael Bennett and revealing his demons and vulnerabilities. While there was a part of me that felt a bit guilty watching people get duped out of their money and the over the top absurdities Bennett and his posse engaged in for a buck, Slasher was easily as entertaining as seeing someone get blasted in the head with a steel chair.