From: Eric
To: Adam, Sam
Subject: I've been Clooneyed
Hey, gents. I don't think my contributions are the fix Nate and Island Girl were talking about in the Feedback Forum, but since I finally got around to seeing 'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind,' I thought I'd help a brother out in a bind. For those of you unfamiliar with the premise, the movie is based on Chuck Barris' 'unauthorized autobiography' in which he claims, in addition to being a successful TV producer ('The Dating Game,' 'The Newlywed Game,' and 'The Gong Show'), that he was a CIA hitman who killed 33 people. The film is, well, decent for a directorial debut. I have to give Clooney this: he may not be the best actor in the world, but he always chooses interesting subject matter. It's a stylish piece, more about look and feel and lounge music than substance, but that is fine for a spy movie. There is an inordinate amount of swearing in the film. I don't have a problem with swearing, I do it quite liberally in my daily life, but often times in movies I feel like an overuse of 'fuck' is just a crutch for bad writing. A lot of the buildup for the film is based on the notion that these events may have happened. This notion is patently ridiculous, and if that's the catch Clooney was shooting for (as he claims in his myriad talk show appearances), he could have done a better job setting it up. The film maintains a frothy tone throughout until we reach the coda, which is so poorly written I think Donald Kaufman helped out on it. Supposedly there is a mole in the CIA that his superiors want him to track down, and while I don't think Clooney is pretending the film is suspenseful, it's painfully obvious who it is halfway through the film. Sam Rockwell plays Barris and he's pretty good, though I think it is Drew Barrymore's finest screen performance to date (but I didn't see 'Home Fries' or 'Ever After,' so I'm probably not a fair judge). Clooney is as stiff as his first roles on the big screen, prompting thoughts of 'Batman & Robin' to skewer my sugar-plum fairies last night. Dear Julia Roberts, so eager to expand her range after always playing the 'movie star' for years, needs more to work with better material, or just take more offbeat roles. Lord knows there's enough scenery-chewing in this film (the FCC censor) to accomodate at least one more. The shot composition is actually pretty good, so it is a good film to look at (even if I have to see Rockwell's ass more times than I've seen my own in the past month). I'll give Clooney credit for this, mainly because I've heard him talk about favorite old films of his, including 'Citizen Kane,' whence he filched several flourishes, thought it just as easily could have been cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel ('The Usual Suspects' and 'Three Kings'). It's funny, it'll bring a smile to your face, but ultimately it's no more than a series of disjointed acting exercises. Fellas, tear into me.
P.S. I nearly crapped my pants when looking into Drew Barrymore's profile at IMDb.com and seeing that there is a movie version of 'A Confederacy of Dunces' slated for release in 2004. The few that know me on this site realize this is my favorite book of all-time, and I wouldn't wish the adaptation on anyone. A quick click provides that it is Soderbergh and one of his producer buddies, and I suppose I can't think of anyone better (though it would be interesting to see what the Farrelly Bros. would do with it). The only cast member listed is Barrymore, who is also producing, so I'll be surreptitiously following this for the next year.
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