recommended

Not even bad in a good way

An absolute waste of money

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Albert Brooks has got a writer's block. Sharon Stone as a muse promises him she will help him write a new best seller. Will it work and at what cost?Albert Brooks movies are known for it's laid back charm and tongue in cheek jokes. None other than Albert Brooks himself can play a whining "clown" better. He is sort of a Woody Allen type, constantly complaining and worrying, but all these troubles get delivered in funny oneliners.This comedy really is to die for. Lots of hilarious cameos by great directors like Martin Scorsese (Good Fellas) and James Cameron (Avatar). Jeff Bridges and Andie McDowwel play the supporting parts and I love them for it.Seen it multiple times now and the jokes stay fresh and funny thanks to excellent story written by the director/actor Albert Brooks himself. Especially recommended for hollywood moviegeeks.

Steven Phillips (Albert Brooks) is an experienced screenwriter. He has written for the best. He even receives a humanitarian award which is code for lifetime achievement. However, his latest script is rejected. Lifetime achievement seems more like lifetime retirement. He has his wife Laura (Andie MacDowell) and family. He needs to continue writing but his career has hit a wall. His friend Jack Warrick (Jeff Bridges) suggests a muse. She's literally the mythical creature in the form of Sarah Little (Sharon Stone). Steven is taken aback by her constant demands and expected gifts. She inspires Laura to create a booming cookie business and even moves in with them.This is satire of the Hollywood world. It is a lesser Albert Brooks movie. He is not unlikable but he is usually more adorable than this. There are some good jabs at the movie world and there are plenty of big name cameos. It is not quite funny enough and I expect better from him.

I have just discovered Albert Brooks, with his film The Muse. I can see why he is known as a West Coast Woody Allen.The Muse is both elegantly witty and laugh-out-loud funny by turns.The notion of a nearly-man so desperate for success that he is willing to suspend all reason, and believe that he can be rescued from his imminent Hollywood screen-writing oblivion by a woman claiming to be the Muse of Greek Mythology made real in flesh and blood, but who turns out to be only a particularly resourceful runaway from the local (shall we say) Home for the Oddly Gifted, is sublime! Sharon Stone s performance as the self- and omni-delusive (her psychiatrists, though amazed and amused, know otherwise!) Muse is outstanding. She effortlessly obliterates the wooden acting of the strangely-featured Andy McDowell throughout.As madly demanding actress - for that IS what she is doing in reality - and - in the final payoff - harridan Studio head she is just superb, and through her the film s high concept is perfectly - and delightfully - pitched.I cannot speak highly enough of this team of Brooks and Stone.

Writer/Director/Star Albert Brooks and co-writer Monica Johnson's somewhat jaundiced view ofachievement and success in Hollywood is the inspiration for this movie. While a bit gimmicky and aimless,it is still quite funny and satisfies in a way he's known for doing(Lost in America,Defending Your Life and Mother spring to mind for me personally).Writer Steven Miller has won what seems to be his umpteenth Humanitarian award for his work in the industry,and being a longtime veteran of penning scripts that get critical acclaim but receive little or no commercial reward,he finds himself at a crossroads for his career. In a moment of personal breakdown in front of his friend Jack(Jeff Bridges,very good in something just a little bit more than a cameo here) recommends that he use the services of a beautiful and spoiled woman named Sarah(Sharon Stone,very fine here),whose exact job is to be a Muse,or inspiration,for artists to do their most successful work. Reluctant at first,Steven takes the Muse in and,after running through hoops for her in ways that seem not worth the effort,his script inspiration takes a commercial(if not quality)turn for the seemingly better. Things complicate when Steven's wife Laura(Andie MacDowall,who rarely seems different in any role she does anymore)ferrets out Sarah,thinking he's husband is having an affair with her. He isn't,and the two become friends,and Sarah's artistic inspiration rubs off on Laura as well.A skewering of the Hollywood industry is served up in the first half of the movie,followed by the last half being somewhat of an actualization story. Uneven? Sure. But the material is kept light enough to please anyone's dry grown-up humor,particularly one who value's Brooks' style.