In our household, we use a pretty basic definition for "art". If it (dance, painting, sculpture, performance) causes you, the audience, to feel the emotion that the artist wants you to feel, then it's art.
By that definition, this movie is art - though I can't say that it's what the writer/director/producer team was trying for.
Okay - I've been a Jennifer Jason Leigh fan for a couple of decades now. That she was one of the forces behind this film made my decision to rent it easy. As always, her performance as actress here is relentlessly professional - she knows her job, and does it well.
The script is - well, questionable. Written by the central characters for themselves and their friends, filmed by (apparently) a circle of friends, about lives in the movie industry. As Heinlein said, "There's no shame in writing, but do it in private and wash your hands afterward". This is either masturbatory or self-revelatory, and it's not easy for this audience to know which. That's okay - it was an interesting evening's viewing, and it'll find its way into my personal collection sometime soon.
The acting is flawless - no clunkers, no false notes, and some points of excellence. JJL was, in particular, good at showing a side I'd have thought she'd be afraid to face - the aging has-been. Many of the company I'd not seen before - but everyone, down to America, the maid, shows their characters beautifully.
I don't really know if this movie was supposed to show the insiders' view of life in the movie industry, or a parody of that life - but it's an engaging story. It could have used a bit more sparkle, and perhaps a bit less pathos in one evening - but it did ring true throughout.
Folks either like this or loathe it - I suggest that you watch it yourself and see what camp you land in. My daughter was a tad surprised to find how much she enjoyed it.
(Daughter, 14, sez: Very odd. It shows movie stars, writers, and important people - being just like normal human beings are.)
By that definition, this movie is art - though I can't say that it's what the writer/director/producer team was trying for.
Okay - I've been a Jennifer Jason Leigh fan for a couple of decades now. That she was one of the forces behind this film made my decision to rent it easy. As always, her performance as actress here is relentlessly professional - she knows her job, and does it well.
The script is - well, questionable. Written by the central characters for themselves and their friends, filmed by (apparently) a circle of friends, about lives in the movie industry. As Heinlein said, "There's no shame in writing, but do it in private and wash your hands afterward". This is either masturbatory or self-revelatory, and it's not easy for this audience to know which. That's okay - it was an interesting evening's viewing, and it'll find its way into my personal collection sometime soon.
The acting is flawless - no clunkers, no false notes, and some points of excellence. JJL was, in particular, good at showing a side I'd have thought she'd be afraid to face - the aging has-been. Many of the company I'd not seen before - but everyone, down to America, the maid, shows their characters beautifully.
I don't really know if this movie was supposed to show the insiders' view of life in the movie industry, or a parody of that life - but it's an engaging story. It could have used a bit more sparkle, and perhaps a bit less pathos in one evening - but it did ring true throughout.
Folks either like this or loathe it - I suggest that you watch it yourself and see what camp you land in. My daughter was a tad surprised to find how much she enjoyed it.
(Daughter, 14, sez: Very odd. It shows movie stars, writers, and important people - being just like normal human beings are.)