Martin & Orloff – Review

Ron (Besser) leaves a message on Martin Flam’s (Roberts) answering machine. He hears Martin go t out of the loony bin that day, after a suicide attempt, and he is ready to ease him back into work at Marketing Force. Martin still seems gloomy, but heads into the office to resume being a character costume creator for advertisements.

The secretary at the firm says she is really glad Martin didn’t kill himself. How sweet. Advice from his boss Ron is, “Don’t do it again.” Martin is thrown into a new saucy ribs account immediately. The rib joint owners want an 8-foot tall spare ribs costume created. Life is… interesting for Martin.

As he hits his noon appointment with psychiatrist Dr. Eric Orloff (Walsh), Martin is just barely hanging in there. The mayonnaise covered Dr. Orloff is just finishing chowing down his lunch, and now needs a smoke. Orloff’s plan to is to learn about Martin and get him back on the rails, but his actual ability is suspect. But, oh shit, Orloff has to be at a softball game at 12:30, and if he doesn’t show up the team will forfeit! Time for therapy on the go. Maybe Martin will get really into this? Let’s hope so. It seems more likely however that the day will spiral out of control.

Martin & Orloff is an oddball, offbeat and twisted comedy with a lot of good actors and cameos. Lines and situations are goofy, absurd and clever at the same time. As the patient and doctor get into life shenanigans, the film finds its groove. The over-the-top characters find themselves right at home in this ridiculous script. It is sort of like an elongated sketch comedy series with the same characters with nuttier events happening throughout the film, but there is at least the semblance of a plot also.

Comedies are obviously subjective and mileage will vary, but this one has some wild dialogue and funny moments for me. It helps I like the cast a lot, and while it is low budget it is competently put together, at least for a zany comedy. If you are into weird hijinks and absurd behavior this one should work for you, as long as you expect the right maturity level for the humor. Fans of Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre will likely already know this one.

AH! My mind is an idiot!!

Note: There is no trailer for this movie so I just found a small clip which is below.