The “wild” movie Ben Foster called his favourite: “It’s like ‘Citizen Kane’ on its ass”
You might not know the name Ben Foster, but you’ve almost certainly seen one of his movies, with the Boston-born performer appearing in a wide array of famous films, from westerns, superhero blockbusters, epic fantasies, small indie dramas and more.
If you can think of a genre, then Foster has been in it, has never won a major award for any of it, but has gotten to make out with Kirsten Dunst in Get Over It, which I think we can all agree is worth more than any trophy.
Regardless of whether you’ve heard of him or not, Foster has been in the business a very long time, remaining a witness to almost every aspect of the industry firsthand, so he knows a thing or two about what makes a good movie and what doesn’t. He’s worked with some of the greatest actors, directors, producers, and more in the history of cinema; hence, when he talks about film, you should listen, especially if you’re on Rotten Tomatoes.
The film aggregator site asked him to talk about some of his favourite movies of all time, and alongside classics like All That Jazz and The Iron Giant, he selected the 1979 Steve Martin vehicle The Jerk.
When asked to elaborate, he revealed that, while he loves the film, he views it as a relic of its time, highlighting, “You couldn’t get away with making that movie today. It’s wild. It’s a wild film, and it’s the great American dream gone wrong. It’s Citizen Kane on its ass. It’s a man who comes from nothing and builds a world and loses an empire and finds love”.
“I mean, it’s a huge movie and absolutely insane. I watch that several times a year; it’s a go-to on the road.”
Ben Foster on Citizen Kane
Directed by the great Carl Reiner, The Jerk stars Martin as Navin Johnson, a white man raised by adoptive Black parents, a premise that already has you wary of it, I’m sure. The film has a bit of fun revealing to Navin that he isn’t Black before sending him on a quest to make his fortune, so cue a bunch of increasingly bizarre scenarios in which he hits the big time, only to quickly come crashing back down to earth again.
Given some of the subjects explored in the film, Foster is absolutely correct when he says it would simply not be made today, however, the decision to invoke the name Citizen Kane is certainly an interesting one as nobody in their right mind would ever compare these two films, but Foster might actually be on to something.
As the actor explained, while Navin starts his journey at the bottom and gets to the top, Charles Foster Kane begins at the top and ends up at the bottom, with both coming from humble backgrounds, just that the latter is plucked from obscurity far earlier than the former. Both characters experience tantalising highs and crushing lows, but I can’t remember if Kane ever had a dog called ‘Shithead’, so maybe I have to watch the movie again.
Much like how Ben Foster is an underrated actor, The Jerk might just be an underrated classic, of which Stanley Kubrick was also a fan, in case you need further convincing about the film.
