The Plight of Clownana (2004) Reviews

• Worth Watching

  sweatprod2004-11-23

  Funny as hell. Extremely original. Certainly an independent film. For a film done with no dialogue, but all voice over, the pacing is right on. Early on in the film, the are slight lulls, but it gives you time to love The Clownana, and it pays off at the end. The acting is fine. The characters come to life without uttering a single word. The two leads are very expressive and capable. The dancing is funny and professional. The script and delivery are perfect. Clownana's deadpan narrative sets the tone from the very beginning. I definitely recommend watching this short with a group of friends or a whole theater as I did in Atlanta. As a whole, this thing is great...and prepare yourself for the dance-off.

• Awesome Short Film

  tek96502005-09-05

  Clownana is, quite simply, one of the funniest short films that I have ever seen! It is very cleverly written and directed by Chris Dowling, who I expect to see much more from in the future. I was fortunate to see this film at the Deep Ellum Film Festival in Dallas and the Century City Film Festival in Los Angeles. In both cases, the audience howled with laughter over the plight of the half-clown, half-banana ice cream store mascot as he battles for sidewalk supremacy over his new nemesis. Told in voice-over narrative by the title character, you understand the ups and downs of this red-nosed yellow mascot. The climax of the film comes during the final dance-off, as the street is only big enough for one store mascot. The audience response went through the roof when Clownana's nemesis introduced his two 'associates' to the proceedings in order to attempt to destroy Clownana completely. The dance sequences were amazing and the soundtrack was a perfect match for the story. An awesome effort for a new writer/director. If you can't catch it on the big screen, you can enjoy it at clownana.com. I highly recommend it.

• Funny and definitely original

  myself_272006-02-14

  After my recently developed Jensen Ackles obsession I reviewed his IMDb profile and discovered this little treat. With its wonderfully convenient showing on the official website I didn't have to wait. This little ditty is exceedingly funny. It very independent film style but I think the uniqueness of it story line would appeal to everyone. Its definitely worth a look and as its not that long you should be able to get a quick laugh out of it. It certainly brightened up my very boring morning at work. In my opinion it would make a great skit scene at the begin of a movie (kind of like the ones on kid's movies) but would have to be at least PG-13.

• Excellent short Film..Definitely worth watching!!!!!!!!

  quietstorm782005-12-20

  This is a brilliant work of art and very well put together.. A short but extremely funny film about a dancing Banana and his rival Dildoman.There isn't a dull moment from beginning to end. The music is great,and the characters are hilarious. Together with their incredible choreography and their insanely funny rivalry this movie will have every body on the floor cracking up especially with the little surprises through out the whole film.I recommend everybody with a sense of humor to watch the incredible "Clownana"! I only wish it was longer and most of you will agree once you watch it. Chris Dowling is a genius!!!!!

• Amazing

  Jael0012007-04-04

  This is a genius piece of short-film-making. Narrated by the writer and director of this film, Chris Dowling's voice is the only one we hear, the two 'leads' never saying a word but conveying all their emotions via the medium of dance. On the surface the idea of a film about a man dressed as a clown/banana is a bit odd...but when you see what's been done with it, how an apparently absurd film can reveal to us so much about the way we deal with problems in our lives, with change and bigotry, it makes us (well me anyway) stop and think, and it's a cracking piece of entertainment too.