8 Heads In a Duffel Bag

A film with a title like 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag could have been a nastily funny parody of itself -- if it had any idea what it is. Andy Comeau plays Charlie, a med-school slacker who's on his way to a Mexican vacation with his girlfriend (an ultra-whiny Kristy Swanson) and her parents (George Hamilton and Dyan Cannon, both unbearable). At the airport, his luggage gets switched with that of Tommy (Joe Pesci, basically doing a comedic rehash of his "mob psycho" role from Casino), who just happens to be transporting eight human heads to his boss as evidence of their owners' demise.

After torturing Charlie's frat brother (David Spade, always tortuous in his own right), Pesci tracks down Charlie and tries to retrieve the heads, which Charlie is trying to conceal from everyone else. During the course of the film, the heads get knocked about, kicked, and put through the spin cycle in a washing machine before coming to life to sing "Mr. Sandman." Definitely not for the squeamish, 8 Heads strives for oddball slapstick but proves only that eight heads aren't necessarily better than none. At the Harbour Mall, Holiday, and Showcase cinemas.

-- Jessica Cerretani