3 BUSINESSMEN PART7

Two independent businessmen scour the world in search of a decent meal. Comedy-drama directed by and starring Alex Cox There are interesting parallels to be drawn between the careers of Alex Cox and Orson Welles. Born in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Orson Welles made his name in the theatre, came to Hollywood, made a big noise and a great first film, was marginalised by the system, and found himself without the means or the money to cap his audacious debut. Born in Liverpool, Alex Cox began in the theatre (he once directed Richard Burton), came to Hollywood, made a big noise and a great first film, was marginalised by the system and has since found himself without the means or the money to cap his audacious debut. While the excellent but ill-received Touch Of Evil closed the book on Welles' studio career, Cox's days as a Hollywood director were numbered the moment Universal laid eyes on Walker, his ambitious film about US involvement in Central American affairs. Dismissed as a dangerous freethinker, Cox has financed his subsequent films by going down the Welles route of striking deals with such odd financiers as Cable Hogue, a Japanese company run by a tattooed Sam Peckinpah fanatic, and the BBC. Three Businessmen, Cox's eighth movie, was made by his production company Exterminating Angel with funds raised from Dutch and Japanese sources. Although clearly not made for an awful lot of money, it is a good, unusual movie very much in the Cox mould. The director himself stars as Frank, an 'art dealer' who runs into Bennie (Sandoval), another 'art dealer', in the restaurant of Liverpool's Adelphi Hotel. Unable to find food, the pair set off on a trek across five countries in search of a good meal. Scripted by producer Tod Davies, Three Businessmen - yes, like Three Kings, the title is somewhat misleading - is a picture about everything and nothing. Putatively a story about a search for sustenance, this is really a subtle, nicely observed comedy of manners, with 'our heroes' spending the bulk of their time either getting on one another's nerves or struggling to tolerate one another. Packed with all manner of great gags - check out Bennie's unusual bedside reading matter - and moments of embarrassment that would make Ricky Gervais blush, the undoubted star of the show is Miguel Sandoval, the great Chicano actor who usually gets lumbered with playing drugs barons (Clear And Present Danger) or fourth Latino on the right (Jungle Fever, Jurassic Park, White Sands). Relishing the opportunity to play a leading role, Sandoval has great fun with the pathetic Bennie, constantly making us cringe even when circumstances should make us feel sorry for him. As for Cox the actor, he's no match for Cox the director. It's behind the camera where he shines, using his beloved long takes to invest locations with atmosphere and make those moments of awkwardness that little bit more skin-crawling. Naturally, it would be nice to see what he could do with more money and better resources. But while being an outsider might mean Cox will never make his Citizen Kane, his wit and ambition means that he can turn Three Businessmen's ambling bums into something as magnificent as Welles' Ambersons.