Review – Cry Baby

If it worked in Hairspray, it’ll work here, right? Guess not. Though director John Waters’ first excursion into big-budget Hollywood film-making was – like this outing – a send-up of America during the baby boom’s teen years, this time around clever humor has been almost completely supplanted by crass, boring satire. Even so, a film-maker of Waters’ skill might have pulled it off if the comedy hadn’t depended so completely on a thorough knowledge of and affection for the “juvenile delinquent” movies of the 1950s. And judging by male lead Johnny Depp’s performance, having a few Elvis movies under one’s belt wouldn’t exactly hurt either. To be sure, there are a few funny moments; my personal favorite is a cameo by Willem DaFoe as a prison guard who makes his young charges mention Roy Cohn and Richard Nixon in their nightly prayers. Such brief moments aside, however, this isn’t exactly anyone’s finest hour. See if desperate