Dead Beat

Produced by Christopher Lambert, this is a quirky US indie about a rock'n'roll rebel stuck in a Midwestern hole in the early '60s. He wears cowboy boots, make-up, and models himself on Elvis. He's a real ladykiller. Literally. Dubov's debut has plenty of zip, but it doesn't entirely come off, perhaps because it shows its hand too soon, perhaps because the hip amoral tone just doesn't gel with the bozo narrator young Balthazar Getty provides. Intriguing all the same, with cameos from Alex Cox and Deborah Harry, and a ticklish, narcissistic turn from Ramsay.