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| Joel & Ethan Coen's Hail, Caesar! has stars to boot |
Hail, Caesar! is the new movie from Minneapolitan master filmmaker brothers Ethan & Joel Coen (The Big Lebowski (1998)), who wrote and directed it.
In 1950s Hollywood, we follow the 'fixer' of a major movie studio at a time when the star of the studio's expensive epic movie currently shooting gets abducted by a group of disgruntled, Communist screenwriters.
It is sort of curious that the same year sees the release of two major Hollywood movies about Communism in 1950s Hollywood: Trumbo (2015) being the (probably) realistic depiction of the hardships of the Communist film folk put on the Hollywood blacklist, while Caesar! elects to highlight ridiculous sides of the Hollywood Communists, - and show a group of them directly support the Soviet Union. Both films also feature the notorious queen slander Hedda Hopper; in Helen Mirren's villainous guise in the former film, and in Tilda Swinton's (We Need to Talk about Kevin (2011)) in dual twin parts in the latter.
This thought aside, there's no doubt that Hail, Caesar! is among the Coens' weakest films, and a steep decline from the masterful Inside Llewyn Davis (2013). The overshadowing problem is that it is meant as a comedy, and it's just not very funny. Caesar! is somehow post-modernly clever without being very smart, because it doesn't gell into a compelling whole, the way for instance the similarly very clever and post-modern The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) managed to. Hail, Caesar! lags far, far behind.
The story consists of two major characters, played by Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men (2007)) and George Clooney (The Descendants (2011)), as fixer Mannix, based on real-life Mannix, who was the 'fixer' at MGM for decades, and missing star Whitlock, respectively. Maybe the problems of the film actually begin with these two main characters: Mannix stands before some practical problems and a big life decision, a job offer, - but it never registers as too important for us. Meanwhile Clooney, - whose antics do add amusement to the film, - is kidnapped, but I don't think anyone ever seriously doubts that he'll make it to the end in fine form.
The details:
With a weak story center, which is never very important or exciting, we have a film that is all about its digressions, or interruptions, if you will. And here lies the main qualities of Caesar!:
Channing Tatum (Magic Mike XXL (2015)) has a terrific tap-dancing scene, - done without a double, - and Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation (2003)) sparkles and is fun as a scandalous actress, based on Esther Williams. Wayne Knight (Jurassic Park (1993)) has a funny scene in the beginning of the film, and some of the scenes concerning the religious epic that Clooney's character stars in are pretty amusing. - But probably mostly for someone with knowledge of the films of the era that are called to mind, (in this case mainly The Ten Commandments (1956) and Ben-Hur (1959).)
Then there's young Alden Ehrenreich (Blue Jasmine (2013)), (Geez what a last name...), who makes a strong impression as a brainless but unearthly handsome cowboy actor, and certainly contributes greatly to the glamorous eye candy that the film also lives on.
All in all a very tolerable but also highly disappointing film from the Coens, whom we should all expect more from after all these years and marvelous films.
Related posts:
Trumbo (2015) - Good actors and a thrilling true story make this biopic work
Joel & Ethan Coen: Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) or, The Man Who Wasn't Dylan
2013 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2013 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
Burn After Reading (2008) or, Idiocy 2008
The Big Lebowski (1998) - The stoner comedy to reign over all
Barton Fink (1991) or, The Writer's Hell
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| Alden Ehrenreich, looking ready to eat in Joel and Ethan Coen's Hail, Caesar!'s probably best money shot |
Watch the excellent trailer for the film here
Cost: 22 mil. $
Box office: 47 mil. $ and counting
= Flop
[Hail, Caesar! premiered in LA February 1 and runs 106 minutes. The project was first presented by the Coens in 2004. The film was shot in LA from November 2014 by Roger Deakins (Doubt (2008)) on film, which he has said that he doesn't want to do again, [because] "I don't think the infrastructure is there." The film opened the Berlin International Film Festival later in February. It opened #2, behind Kung Fu Panda 3, in North America, to an 11.4 mil. $ first weekend and grossed 29.3 mil. $ (62.3 % of the total gross) domestically. Its 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were France with 3.5 mil. $ (7.4 %) and Germany with 2.5 mil. $ (5.3 %). Hail, Caesar! is certified fresh at 83 % with a 7.1 critical average on Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of Hail, Caesar!?
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