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De Niro: Behind The Mask
The Garden Shed
until Sat 18 March
This may not be the slickest production you're likely to see all festival, but how can it be when the principle actors are all arseholes? 'De Niro: Behind The Mask', presented by the Ballarat Bum Puppets is well done in that while it may not be as smooth as a baby's backside when it comes to ass... er, aesthetics, it succeeds at winning over those familiar with the filmography of Robert De Niro, and in particular the working relationship he shares with director Martin Scorsese; who incidentally in a more conventional puppet form, narrates this Hollywood expos styled documentary as they re-enact classic scenes from 'Bum Driver', 'Raging Bum', and 'The Bum Hunter', among many others.
But that's also where many of the clever and surprisingly factual and esoterically based punch lines appeared lost on those less versed. Sure, there's the immediate draw and spectacle of seeing grown men lying sideways, cardboard eyes and noses in situ, and hands hidden by wigs so to be able to move their lips, so to speak, and making complete dicks out of themselves but be warned, such low brow appeal soon wears thin. But for De Niro/Scorsese fans, this is sure to crack you up.
Steve Jones
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