Hollywoodland Review

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"Hollywoodland" reviews

Movie

Hollywoodland

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2006-11-27 23:48:01

Rating

3/5

Provider

CinemaSource

Review

Hollywoodland is a well-acted, moody and sumptuously evocative recreation of LA's seemingly glamorous underbelly circa the 1950s but tries entirely too hard to be Chinatown.

Story

Attempting to delve into one of Tinseltown's most curious scandals--the mysterious suicide (or was it?) of the original TV Superman, actor George Reeves--the story begins after Reeves (Ben Affleck) is found dead of a seemingly self-inflicted gunshot wound during a late night party in his Benedict Canyon home. The case then unfolds through the eyes of Louis Simo (Adrien Brody), a street-smart, publicity hungry private dick hired by Reeves' grieving mother. As Simo slowly peels back the layers of Reeves' seemingly glamorous life, he discovers an actor of charm, talent and sophistication whose every opportunity for a big break fizzled, forcing him to lead a frustrated existence slumming in the superhero show he deemed beneath him. Gradually identifying with Reeves' failed expectations for himself, Simo discovers a host of candidates who may have actually pulled the trigger on the actor, including his young party girl paramour (Robin Tunney), his longtime lover and patron (Diane Lane) and his lover's husband, a powerfully connected studio "fixer" (Bob Hoskins).

Acting

It is Brody, not Affleck, who carries the bulk of the film on his shoulders, and the Oscar winner delivers a finely etched turn as Simo, who's fractured potential mirrors Reeves', but, quite simply, Simo's story isn't nearly as dark or engaging as Reeves' life or the mystery surrounding his death. Affleck, an actor who has had his share of ups, downs, duds and disappointments in Hollywood, delivers one of his most charming and fully realized performances to date, even if his spot-on recreation of Reeves' speech pattern is a bit distracting. The luminous Lane's acting talents remain in full blossom in a character she's well-suited to play—the aging beauty fearing the road ahead—and she commands every scene she's in. Unfortunately, there should have been many, many more of them. She's almost criminally underused. Hoskins, more menacing then ever, and the reliable stable of supporting players like Joe Spano are all top-notch as well; only Tunney, apparently trying to channel both Betty Boop and Bette Davis simultaneously, seems a bit off her game as the wannabe femme fatale.

Direction

Best known for his strong turns helming many of the best episodes of television series such as The Sopranos, Sex and the City and Six Feet Under, first time feature director Allen Coulter's cool, assured hand and meticulous recreation of Cold War Los Angeles are major bonuses here. Even when Simo's story sags in comparison to Reeves', Coulter keeps us interested, particularly when staging the Rashomon-like sequences depicting the various theories behind Reeves' demise. But by skimping on Reeves' story in favor of a less compelling fictional framework built around a private detective investigating the case, we never see one key suspect's possible murder scenario enacted visually, and it comes off as a glaring omission.

Bottom Line

Hollywood.com rated this film 3 stars.

Movie

Hollywoodland

Author

anonymous

Date reviewed

2006-11-17 16:00:46

Provider

Review

For many, Christopher Reeve will always be Superman, despite the fact his final appearance in the role was in the risible Superman 4 in 1987.

However, long before Reeve there was Reeves. George Reeves played Superman US television and on the big screen in Superman And The Mole-Men. But in 1959, at just 45, he died (allegedly) at his own hand. This prompted Hollywoodland, a film that 48 years on from the events examines the actor's life and death.

The film re-creates two bygone eras of Los Angeles - the 40s to early 50s and, following Reeves's death, 1959-60. It's stars are Ben Affleck as Reeves and Adrien Brody as a fictional private eye, Louis Simo. Simo is hired by Reeves's mother to look into his death after the police find his blood-splattered body and declare it a clear case of suicide. Simo digs deep into the actor's life and background to learn that not only was he decidedly unhappy with his lot, feeling trapped by the superhero image; but he was in the midst of a love affair with Toni Mannix (Diane Lane) whose husband, Eddie (Bob Hoskins) was a brutish studio executive at MGM. The film proceeds to alternate between tracing the development of the Reeves-Mannix affair and Simo's ongoing investigation as discovery is illustrated by flashback and vice versa.

Hollywoodland never maintains its initially promised impact. It's ending (don't worry this sentence won't spoil the film for you) is irresolute - with a succession of explanations for Reeves' death. Though the root of this film is compelling as a detailed dwelling on a fascinating dilemma: What is it like to acquire stardom via a role for which you have no respect?