Maps to the Stars (2014) User Reviews

Less than shining star

[TheLittleSongbird · 5/10 · 26 June 2019]

Most of David Cronenberg's films range from good to outstanding. Some of his work disappointed me or evoked a relatively mixed reaction from me, but on the most part he is a very interesting director who does stand out in a good way. The cast are very talented, Julianne Moore especially, while one can understand why Cronenberg frequently used Howard Shore as his composer of choice and their collaborations is one of the best and most consistent director-composer collaborations in my view (am especially fond of his work for 'The Fly').

It is said with sadness that despite hearing good things about it (though it's understandably very polarising here), 'Maps to the Stars' disappointed me. It is far from a terrible film, don't even think it's a bad film, but it for me was a long way from great. Much to admire but do have to share some of the criticisms here, a great concept with inconsistent execution of it. As far as Cronenberg's work goes, 'Maps to the Stars' is better than 'Stereo', 'Crimes of the Future' and 'Cosmopolis' but it is a lesser film of his, nowhere near the level of 'The Fly', 'Dead Ringers', 'Eastern Promises', 'A History of Violence' and 'Spider'.

There are good things with 'Maps to the Stars'. It looks wonderful, excepting the somewhat fake-looking fire, then again it is Cronenberg whose work from the late 1970s onwards always ranked high on a visual level (of his overall output 'Rabid' and 'Shivers' were the only real exceptions in this regard). The cinematography is stylish and quite stunning to look at, sunshine has rarely blazed in such a wonderfully dazzling way in film. Shore's score is subtly unsettling and Cronenberg does deliver in the visual aspect of his directing.

Some of the satire is fiercely sharp and darkly funny and it is the satire where 'Maps to the Stars' fares best. Really admired the cast here, with Moore being excellent in the lead in her best performance in years (perhaps since 'Boogie Nights'). Evan Bird shows himself to be a young actor with huge potential, a very beyond his years performance. Have not seen a better performance from Mia Wasikowska in her most daring role and she is very affecting in it, seeing John Cusack and Olivia Williams in different roles and excelling was great to see. Robert Pattinson is much better than he was in 'Cosmopolis' and as others have said he has come on a long way since 'Twilight'.

For all those great things, 'Maps to the Stars' just didn't connect with me. Despite a promising start, there is a major change of tone that jars badly and then the film becomes unfocused and rather strange. The satirical edge is done well, but the vulgarity does get very over-the-top and mean-spirited and the cynical edge is overdone at times too. The more surreal elements didn't come over as either dreamlike or nightmarish, not much eerie here, too much of the scenes veered on ridiculous and felt very hokey. Emotionally, 'Maps to the Stars' should have been poignant but it felt too cold and clinical (Cronenberg's direction on the most part is the same). The pace can drag and with the trimming or excision of scenes that felt like padding that added nothing it would have felt much better. Cronenberg can do weird and disturbing very well, evident when he pioneered body horror, but very rarely to to such kitchen-sink or muddled effect.

Didn't feel for any of the characters apart from disgust, am aware they were not meant to be likeable and be unpleasant but the film failed too to make them properly fleshed out. The only character who came close to evoking any sympathy from me was Agatha, then her true colours were revealed and that was lost. Found that the film tried to do too many things and have too many strands and elements, and too many of them were given short shrift (the Cusack and Olivia Williams subplot was severely under-explored) or became convoluted, with too many things leaving the viewer perplexed due to being unexplained or poorly resolved. The script is not as rambling or bloated as that for 'Cosmopolis' but it is the most gratuitously crass script of any Cronenberg film and never sounds natural. The ending felt tacked on.

Altogether, not my cup of tea sadly but did find still a good number of great things about it. 5/10

A Disturbing Dive Into The Macabre

[blakiepeterson · 5/10 · 2 May 2015]

You would think that the soap operatic sentiments (incest, famous mothers, mysterious personal assistants, haughty child stars, and more) of Maps to the Stars would give it an enjoyably melodramatic edge, but instead of being an absurdly funny Hollywood satire, it mopes along with writhing cynicism until characters begin to set themselves on fire and get bludgeoned to death. The characters are nasty, the story lines are nasty, and so are the expensive furnishings; you probably haven't seen a Tinsel Town film this contemptuous, but you certainly have had better times at the movies before. The cynicism of Maps to the Stars is notable, but it becomes so increasingly dark that it goes from bracingly edgy to staunchly depressing. You wouldn't expect anything different from the macabre adoring David Cronenberg, but there might be a part of you that wishes we were lurking in the shadow of the soul sister of The Player instead of Debbie Downer's.

