If his first name didn't sound like a joke, Bobcat Goldthwait might be jumping on the list of genuinely original American filmmakers. Maybe he is anyway: "World's Greatest Dad", along with Goldthwait's previous directing outings, "Shakes the Clown" and "Sleeping Dogs Lie", is a weird, outrageous, but fundamentally serious movie. Robin Williams plays high-school teacher Lance Clayton, who still harbors dreams of writerly glory; he wants to be a novelist not because he has something compelling to say but because he images a life of fame and money and women. His teenage son Kyle (Daryl Sabara) is a disappointment, too: a truly nasty little freak who makes life unpleasant for everyone around him. A single horrifying plot twist suddenly brings Lance some publishing fame, and gives him a chance to exercise his writing skills--and here's where the movie's already black comedy turns a deep indigo. Williams has played quite a few quietly desperate types, but Lance is one of his better flings at the profile, and he does a memorable on-air meltdown when invited to talk about his sudden fame. Sabara, who was one of the "Spy Kids", is equally good as the rotten son, and Alexie Gilmore gets just the right hint of opportunism into her role as Lance's colleague. "World's Greatest Dad" hums along sure-handedly until it has to figure out how to wrap things up, and while Goldthwait admirably settles for a conclusion that leaves various issues open, he somehow falls short of the film's caustic, scathing build-up. Still, for those who follow a twisted road, this one is worth the trip. "--Robert Horton"