Greaser's Palace

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61%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 597

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Greaser's Palace Photos

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Movie Info

Cult writer-director Robert Downey's surreal, scatological parable of the life of Christ takes place in a rundown Wild West town run by the perpetually angry and severely constipated Seaweedhead Greaser (Albert Henderson). When Seaweedhead accuses his son, Lamy (Michael Sullivan), of homosexuality and kills him, mysterious stranger Jessy (Allan Arbus) raises the son from the dead. Meanwhile, an unnamed woman (Elsie Downey) struggles to reach the town after her husband and son are murdered.

Genre:

comedy
Original Language:

English
Director:

Robert Downey Sr.
Producer:

Cyma Rubin
Release Date (Streaming):

May 2, 2017
Runtime:

1h 31m
Production Co:

Greaser's Palace Ltd.

Cast & Crew

Allan Arbus
Jessy

Albert Henderson
Seaweedhead Greaser

Michael Sullivan
Lamy `'Homo'` Greaser

Luana Anders
Cholera

Jim Antonio
Vernon

George Morgan
Coo Coo

Show all Cast & Crew

Critic Reviews for Greaser's Palace

All Critics (6) | Top Critics (2) | Fresh (3) | Rotten (3)

The film, I'm told, cost close to $1-million, and it looks it, which depresses me even more than its witlessness.

May 9, 2005 | Rating: 1/5 | Full Review…

Vincent Canby
New York Times
Top Critic
As a product of an unusually adventurous time in cinema history, Greaser's Palace has perverse appeal. As a comedy, it's virtually unwatchable.

May 30, 2001 | Full Review…

Nathan Rabin
AV Club
Top Critic
Robert Downey Sr. eventually reveals that he's made a comedic satire that's hilarious, ugly and beguiling.

November 2, 2018 | Full Review…

David Bax
Battleship Pretension
An embarrassment.

May 19, 2010 | Rating: C- | Full Review…

Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews
Quote not available.

July 22, 2005 | Rating: 3/5

Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Quote not available.

September 16, 2004 | Rating: 3/5

Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

View All Critic Reviews (6)

Audience Reviews for Greaser's Palace

Jun 07, 2010

I first saw "Greaser's Palace" in the late '70s, when I was far too young to understand its allegorical aspects. The one detail I always remembered was some lunatic inexplicably repeating a phrase which sounded something like "Ee-wop-see-dep." Well, I recently saw the film for the second time, and that scene was *still* puzzling. I still couldn't understand what the character was saying -- I guessed something close to "Who is he, Jep?" but the Web says it's actually "Who is he gip." Um, OK. Even listening to this film minus visuals would be quite bizarre. People wordlessly howl and cry like animals, for a variety of reasons. Mariachi music intrudes at random intervals. Other scenes have long silences, while characters simply trudge around the terrain. There's an anachronistic boogie-woogie song (with a mediocre vocal, besides), and even the closing seconds add a strange din of electronic noises. It's a lot for baffled ears to process. But I was so pleased that Greaser finally beat his constipation problem. "Greaser's Palace" is totally insane, but also quite brilliant. Don't miss the young Toni Basil running around as a topless Injun, and little Robert Downey Jr. making a cameo as a child whose throat gets slit!

Eric B Super Reviewer
Jan 08, 2010

A zoot-suited messiah parachutes into a Western town, performs miracles and boogie-woogie songs, and gets crucified. A string of subtle, absurd sketches hanging off a loose New Testament storyline; fitfully funny, always surprising, and one of the more bizarre movies you're ever likely to see.

Greg S Super Reviewer