Who's the Caboose? is a small film from the late 1990s that would seem to prove the argument that true talent will find a way. Dating from 1997, Who's the Caboose? was co-written and directed by Sam Seder, who has gone on to success as an actor and radio and television host. It stars Sarah Silverman, and features appearances by Andy Dick, David Cross, H. Jon Benjamin, Kathy Griffin, Laura Kightlinger, and Marc Maron. It is a funny, improv-driven film that also serves as a portrait of the comedy scenes in both New York and Los Angeles at the time of its production.

Susan (Silverman) is a comedian who decides to leave New York and travel to Los Angeles for pilot season. Pilot season (approximately April - June) is when studios cast for the new shows scheduled to air that fall. Susan doesn't tell her "performance artist" boyfriend Max (Seder) until the last minute, but he follows her out to LA anyway, despite a proclaimed disdain for that city. Susan becomes busy trying out for shows, under the tutelage of her airheaded manager Jason (Andy Dick) and his put-upon assistant (Lauren Dombrowski). Before he knows it - and without intending to - Max has drawn the attention of an ambitious entertainment attorney named Ken Fold (Benjamin), who could not be more enthusiastic about turning Max into a star.

The best thing about Who's the Caboose? is that it is not dramatically or thematically ambitious. This leaves the actors free to explore their parts and their environments realistically, drawing humor from casual interaction and mundane situations. The movie is about the years of struggle that every artist must endure, sleeping on couches, battling entertainment fringe figures who want to shape and mold you into their own visions of success, and getting by on scant wages. It's also about the moral and social freak show that is Los Angeles and the bizarre priorities of people who are drawn there for one reason or another. Not dated at all fourteen years after its original release, Who's the Caboose? remains fresh, honest, and very funny.


The DVD

Image and Sound*
The perfunctory transfer leaves much to be desired. Who's the Caboose? appears to have been shot on very grainy 16mm stock. But I've seen plenty of DVD transfers from 16mm that look a whole lot better than this. To start with, the image is not enhanced for 16x9 presentation. The letterboxed image is extremely muddy, with colors bleeding into each other all over the place. Darker scenes fare worse than better-lit ones. The soundtrack is about on par with the image. It's clear enough, but is flat and lacks dynamic range.

Bonus Content
None. A reunion commentary would have been lovely given the combined talent involved here.


Final Thoughts

Who's the Caboose? serves as a "where did they come from?" for a whole host of well-known comic actors. But it's also a good film in its own right. It's too bad the presentation and extras don't match the quality of the movie itself. Rent it.

Casey Burchby lives in Northern California: Twitter, Tumblr.