LaRoy, Texas, 2024.
Written and Directed by Shane Atkinson.
Starring John Magaro, Steve Zahn, Galadriel Stineman. Matthew Del Negro, Bob Clendenin, Brad Leland, Dylan Baker, Megan Stevenson, Emily Pendergast, Alex Knight, Rio Alexander, Darcy Shean, Mimi Fletcher, Teagan Ireland, Vic Browder, Brannon Cross, Alaina Warren Zachary, Versai Knight, and Ian A. Hudson.
SYNOPSIS:
When Ray discovers that his wife is cheating on him, he decides he’s going to kill himself. His plans suddenly change when a stranger mistakes him for a low-rent hitman.
Blending dark character study flourishes such as a naïve pushover contemplating accepting an assassination gig to feel power for the first time, with a quirky comedy element in a so-called “detective” taking sleazy photographs for adulterous cases and bumbling his way through the work looking for respect from his official law enforcement peers (they see him as a joke, consistently ribbing him for fun), writer/director Shane Atkinson successfully juggles those tricky tones in his feature-length debut LaRoy, Texas. Within the hilarious antics that ensue here is a first and foremost concern with characterization, ranging from the protagonists to the several ancillary characters introduced throughout this crime caper.
Played by John Magaro, Ray is, not to sugarcoat things, pathetic. He takes inventory working at his older, more extroverted, and confident brother Junior’s (Matthew Del Negro) hardware store, seemingly unable to find happiness or give his wife Stacy-Lynn (Megan Stevenson) joy. She is a former beauty pageant winner with hopes of opening a salon one day, a dream that perpetually feels out of reach since Ray doesn’t bring home much money. Nevertheless, he assures her he will get her the money. He seems determined to do so, even when he finds out she has been cheating on him.
Dressed up somewhere between cowboy and businessman cosplay, dimwitted, happy-go-lucky private eye Skip (Steve Zahn) arranges a meeting with Ray to inform him that, while on the job, he photographed Stacy-Lynn at a trashy motel used for hookups. While his initial reaction is purchasing a gun, fully intending on taking his life in the parking lot of that same motel, stranger Brian (Brannon Cross) enters his car, mistaking him for the contract killer he hired to take out lawyer James Barlow (Vic Browder), handing over half of the payment with hardly any questions asked. So begins Ray’s newfound dabble in violence and taking respect.
As to be imagined, the fun from LaRoy, Texas comes from its twisty nature and solid central mystery of who wants who killed and why (a situation that introduces other characters tied into similar themes of adultery, what it means to love someone and respect), so too much more won’t be said about the narrative. What can be said is that Ray and Skip find themselves teaming up and making a colossal mess of things, each clinging to bad judgment about what they will actually gain from accomplishing what they are setting out to do. It feels like the characters they come across partially exist as a reflection of how foolish they are.
Watching Ray depict a range of emotions from excitement about his power high to conflicted when he inadvertently kills someone, switching up to showing us police officers playing pranks on Skip initially feels jarring, but once the two protagonists start working together, the hijinks somehow feel natural. Steve Zahn is especially charismatic and amusing as Skip, a doofus (who also inadvertently hurts suspects) with his heart in the right place that it is easy to invest in him. And even while Ray feels like a lost cause making terrible choices, his mindset is fascinating, and it is fun to pick apart how he arrives at these desperate conclusions.
There is also the actual hitman on the loose (a cold, no-nonsense, and intimidating Dylan Baker), ready to terrorize the entire community for the inconvenience of someone else stumbling into his assignment. He practically goes door-to-door to perform violent interrogations on those involved. This also lends a sense of danger and urgency to the proceedings; there is no question that things will not end well here. The real curiosity is whether or not Ray and Skip will find admiration from those they love or themselves.
Labeling LaRoy, Texas a deep film is probably a stretch, but the effort in characterization elevates the pulpy entertainment. It’s tough for any filmmaker, let alone a debut director, to wring out something coherent and compelling from such clashing towns, but Shane Atkinson remains confidently aware that everything works out as long as he cares about the characters.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
