A low-budget political thriller also preaches family values
Call it amateurishly endearing.
According to its filmmakers, "Buddy Guard" is an "action-packed Christian movie with an edge." But in this buddy picture meets political thriller, writer-producer-director David Clevenger jumbles Hollywood genres with mostly weak results.
The filmmakers' hearts are in the right place. "Buddy Guard" intends to be a "movie promoting family values." The company, Illinois-based 3 Stones Studios, donates a portion of ticket sales to local charities, and Clevenger runs a "Media Camp" for Midwestern kids. More than 20 youths served on cast and crew. The production is idealism-rich but money- and talent-poor.
The plot centers on Steven Rike, played by Clevenger. A former body guard, Rike is hired to protect mentally challenged Louis "Buddy" McKinney (Eric Barfield) after an assassination attempt on a US senator running for the presidency. Thrown into the pot is Rike's wrecked marriage, remorse about a dead son, a dastardly cover up, male bonding over football, and lessons learned about loss, alcoholism, and faith.
With Roger the teddy bear stuffed into a shirt pocket, Barfield's Buddy is a one-note performance channeling equal parts Leonardo DiCaprio in "What's Eating Gilbert Grape" and Dustin Hoffman in "Rain Man." Doing his best Tom Cruise imitation behind a goateed, boyish face, Clevenger reacts to oafish Buddy with uptight broodiness. We're supposed to sense Steven wind tighter every time Buddy gives him a "don't know my own strength" hug worthy of John Steinbeck's Lennie, but Clevenger's acting doesn't range far beyond the tight-lipped-to-tortured continuum.
Of course, Buddy breaks down Steven's cold heart. He helps him mourn his dead son, confront his alcoholism, and fix his ailing marriage. (Early in the film, Rike's wife is forced to say, "I don't even know you anymore.") The noble man-boy has wisdom to impart. "God doesn't take people away," says Buddy. "He just takes them home." To his credit, except for a few scenes where Buddy quotes a biblical passage or counsels Steven in finding God, Clevenger keeps the Bible-thumping to a minimum.
It doesn't help that most of the actors, with the exception of the middle-aged Ron Clevenger (the director's father) as Senator Jacobson and David Poole as his conniving henchman Trenton, seem barely out of high school. An assassin named Samantha (Melissa Jo Milano), who resembles a 17-year-old prom queen, takes out a couple of thugs with her bare hands and a scarf. Fight scenes are staged unconvincingly. Post-production dialogue is clumsily lip-synched. For a thriller, it's slow-paced; editing could easily lop 30 minutes from the running time.
Give Clevenger credit: In his own shoestring way, he's unafraid to take on the Hollywood machine. Unfortunately, by trying to infuse "family values" into a political action flick, he loses his way into hackneyed genre territory without adding any indie edge or original idea. It's fine that digital technology lets folks of all stripes make movies these days, but not every work deserves theatrical release.
Despite the charms of its budget lapses and earnest message about strong families and good fathers, most viewers will find "Buddy Guard" mostly hapless, no matter their belief system. "Buddy Guard" might be the first ever B-movie Christian thriller. 