91Èȱ¬

Set in Alaska, British director Mark Mylod's off-beat comedy The Big White wants to be a cross between small-screen hits Northern Exposure and Frasier. Robin Williams plays struggling travel agent Paul Barnell, who tries to scam one million dollars from an insurance firm by passing off an unidentified dead body as his long-lost brother, Raymond (Woody Harrelson). It could have made for a razor-edged farce. A shame, then, that this movie just can't resist the lure of cheap and obvious one-liners.

Holiday merchant Paul Barnell is broke when he discovers a corpse mysteriously dumped in the local skip. Desperate to buy medical treatment for his wife, Tourettes sufferer Margaret (Holly Hunter), pretty soon he's staging a public "discovery" of the body and claiming it is that of his brother, who mysteriously disappeared five years ago. But suspicious local insurance claim adjuster Ted (Giovanni Ribisi) isn't going to cash in Raymond's life insurance policy without a fight. Then, just when matters couldn't get worse, Raymond comes home.

"LIMP GAGS"

So far, so farcical, but The Big White fails to make the most of Paul's deliciously absurd situation. Instead, we get limp gags based on Margaret's compulsive swearing, and Harrelson's cliché-ridden small-town hick stupidity. Only the engaging battle of wills at the heart of The Big White saves the movie. Williams is typically slushy and, ultimately, likeable, but Ribisi really shines, bringing an alien, freaky obsessiveness to his small-town insurance exec. The scenes between them crackle with energy, and you'll want to know how it ends. But the journey could have been so much more fun.