Not something to be taken too seriously, De Niro's latest comedic flight is completely entertaining with most thanks going to supporting cast Catherine Keener and John Turturro
Robert De Niro stars as Hollywood movie producer Ben in Barry Levinson’s latest comedy about good times and bad times in film production. It is hard to say whether it is De Niro’s comedic acting skill or the clever screenwriting of Art Linson that makes this film funny but either way you will be entertained.
Giving credit where credit is due, De Niro’s act would be far less funny without Catherine Keener’s corker of a performance as studio head of production iron maiden Lou Tarnow. Although this is a woman that one does not mess with, Ben’s arc is only partially under his control. Pratfalls ensue.
Sean Penn, John Turturro, Stanley Tucci, Robin Wright Penn and Bruce Willis all have minor supporting roles, with Turturro, Tucci and RW Penn doing most of the work. Their characters form the rock and Keener’s Stalinist head of production forms the hard place; De Niro is caught in between. The head of production is immoveable so the film is about his efforts to control the others and thereby escape the title of ex – film producer.
Some of the best supporting work comes from Michael Wincott (“Basquiat,” “Along Came a Spider”) as drug-addled uber-director Jeremy. Jeremy wants dreadfully to leave his “masterpiece” of action drama, “Fiercely,” intact, complete with the dog killing scene that audience pre-screenings literally scream to remove. Bruce Willis plays an actor having a major fit about his new beard. Turturro and Tucci play friend and associate of De Niro in making the wheels go ‘round. Unfortunately for all of them, the wheels are not completely true and in the end they are all left wondering “What Just Happened?”
De Niro’s comedic performance is better than most of his previous, but Catherine Keener steals the show with her dynamite tough as nails show biz executive. She is as good as Tilda Swinton in Michael Clayton. Too bad she didn't have a bigger part in the picture. Overall, the film is a cartoon of things gone badly. The audience will have to choose whether to take the film seriously or not and they will be ill-equipped to make that decision. Nobody's life is this bad and nobody gets so much bad luck at one time or makes so many bad moves without doing something right. The film would have been more powerful if the hero would have done something right, at least occasionally, throughout the film.
Release: October 17, 2008
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