David Lynch got his kicks destroying the lives of the characters Naomi Watts and Laura Elena Harring played in Mulholland Dr., and Cronenberg has no trouble poisoning the wells the people in Maps to the Stars drink from. The Weiss family, who mirror the shameful dysfunction of the Spears' or the Lohan's, have slithered their way into Hollywood, but the scraggly hole they snuck in through is rapidly closing. Stafford Weiss (John Cusack) makes a living as a famed television psychiatrist with a starry clientèle, while his 13-year son (Evan Bird) is a successful child actor who headlines a shitty franchise when he's not residing in rehab. Christina, mother to Benjie and wife to Stafford, acts as her son's agent, clinging to his fame as she tries to find meaning in her empty, sad life.

Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore), one of Stafford's many patients, is an aging, irrelevant actress whose entire career has been overshadowed by her legendary mother (Sarah Gadon), who prematurely died in a house fire in the 1970s. Making her way into town is the enigmatic Agatha (Mia Wasikowska), a young woman with troubling burns on the side of her body; she finds a job as Havana's personal assistant, but her dangerous connection with the Weiss family leaves her slightly cursed.

If I've explained the plot well (and I probably haven't), then Maps to the Stars might sound enticing, carrying the same self-awareness of Twin Peaks while retaining the screeching satire of Sunset Boulevard. Wrong and wrong. I desperately wanted to like Maps to the Stars, (Julianne Moore and Mia Wasikowska are certainly two of Hollywood's most talented actresses and Cronenberg is a consistently interesting director), but it's much too unlikable to be anything other than dreary. The humor is sharp, but when humor is also underlined in a pen based in gloominess, it's hard to do anything other than remained sickened. The blame can't be placed on Cronenberg — his claustrophobic, fearlessly ghoulish filmmaking style is as fresh as ever — but on Wagner, whose screenplay wants to be sardonic but eventually runs out of ideas. The ending, which is essentially a series of disturbing character offings, seems like an act of haste instead of a necessity.

But if Maps to the Stars isn't as delicious as I wish it was, it never stops being watchable, in part to the cast (a round-table of fantastic performances) and in part to Cronenberg's unwaveringly creepy handling of it all. It isn't necessarily a horror film, but there's always a part of us that twitches in fear that something bad will happen. Bad stuff unavoidably does happen; I just wish the negativity was more creative. But if the woods are lovely, dark, and deep and you've got promises to maintain your derisive mood, Maps to the Stars might contain just enough pessimism to toot your raincloud drenched horn.

Read more reviews at petersonreviews.com

Hollywood problems

[paul2001sw-1 · 6/10 · 28 July 2017]

Daivd Cronenberg's 'Maps to the Stars' tells the convergent stories of several different characters in Hollywood: at first it appears as if this is one of those films about discrete lives that form a fine web of faint touches, but in fact it turns out that (most) of the characters have serious history, and are coming back together after events that have driven them apart. This reveal is quite well-plotted; the problem is that the characters are all mostly nasty (or at the very least weird), and moreover are so in a uniquely Hollywood way - you can believe there are such people in and around the movie business, but they're simply not the sort of people that most of us meet in our everyday lives. This makes it quite hard to sympathise with them, even if we can see the reason for their meanness and oddness. Cronenberg's movies can be considered cold in general, and although the charge isn't always justified, I watched this one very much from the outside. One thing it isn't, in spite of its billing as such, is a comedy.

Ode to narcissism

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 25 May 2015]

Hollywood never looks to kindly at itself when doing films about the lives of folks who make movies. But the Weiss family in Maps To The Stars are a really outstanding collection of freaks and weirdos.

Meet the Weisses. Father is John Cusack who is one of those self help promoting gurus making a fast buck on the lecture circuit and writing. His wife Olivia Williams is hardly a stay at home mom, she's out managing the career of their son Evan Bird who after time in a rehab is looking to make a comeback as a teen. That in itself is a sad new Hollywood tradition. From the time of Jackie Coogan child stars who emerge as chief breadwinners in their families have had unique and tragic stories. Bird gives his parents standing that they might never acquire on their own at the cost of a faintly normal childhood.

