In Hollywood-produced films, when conservatives do make an appearance, they're usually charicatures of the far right, and maybe pathological sleazebags, to boot. Religious zealots, scheming demagogoues, nasty backroom wheeler-dealers, corrupt scientists advancing the cause of corrupt corporations. You get the picture. Suburbanites fare little better: they're painted as materialistic morons, or zombied child molesters. On a good day.

So, the latest in the celluloid culture wars stars a mad Ronald Reagan fan on a population-cleansing mission.

SANTA CRUZ — It's apparent that locals are doing a decent job of keeping Santa Cruz weird. The area's pot-smoking, organic food-eating, hippie reputation will take center stage in a Hollywood horror flick about a man with a penchant for Ronald Reagan and the free market who's on a crusade to oust a bunch of Santa Cruz-types from society. The movie, "The Tripper," is being directed by David Arquette — better known for his role in the "Scream" series and marrying "Friends" uber-star Courtney Cox. The film includes lesser-known actors such as Balthazar Getty of the television show "Alias" and Paul Reubens, who has mostly been out of the limelight since his days as the character Pee Wee Herman in the 1980s.

"The Tripper" needs about 200 extra cast members, and casting calls will be held in Santa Cruz and Boulder Creek on Monday. The casting crew will be looking for those with body piercings, tattoos, beards and anything else off-beat and iconic of this left-leaning surf town, associate producer Cheryl Spencer said. A casting call for extras held Monday at Digital Media Factory on Mission Street Extension produced only a handful of participants. The extras are expected to be part of a large audience attending an outdoor music festival in which they find themselves being stalked by the Reagan fan and his killer dog Nancy.

Great setting, in Santa Cruz: a progressive, compassionate, well-managed city, if ever there was one. Satire, humor and "horror" flicks provide convenient cover for political dogma, of course. The Reaganaut wants to "oust...from society" the Santa Cruz hippies. Intolerance, obsession, evil, killer dog, Reagan, free markets.

Not so hidden message: support for free markets lead to obsessive stalking of harmless hippies. Guess I'm ready for a state-managed economy, then.

Think I'll wait 'till it goes to DVD. Which won't be long, thanks to the force of the, ah, free market. And what's up with the low turnout at the casting call for Santa Cruz slackers, anyway? Were they all working - or just surfing?

TECHNORATI TAGS: DAVID ARQUETTE, COURTNEY COX, PAUL REUBENS, THE TRIPPER, SANTA CRUZ, HOLLYWOOD, CONSERVATIVES

Posted by Matt Rosenberg at January 21, 2006 09:38 AM

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