Before even getting into the trailer for Tangerine and The Florida Project director Sean Baker’s latest, Red Rocket, the poster alone warrants singular attention (see: right). This is the most spot-on pastiche of ’80s sex comedy VHS covers since, well… since ’80s sex comedy VHS covers still existed.
The movie itself does not seem to be such a retro romp.
Coming from Tangerine and The Florida Project writer-director Sean Baker, Red Rocket is perhaps Simon Rex’s Magic Mike—a comedic drama that sees a respected director wink to the horny job of its ripped lead’s youth. Rex, before his cultural wave crested across a surprisingly good turn in three Scary Movie entries, likewise climaxed across a trilogy of masturbation videos in the early ’90s. Here, he squeezes a bit more out of his pornographic past to play a down-and-out former adult movie star forced to return to his small Texas hometown and estranged wife. It premiered at Cannes for competition in the Palme d’Or, and from this trailer, you can see why. However stylistically incongruous, it looks as good as its poster.
Red Rocket will erupt in select theaters December 3.