There's a fourth Weiss, another child played by Mia Wasikowska whose arrival by train sets the stage for the story. She's ordered a limousine and has the money to pay for it. Wasikowska chats up the driver, a hunky aspiring actor himself played by Robert Pattinson.

As the story unfolds we learn that Wasikowska has been living in Florida in an asylum, put there by her family after she set a fire. All this done with the prime object of keeping news of it away from the tabloid press. Can't have her brother's career and her father's racket be the subject of scandal.

Carrie Fisher makes a brief appearance as herself and Wasikowska has struck up a relationship with her via the Internet. Probably looking to palm off an eager, but obtrusive fan she suggest that actress Julianne Moore take her on as a 'personal assistant'.

Moore is a piece of work herself. She's a great lesson that Bird might not have the maturity to comprehend. It's the direction he's well on the way to. A totally self absorbed, self indulgent creature who thinks the whole world revolves around her. She's obsessed with playing her mother who was a great star who died in a fire like Linda Darnell back in the day. In her own imaginings she talks with her mother who puts her down for not having the talent to back up the ego.

Bird who is a Moore in training also has visions. His visitor is a little girl who was terminally ill whom he made a hospital visit for. No doubt he cheered her up in those last hours, but his psyche knows that maybe she sees him for what he is. Bird is also bright enough to see the path he's on, but can't do anything about it.

I suppose a certain amount of narcissism in show business is necessary to succeed. But Maps To The Stars is an ode to narcissism like I've never seen before on the big screen.

If I had to pick out someone who stood out in Maps To The Stars for me it's Evan Bird. I hope he's nothing like his character in the film in real life because anyone who's got to associate with him is in for one bumpy ride. But God only knows he's got any number of examples in real life to have studied for this role.

Another nasty bit of self analysis Maps To The Stars from Tinseltown.

Fascinating, sort of

[Red_Identity · 18 September 2014]

By no stretch of the imagination do I think that this is a home run. Not at all. It's very messy, and many times each storyline strains to connect. However, there's still a sense of real fascination under it all. Messy, but also very interesting at times. If anything, the film would have worked more if the performances were more in-line with the obviously funny material at the core. The one actor to truly get it is Julianne Moore, who is easily the best performer here. She seems to have a helluva time, funny and wickedly offbeat, even if over-the-top in a way that works. She really does rise the film above what the script entails. Great performance

Brilliant dialogue, awkward, baggy plot

[johnpmoseley · 7/10 · 26 December 2019]

A film worth revisiting, if my experience is anything to go by. I didn't think it was up to much the first time, but the BBC put it on again and this time I watched it twice and probably will at least once more, partly for Julianne Moore, who's pretty astonishing, playing an almost unprecedentedly monstrous grotesque, and partly for the frequent patches of brilliantly written dialogue (take a bow, Bruce Wagner). Moore's dialogue is almost always good, but that of 13-year-old move star and recovering drug abuser Benji also packs a vicious punch, and elsewhere, more subtly, in the mouths of Mia Wasikovska and Robert Pattinson's characters, Wagner does probably the best depiction I've ever seen of how young adults actually talk a lot of the time: confused, insecure and just barely covering it up.

All this is something like what we might see - and most importantly hear - if anyone ever filmed a Brett Eason Ellis novel properly, without being afraid of going to town on the dialogue (why hasn't Cronenburg ever worked with Ellis?). As such, it's an interesting point of comparison with Cronenburg's previous film, Cosmopolis, also heavy on the chilly, anomic modern rich person dialogue, courtesy of Don de Lillo, which, taken on its own, looks like woefully pretentious proof that you can't do this in film. Turns out you can, with bells on, though actually, Cronenburg films have been demonstrating this at least since Dead Ringers.

Other than these talky highlights, I think this film has a few problems of its own, some of them maybe also around pretentiousness. The big one for me is just the messiness of the message and plot, as a unity, which it isn't really. Moore's storyline on its own is a perfect, pitilessly poisonous Hollywood satire. Does it really need, in addition, a parallel plot that never quite meshes about incest and schizophrenia? Why? To round it out to feature film length? To give it some spurious intellectual heft in the form of references to Greek tragedy and elemental symbolism?

