If ever a wiz there was, it is ‘Sex Pass’

    Imagine a motion picture in which mad men Jon Hamm and John Slattery find themselves reunited in a land of Oz, where a plucky young lady from Kansas is assisted by three neurotic losers in her quest to get under the covers with the man behind the curtain. And what if I told you that such a flick exists, complete with a wicked witch and a homicidal Weird Al Yankovich itching to inflict bodily harm on these beleaguered souls?

   Naturally, you’d say, “That’s insane.” And you’d be half right. It IS insane. But, given the proper state of mind, it will also get you higher than the lush poppy fields surrounding Emerald City. I speak, of course, of “Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass,” the latest morsel of comedic madness from David Wain, the wizard behind the camp classic, “Wet Hot American Summer.” Several of its cast members pop up here among a slew of cameos punctuating a zany parody of both “The Wizard of Oz” and the ethically questionable industry that created it.

    I found it side-splittingly funny. But my wife loathed it. So, let that serve as a warning that “Celebrity Sex Pass” isn’t for everyone. But if you are among the faithful who also enjoyed Wain’s “They Came Together,” you’re in for a clever send-up of Hollywood and its duplicitous hangers-on. It’s also an excellent showcase for Zoey Deutch (“Voicemails for Isabelle”) as the titular rube in ruby sneakers, determined to even the score with her unfaithful fiancé (Michael Cassidy), who improbably “penetrated” his celebrity crush, Jennifer Aniston. If there’s any hope of mending things in the two weeks prior to their wedding, Gail believes she must reciprocate by bedding her dream man, Jon Hamm.

     As luck would have it, she and her BFF, Otto (an anagram of Toto), are slated to jet from Kansas, to attend a hairdresser convention in La La Land the following weekend. But getting a face-to-face with the former Don Draper isn’t easy. Like Dorothy Gale before her, she’s going to need a little help from her friends negotiating the perilous Yellow Brick Road. Enter Caleb (Ben Wang, excellent), the overeager receptionist at Creative Arts Agency; Vincent (Wain’s co-writer, Ken Marino), a failed screenwriter turned failed paparazzi; and Hamm’s former sidekick, John Slattery, aka “The Slat-Man,” now a depressed, long-unemployed actor. 

     The latter is the film’s unequivocal apogee, molding self-deprecation into a sublime art form. A bundle of debilitating insecurity, he’s the Cowardly Lion to Wang’s Scarecrow and Marino’s Tin Man. To win favor with his new crew, he assures them that he can get Gail an audience with Hamm even though his former co-star hasn’t answered his texts in years. The white-bearded Slattery is a deadpan goldmine. Who knew he could be this hilarious? Wain, that’s who! He taps it for all its worth. But it wouldn’t be possible if Slattery let even a hint of ego cross his path. He’s rougher on himself than he has any right to be. But the more he puts himself down, the louder you laugh.

    Like the others, Slattery believes Hamm is his “all-powerful” ticket to salvation. But first, they’ll need to find him. After tangling with Yankovich’s angry, AK-47-packing homeowner, the gang follows a tip directing them to Hollywood’s Emerald City: the notorious Hotel Marmont. But once there, the goofy gatekeeper (Tobie Windham) refuses to let them pass, vowing to make them all “sick” if they don’t vamoose pronto. But seconds later, sympathy, or is it empathy (he’s not sure), overcomes him. He flags the intruders down and offers them a bargain: Bring Hamm a blockbuster script and he shall let them pass.

     Meanwhile, a subplot unfolds involving a crazed mobster (Sabrina Impacciatore), the yarn’s de facto wicked witch, who’s compelled to destroy the world’s economy. But a mix-up at LAX has left Gail in possession of the attaché containing the framework for her fiendish plan. So the witch’s goons are basically chasing Gail, who is chasing Hamm. Their respective paths are littered with cameos, from the aforementioned Aniston to “Shark Tank’s” Robert Herjavec.

    The real star, though, is L.A. Wain and Marino have a blast poking fun at the mythical Land of Dreams, revealing their hometown to be more of a haven for players and wannabes who’ll do anything to achieve their 15 minutes. Accordingly, Wain dresses his film in candy colors accentuated by Deutch’s bubbly charm. She and her four cohorts infectiously portray their characters as lovable yet deliriously clueless, while also joining a hammy Hamm in flaunting impeccable comic timing.

    Still, I must take exception to the borderline offensive casting of a gay man of color (Miles Gutierrez-Riley) as Gail’s pet, Otto. That, and the hit-or-miss nature of the rat-a-tat, joke-a-minute format prove somewhat problematic. But overall, “Celebrity Sex Pass” is a delight, especially for those familiar with the seedier side of a city that thrives on sex, money and knowing the right people. And by “right people,” I do not mean the Wright Brothers, although they do garner a name-drop. That comes courtesy of Caleb in his attempt to instill courage in the “Slat-Man,” convincing Slattery he doesn’t want to be Wilbur, “the wrong Wright brother.”

    Not to worry. He proves himself very much an Orville, the right Wright brother, defying gravity by consistently keeping “Celebrity Sex Pass” aloft. And, as they’d say in the “Slat-Man’s” native Boston, he’s “Wicked” good.

Movie review

Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass

Rated: R for language, violence, bloody images, sexual content

Cast: Zoey Deutch, John Slattery, Ben Wang, Ken Marino, Jon Hamm and Miles Gutierrez-Riley

Director: David Wain

Writers: David Wain and Ken Marino

Runtime: 95 minutes

Where: In theaters July 10

Grade: B