TIFF 2023: Dicks: The Musical Review

This will be one of many reviews during this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, to keep up with our latest coverage, click here.

Coming out of the gates, a title like Dicks: The Musical is going to raise some eyebrows (it’s not about male anatomy) but as far as the film is concerned, that’s only the beginning. The first A24 musical, this unabashedly queer comedy features some catchy songs but is thankfully not the main focal point. A parade of the offensive, if the title was no indication, it will inevitably not for everyone though within its material laid plenty of hilarious moments. Running under 90-minutes, the film does not wear out its welcome which is especially needed for a film like this whose humor has a limited shelf life. Not a new premise by any means, it can get quite silly and stupid at times. However, it does have a heart to it to help ground that silliness and stupidity. The feature writing and acting debut of stars Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson, who adapted their two-man show, they have crafted something that may not be appreciated now but is sure to be a cult classic somewhere down the road.

Not wasting any time, Dicks: The Musical sets the tone in hilarious fashion as it follows Craig (Sharp) and Trevor (Jackson), a pair of competitive rival salesmen (and you guessed it and you guessed it) who figure out they are identical twins that were separated at birth and raised by each of their parents. Striking up a friendship, the two devise a plan where they would swap places in order to bring their equally eccentric parents Harris (Lane) and Evelyn (Mullally) back together so they could finally be a real family. Essentially a parent trap situation, it is merely a jumping off point for a ridiculous adventure that has to be seen to be believed. Simply playing crazy characters off of each other while putting them in crazy situations, the resulting humor works more often than not as the story dives deeper into the characters and their relationships with one another. Admittedly under ridiculous circumstances, seeing Craig, Trevor, Harris, and Evelyn come together was compelling to watch but, in the end, the story was about how they grew and evolved as characters and for that, the film was that much more satisfying.

Ultimately, the film would not have worked without its performances. With such a wild premise, it required buy-in and it got that. While Craig and Trevor are ridiculous characters on paper, Sharp and Jackson are hilarious and give each enough humanity to avoid making them into caricatures. Meanwhile, their excellent chemistry made them a blast to watch together. The same was the case for Lane and Mullally who contribute to the film nicely and are hilarious as the ridiculous Harris and Evelyn. The film was at its best whenever all four were together on screen.

Overall, Dicks: The Musical is a hilarious musical comedy that is ridiculous in the best way possible but is also grounded with plenty of heart. 

*still courtesy of VVS Films*

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.