To be honest, there may be a puzzle here that I haven't worked out, because quite a lot of that dialogue I like so much seems to be satirising precisely such tendencies, particularly when Moore's character ghoulishly invokes fire and water to implicitly celebrate the death of a child because it gets her a part. And that's another reason I might watch again. But still, the problem remains, I don't think you need the incest or the schizophrenia to satirise Hollywood, because it introduces a sort of separate issue, a distinct emotional antagonist if you will, where Hollywood itself seems like the real target and should surely be all you need to explain all this very bad behaviour.

Chuck Lorre also created "The Big Bang Theory"

[lee_eisenberg · 6/10 · 18 May 2015]

If you've seen any of David Cronenberg's movies, then you should know that his movies contain some nasty material. "Maps to the Stars" is no exception, but this one features a different kind of nastiness. Cronenberg's previous movies showed things like mutated children, exploding heads, a man turning into a fly, a drug addict's hallucinations, and the revelation of a family man's former occupation. "Maps to the Stars" features a scene that looks very much like a scene in a Cronenberg movie, but most of the violence here is emotional violence. Every character is REALLY screwed up. That's to be expected in a movie about Hollywood, but Julianne Moore's character is like a knife against your face.

In the end I thought that it was a good movie, but not a great one. The whole movie is like a kick in the gut, so I should remind you that it's not for the fainthearted (no Cronenberg movie is).

By Hollywood, for Hollywood, chasing its own tail.

[voyou-703-655350 · 3/10 · 23 October 2014]

Scarred bodies and minds are recurring elements in Cronenberg's filmography. Not that I care much; they do not dominate those of his films that I like. Unfortunately for me, that trend persists, as I didn't get my fix of either spooks, wows, wits or laughs from Maps to the Stars.

I felt detached all along. I didn't feel anything, apart from being annoyed by a few characters and a slapping desire. Here are a few reasons for this disconnection: .

* It's all about Hollywood celebrities. One of the most exposed, yet least interesting microcosms on the planet. Meh.

* There are a lot of useless scenes, usually dragging out vapid conversations.

* Meanwhile, central characters are kept in the background. They may later become tragically pivotal, but we don't care by then; we don't even know them. Was that bad editing or just bad scripting ? .

* Creepiness never takes. That's embarrassing because Mr Cronenberg had always excelled at this. Here, his ghosts and hallucinations have no impact. They may even be a tad ridiculous.

Basically, the story doesn't flow and the emotions don't cross the screen. The cast is mostly fine. J. Moore has demonstrated time and again that she embodies the definition of an actress, i.e., an exhibitionist. No doubt her farting on a crapper will be praised by European critics.

Best are the two kids, but in fairness they have more material to work with. The boy has a face that screams "slap me!", and the urge becomes irrepressible as soon as he opens his mouth, but thanks to some serious scenes and an adequate delivery, my nerves are later soothed in his presence. Almost.

The girl, I had already seen elsewhere, in different registers. Here she is both spirited and delicate. Her character is out of a mental institute, yet she is the sanest of the lot. I suspect she was supposed to bring a subtle aura of menace, but I'm not sure. I bet Cronenberg isn't sure either. He got lost between his story and his private jokes.

The Grisly Side of Hollywood

[evanston_dad · 8/10 · 14 September 2015]

Anyone worried that a David Cronenberg film about the inner workings of Hollywood would not be filled with copious amounts of ick, rest assured. The ick abounds in "Maps to the Stars," a fascinating film that must be something like what watching a grisly car accident in slow motion would feel like.

Julianne Moore won her Oscar for the bland and award-bait "Still Alice" last year, but THIS is the movie for which she should have won. Utterly lacking in vanity, Moore tears into the role of a washed up actress struggling night and day to stage her comeback. Think Norma Desmond without the black and white studio sheen of "Sunset Boulevard" and the filters that were necessarily in place back when Billy Wilder's dark satire was released. This film is like rummaging through Norma Desmond's underwear. Mia Wasikowska is great as well as Moore's hanger on and personal assistant who unravels and goes off the deep end and beyond. Swirling around these two characters are plot lines involving a troubled child star, lots and lots of incest, and enough frantic desperation to fill a sequel to "Mulholland Drive."

