For John, living in a nice house in a gated community is success enough. His goals are never really revealed and his personal life is kept in the dark, except for the momentary romantic nabbing of his smiley co-worker (described as cute in a psycho sort of way), and his obsession with scratcher lottery tickets. His boss coaxes him with the promotion of a Level 6 Adjuster, but it’s meaning to John is never explained. To match his peculiarities, or normalcy as the film progresses, are a slew of astonishingly curious characters. John appears constantly out of his element, even when the band of gun-toting nudists is the most conventional assemblage around.
Steve Buscemi has always been a recognizable and talented character actor, most notable for his supporting roles. He’s quite good as the lead in this light, short and puzzling film that doesn’t spend enough time developing the Dante’s Inferno references. In fact, without knowing its intentions, like the Coen Brothers’ “O Brother, Where Art Thou,” itself a take on Homer’s Odyssey, Saint John of Las Vegas could easily be mistaken for a pointless dark comedy. But the extremely offbeat characters and realistic, oftentimes expressionless, dry humor creates a satisfying tone to an otherwise unspectacular experiment in drastically subtle adaptation.
- The Massie Twins
