Boring

A Disappointing Continuation

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

The box copy for this movie suggests some kind of mystery, but don't be mislead. This is a morality drama about Hollywood deal-making at its most soulless and cynical. Peter Weller gives an unflinching performance as a high-powered star who steamrolls people, talking over them, repeating himself just in case the message didn't penetrate the first several times, making no effort to listen, and occasionally trying to justify his actions but never apologizing for his arrogance or boorishness. Danny Huston plays his agent with a painted on smile, trying to make everybody happy to get The Deal to come together, and greasing the wheels with cocaine and vodka. Huston is dying, but he puts on a happy front for the sake of the picture and knowing that the heartless, selfish people around him wouldn't care anyway. His death leads to professional complications for his agency, but little actual mourning. Indeed, it is a moment of supreme irony when his sister takes the large turnout at his funeral to be a sign of how well loved he was, while egos clash in the back of the church! The film is shot in a very documentary fashion: tight camera placements, roving camera, swish pans from one character to another. It plays like an episode of COPS, but with Hollywood power brokers at its center rather than deputies, and the look and the details of life at a big shot talent agency makes the movie seem convincing on a superficial level, but not particularly compelling dramatically. There are few original characters or situations here. The movie is good enough for its type but there is little here that seems fresh or even all that interesting.

Hmm, what a fab. movie. Just caught this flick at a film festival and let me tell you it is one dame fine movie. Sitting thru the opening scenes I must admit that I thought that it was going to be total @#!&*, but it soon got going. Being involved in the "entertainment" industry I did feel a connection with this film. The acting was superb, the general production values good, although the hand-held camera work did occasionally get on my nerves.It was quite strange actually, the start of the movie (opening credit sequences) seemed to go on for ever, and the credits that would normally be put at the end were put at the start. Anyway, I think if people can get thru the first 15 minutes, they will see the film for what it is.Great character performances, great story and subject matter. Think an "arthouse" version of "The Player.Just ordered this on DVD from the UK. MUST SEE!

right.read some of the other reviews and joined this site specifically to put my oar in.basically this film is what u understand. if you can empathise with other humans' emotions and the intimidating world of showbusiness which is dominated by ego, beauty and cerebral brutality then you should get a lot from this film.it opens with a long foreboding shot of a door shutting in what appears to be a hospital. a pre-emptive eulogy if you will. a mood setting shot if ever i saw one. but somehow i think those of you more inclined to rent 'xxx' than 'city of god' are going to miss the impact of such a shot. it lays down a feeling of intimidation and regret that, juxtaposed against the Hollywood career-scape evokes a sympathy for any character not on top of their game as you feel they will be swallowed up. progression through the film demonstrates the directors skill at switching between the glamorous and the seedy.this is a very intelligent film that can only really be appreciated through understanding. if anything it is a study of power and how destructive it can be.peter weller plays a tom cruise-esquire Hollywood bigwig obsessed with belittling those who allow him to. And most do because he is so enormously famous. One particularly affecting scene involves him, his agent and a room full of buxom women and cocaine. his typical chat is littered with non-specific put-downs and you realise the main character here is this ogre's agent. To work for a man like this...you have to have balls. and the film indirectly preaches about the dangers of such a great LOOKING lifestyle. conceptually great, but physically annihilating, his agent does what he does while hiding a terrible secret.and thats where the perfection lies. epic like a shakespearian drama, the film leaves you with too many issues to put down on paper etc and i for one felt privileged to have witnessed such a work of art. truthful, arresting, affecting and flamboyant, this film is one of the best i saw last year.frankly if u think its rubbish u don't understand it. simple as that. try renting 'the punisher' next time.

I love this film. Danny Huston, in a remarkable performance, makes you care for a truly unloveable character. The film shows us the vile antics of those charged with maintaining the glam facade of Hollywood and the big studios. Let's have more on this theme. Some on these pages think this film smacks of jealousy; that somehow Bernard Rose is envious of the morally bankrupt lives led by the likes of Ivan. He's not (how could anyone be?). When Ivan muses on his fate and tries to find one, just one, memory that would make it all worthwhile, he comes up blank. It would appear to your average punter, who's taken in by the trappings of wealth and showbiz, that Ivan had it all. In the end, we see he has nothing. His death scene is one of the most moving ever committed to celluloid, sorry, HD-V. Consider the response of his colleagues on hearing the news of his demise. Consider the response of his former clients. Those with a knowledge of the way these agencies work will know that this film is eerily accurate. There are so many shocking, uncomfortable and perversely funny scenes in this film that you'll be thinking about it for a long time afterwards. Wow, a film about Hollywood that actually makes you think. How weird is that?