We’re in the final seconds of an episode of the HBO reality/drama combo series “It’s Florida, Man.” when an interview subject who has spilled the startling and embarrassing details of a bizarre chapter in his life seems to have a revelation and says, “What if one day, I’m like, trying to get a job, and they’re like, ‘Aren’t you that … guy?’”
Comes the off-camera reply: “You’re only thinking about this NOW?”
And there’s the crux of it. If the filmmakers know their subjects might not be the most reliable judges of what’s best for themselves, if the viewer gets the sense these folks might not have a particularly strong sense of emotional and intellectual maturity, is it entertainment or exploitation — or both? Is it possible to find humor in their exploits even as we think maybe they should be getting professional help?
There’s no denying the “Cops” meets “Florida Man” meme meets “Drunk History” watchability of a series that chronicles the bizarre adventures of various Floridians, utilizing interviews with the real-life subjects along with re-creations featuring comedic performances from Anna Faris, Randall Park, Sam Richardson and Ego Nwodim, among others. As the press materials put it, the series is “a love letter to the beaches, backwaters and people of a misunderstood yet magical state.”
Sincere and affectionate intentions noted. Still, even as I was admittedly intrigued by these stories and I appreciated the funny performances by the comedy pros, I found myself wondering if the real-life subjects would have been better off staying out of the spotlight.
Another episode of “It’s Florida, Man.” stars Randall Park as a karate instructor who hires stranger to do something unusual with his toes.
HBO
In the premiere episode, titled “Toes,” we meet Phil, who recounts the time when he needed $4,000 in cash so he could travel to Colorado to see his idol, the DJ known as Bassnectar. Phil goes on Craigslist and says he’s willing to do anything within reason for the cash — and he hears from a guy named Steve, who says, “I want you to cut off three of my toes, cook them, eat them, and I want to watch.”
In the re-creation of the incident, Sam Richardson plays Phil, Randall Park is Steve and Ego Nwodim is Phil’s friend Carol, who accompanies Phil to Steve’s house, where Steve is waiting with a whole setup, complete with kitchen knives. “We are in no way medical professionals,” Carol reminds us.
Spoiler alert: Steve backs out at the last minute. He needs all of his toes because he’s a karate instructor. The friendship between Phil and Carol blossoms into romance; as Phil puts it, “We’re two peas in a pod.”
Another episode features a guy named Eric, who is clearly not all there as he talks about the time he went swimming at night in gator-infested waters and had his arm bitten off, yet miraculously survived. Notes Eric: “If you never wake, you can never have a dream. But if you die, you’re never going to have a nightmare. You gotta live that nightmare to get through it, to have a dream. If any of that at all makes sense to anybody, you’re twice as crazy as I am.”
Anna Faris shows up in another episode playing a “mermaid,” i.e., an aquatic performer, named Whitney, who found herself targeted by a rival mermaid who is also a witch. That other mermaid and her husband, a Broward County sheriff’s lieutenant, moved in next door and allegedly engaged in harassment. Says real-life Whitney: “I’m an underwater performer. I’m getting bullied by a cop and a witch.” (Amazingly, this is the lightest and least troubling episode I watched.)
An episode titled “Saucy” features a courtship gone wrong between a man named Denver (played by Jon Gries in the re-creation), and a younger man called Derrick (played by Echo Kellum), who seeks revenge on Denver by breaking into his trailer and attempting to start a fire by using a boiling pot of pasta sauce. “I [was] going to burn his trailer down and send him back to Kentucky!” declares real-life Derrick. Before it’s all over, Derrick is arrested while wearing a bull costume onesie. This makes for an irresistible news kicker, but getting to know the principals in the story actually makes it less amusing and just … sad.
Some of this material plays like true-story versions of the situations and characters famed Florida novelist Carl Hiaasen (“Strip Tease,” “Bad Monkey”) puts in his books. Maybe it would have worked better if we just saw Faris, Richardson, et al, in the fictionalized versions of events. Seeing the actual people, who often seem to be lost and overwhelmed by life, makes it more depressing than a comedy series should be.