No, that title isn’t a joke. Or is it? Operation Taco Gary’s, a new offbeat comedy from writer and director Michael Kvamme, opens on the news of Jason Biggs (yes, American Pie star Jason Biggs) having died under suspicious circumstances, only to pivot into a road trip comedy about brotherly dysfunction, ketamine jokes, and a fast food taco restaurant that may or may not be run by extraterrestrials. You’re either in or out from that description alone.
Starring Simon Rex (Red Rocket, Blink Twice) and Dustin Milligan (Schitt’s Creek, Rutherford Falls) as estranged brothers Danny and Luke, the film operates on a wavelength somewhere between unorthodox farces like Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure and late-night Adult Swim fever dreams. It’s weird, unpolished, deeply silly, and just when you think it’s settled into its rhythm, it spirals into full-blown intergalactic conspiracies, the truth of what killed the dinosaurs, and none other than the legendary Doug Jones in gold sparkly shorts.
While it doesn’t take terribly long for things to spiral into frenzied chaos, Operation Taco Gary’s does begin innocently enough. Luke (Milligan), a paleontologist preparing to move to Ottawa, is blindsided when his chaotic older brother Danny (Rex) barges back into his life on moving day; neck brace, foot cast, and all. Danny is less misunderstood free spirit and more conspiracy theorist con man who may or may not be actively fleeing the cops. For once though, Danny may be right in that something much bigger is in motion, and before long, Luke finds himself dragged (mostly literally) into his brother’s increasingly unhinged world.
Some stretches can take a minute to find their comedic rhythm, but when the jokes land, they really land. One particular chase through the woods from pursuing police features a recurring gag that had me pausing several times to crack up. Later, Tony Cavalero (The Righteous Gemstones, The Dirt) arrives as Danny’s friend Kyle - a former president of the Flat Earthers Society who dresses like a biker despite not owning a bike - and injects the movie with a surge of manic energy. When Luke is injured and Kyle attempts to fashion an exit wound, he spits out blood and recoils: “Oh gross! He’s vaccinated!” The entire scene is the kind of mile-a-minute, comedy gold escalation these kinds of films thrive on.
There’s also something charmingly specific about the world-building here. Taco Gary’s itself is established as the only apparent safe zone from “The Coalition,” the shadowy Illuminati-esque organization Danny believes controls the planet. One of their supposed agents, the one-eyed Tiago (Tron:Ares’ Arturo Castro), stays hot on his trail throughout the film. Another of Danny’s friends named Allison (played by Brenda Song), is revealed to be a “badger,” like a “coyote”, but for crossing into Canada. She’s deep undercover working at a trampoline park.
Rex is suitably, manically hilarious as Danny, and his recurring phrase of “I haven’t been completely honest with you” becomes both a recurring character confession and the film’s thesis statement as it stacks ridiculous revelation upon ridiculous revelation. Milligan is more than game to play the straight man in the comedy duo, but more than that, he’s down to get routinely roughed up and humiliated as the story grows increasingly haywire. Thanks to their performances, beneath all the conspiracies and alien cover-ups is something surprisingly sincere about brotherhood, dysfunction, and accepting the chaos you can’t control.
On the whole, the concepts at play in Operation Taco Gary’s are often more interesting than the execution. It’s almost there - right on the cusp of being the next great absurdist cult comedy - but the hit rate on the jokes just isn’t consistent enough to fully carry its comedic ambition. Still, its head is in the right place. It’s breezy and it swings big, with a script jam packed with more ideas than other, more run-of-the-mill comedies.
There’s definitely something about it that feels destined to be discovered by stoned friends in the early mornings of their college dorms, and the talented cast is clearly having a ball in front of and behind the camera. Kvamme is no stranger to the world of comedy, having been one of the brains behind the scenes of Funny or Die, and his instincts here are sharp. Things just need to feel a tad bit looser to really pop off the page, onto the screen, and manifest into enough genuine belly laughs.
'Operation Taco Gary's' arrives in select theaters February 27th.
