Posts tagged Hollywood
Route 66 – Part 22 – California
Oct 22nd
Route 66 – Part 22 – California – Includes Tucumcari NM, Vega TX, Amarillo, Cadillac Ranch, China Town, Hollywood, Santa Monica, Venus Beach, and The Azusa Drive In.
“In a World…” Is Too Amateurish
Sep 20th
“Too Amateurish”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
In a World… takes its title from the opening words made famous by legendary voiceover artist Don LaFontaine from the many promos and movie previews he recorded in Hollywood.
Lake Bell wrote, directed, and stars as Carol Solomon in this film about the voiceover industry in Hollywood, which we are told is sexist, in that very few women are used as voiceover artists.
Now, we know how Hollywood likes to make movies about itself, but if most of those self-absorbed movies are about as interesting as insiders inspecting their own belly buttons, this one about an aspect of Hollywood that is less known than making films themselves is, could be dismissed as being so self-absorbed and self-indulgent that it is as interesting as insiders inspecting their belly buttons and their toes for toe jam.
However, it does contain some subplots that are intended to make the film more interesting, such as the lousy way that Carol’s father treats her and her older sister, Danielle.
For example, at the beginning of the movie Carol is living at home with her widowed father, who comes home one day and tells Carol, “Jamie is going to be moving in, you’re going to have to find another place to live.”
Jamie is Sam’s girlfriend, and she is the stereotypical dumb blonde bimbo, a character included in movies written by lazy writers to get some cheap laughs.
So, Carol, who makes her living as a vocal coach, moves in with her sister, who works as a concierge at a fancy hotel.
However, Carol would like to break into the voiceover business, where Sam is well known and respected as a voiceover artist.
A search is on for a voiceover artist to record the promos for an upcoming series of films known as The Amazon Games, and Carol would like to get that gig, knowing that her father desperately wants that job himself.
Then there are other subplots involving Louis, an engineer at the recording studio where Carol works, who would like to go out with Carol, but he is too shy to ask, and a guest at the hotel where Danielle works is interested in Danielle, which causes problems in Danielle’s personal life.
The main plot and all the subplots are like belly buttons and toe jam.
In a World… is too amateurish.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”
“The Bling Ring” Shows Stealing from the Rich and Famous
Jun 29th
“Stealing from the Rich and Famous”
“Hotshots” looks at a movie!
The Bling Ring is based on actual events, was directed very nicely by Sofia Coppola, and serves as a many-layered warning to perpetrators, victims, fans, and viewers alike.
Heck, it should also serve as a warning to the police: Appearing in a movie about an actual case you were involved in can hurt not only your career, but also the prosecution of the case itself.
The story is about a group of teenagers who blatantly broke into the homes of Hollywood celebrities and stole whatever they wanted, clothing, jewelry, makeup, and any drugs they could find.
Or, as one of them says as they are about to ransack a home, “Let’s go shopping.”
We meet Marc on his first day at a new school that is for troubled teenagers, he is lonely, he has no friends, and he meets Rebecca when she shows him some kindness and attention.
Rebecca introduces Marc to checking parked cars to see if they are unlocked and taking anything they can from inside them.
One day Rebecca gives Marc a ride after school and asks him if he knows about any families who are out of town. He does, they go to that house, and Rebecca introduces Marc to finding a way inside and stealing items from the house.
When they see on the news that Paris Hilton is hosting a party in Las Vegas, it is easy enough to use the Internet to learn where Paris lives, easy enough to find the key to the front door underneath the welcome mat, and easy enough to be bedazzled by everything that Paris owns and puts on display, again taking whatever they want.
Incidentally, Paris allowed the filmmakers to use her house for filming all the scenes there, and we can also assume that all the clothing and jewelry are hers, too.
The victims have no shame, either.
And then everything gets out of hand. Friends of theirs at school want in on the action. Everyone is obsessed with taking “selfies” of themselves in their stolen swag and posting them on the Internet, but when some of the celebrities’ homes have security cameras, you can guess the rest even if you don’t know what actually happened.
The Bling Ring shows just one of the downsides to our obsession with the lives of the glitterati.
I’m Dan Culberson and this is “Hotshots.”