Picture this: Chance the Rapper as a werewolf.
Now that I’ve got your attention, let’s talk about “Slice.” This direct to digital download movie tells the story of a murdered pizza delivery boy in a small town infested with ghosts, witches and a disgraced werewolf, starring Chance Bennett and Zazie Beetz.
The film was written and directed by Austin Vesely. This first time writer is better known for having directed a few of Chance’s music videos, and I’m sad to say that it shows.
When watching this, it was hard to tell what to take seriously and what was meant to be a joke.
The film overall feels like it was based on a half-baked idea for a Saturday Night Live sketch. With such a stellar supporting cast, including Joe Keery, Hannibal Buress and Chris Parnell, this film easily could have been one of the best-hidden comedies of the year. Instead, “Slice” feels more like something that should be shown at Bradley’s Bad Movie Club.
With that in mind, the film was not boring. The pacing may have been a mess, the characters were one-dimensional and the jokes rarely landed, but it was at no point boring. I could see this movie becoming a cult classic in an ‘it’s so bad it’s good’ kind of way.
It’s the perfect B movie. But, it doesn’t seem like that was the filmmakers’ intentions.
The movie at times seemed to know that it was cheesy (no pun intended). The failure to use that fact to its advantage, however, made it come off as a bit ridiculous.
Both Chance and Beetz try their hardest to have fun and make this work, but in the end you’re left with a movie that feels like a Disney Channel attempt to make one of their original movies R-rated.
The film straddles the line between trying to be a feel good movie and just being plain bad, but it does have its moments. Here and there, I saw glimpses of actual character development or smart comedy, until I blinked and they were gone again.
I understand why this movie never hit theaters. It was a mess that not even Chance the Rapper could have been able to sell. This film belongs in the five-dollar bin at a Walmart.
But, if you are interested in checking this movie out, do so with friends and make a night of it. This is definitely one of those movies that a large group can watch together and truly enjoy the craziness of it all. I could also easily see this being played in the background of a Halloween party or event, casually being glanced at by people as they are conversing with each other.
Personally, I was hoping that “Slice” was going to usher in the fall and Halloween season with a bang, but instead it left me searching for something I could dig my claws into (pun intended) a little more.