Whenever I see a movie like this, I immediately wonder how true it is vs. how exaggerated for effect. For example, did Halle Berry or Nicole Kidman at one point in their careers have to subject themselves to the indignities shown or implied in this film? But then I think there has to be a lot of truth to movies like this, "Mulholland Drive," etc., which makes me glad I decided to be an anonymous Joe as opposed to a superstar. For every Julia Roberts, there are hundreds, maybe thousands, of desperate people out there waiting for the big break that will never come, or who can't handle it when it eventually does.

Grade: A-

Cronenberg now an 'auteur' of weirdness

[davidgee · 7/10 · 30 September 2014]

We used to expect gross-out horror from David Cronenberg. Now he gives us weird and weirder. MAPS TO THE STARS is set in a Tinseltown of designer homes, designer shops and exclusive restaurants. The background 'sheen' is reminiscent of an Almodovar movie, plus there's a Gothic element borrowed from Shyamalan (Agatha and Benjie see dead people). Julianne Moore's performance is in the kind of hyper-drive she brought to BOOGIE NIGHTS, which helps to power the movie's gearshift from Hollywood satire into violent melodrama. One of the themes is incest, which surely needed a deeper and subtler exploration.

Robert Pattinson takes another step away from the Twilight Zone in the role of a limo driver with screen writing aspirations (like every other chauffeur in Los Angeles). Cronenberg is clearly reaching out towards a more discerning class of viewer. MAPS TO THE STARS is very much an 'auteur' movie, highly intelligent and stylized, but perhaps perched uncomfortably between satire and psychodrama.

Depressing, full of miserable and unlikable characters

[blanche-2 · 4/10 · 21 November 2017]

OMG - I don't know why I rented this film, but I didn't like it.

Directed by David Cronenberg, "Maps to the Stars" from 2014 is about the seamier side of Hollywood. Believe me, after you see this, you'll have no interest in any side of Hollywood.

The story deals with several different people. Stafford Weiss (John Cusack) is psychotherapist to the stars. He and his wife (Olivia Williams) share several secrets. Their teenage son, Benjie (Evan Bird), is a big star, totally obnoxious, and a drug addict, who refers to his assistant as a "Jew faggot." Now, someone on IMDb thought this kid was not totally unlikable. I did.

Benjie has a sister, Agatha, who has been gone from the family for 7 years, under mysterious circumstances, after she set fire to the house. She actually is back in LA, at first unbeknownst to them, with a lot of burns on her body, working as a personal assistant to Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore). Havana's mother was a big star who died in a fire, so apparently, Havana feels connected to Agatha. Havana is an over-the-hill actress who wants to play her mother's role in a remake of one of her movies. Someone else is cast, but when that woman's little boy drowns, Agatha is thrilled. Agatha believes her mother abused her, and is in therapy with Stafford Weiss.

Robert Pattinson plays an actor who works as a chauffeur. He's also writing a screenplay.

After dealing with the drugs, the insults, the descriptions of what actresses let producers do to them to get roles, the threesome, the incest, the visions of dead children, etc., I was ready to slit my wrists.

I'm sure Cronenberg fans will find plenty to enjoy here. I was left wondering why I watched it.

Cronenberg ignites a magnificent film with passion and humor...

[ClaytonDavis · 8/10 · 28 September 2014]

Probably the weirdest monster you'll come across this year, David Cronenberg's Map to the Stars is an odd animal full of wit, charm, and pure entertainment value. Definitely not for the faint of heart, but for those who love rich and layered characters, Cronenberg takes on Hollywood with zeal and humor. Some may classify the attempt as "mean," but no different from what Martin Scorsese brought to the table with The Wolf of Wall Street, a black comedy with a much deeper message is fully on display.

Bruce Wagner's script is a masterclass of writing. He finds all unique characters within our social existences and assembles them with stunning resolve. It's hard to believe the guy who wrote "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: The Dream Warriors" could be capable of such a feat. We also get a subtle score by Howard Shore and stunning contemporary costumes by Denise Cronenberg. Not since The Devil Wears Prada has fashion felt like a separate character piece on a contemporary film set.

With no short of brilliance, the entire cast ignites some of their finest and most compelling works of their careers. It starts obviously with another powerhouse turn by four-time Academy Award nominee Julianne Moore. As "Havana Segrand," an actress dying for a big comeback, Moore illustrates her most vibrant and fruitful interpretation since "Cathy Whitaker" in Far from Heaven. Ferocious, daring, and completely involved, there's no other actress like Julianne Moore on this cinematic planet. Too good for words.

Everything seemed to finally click for actress Mia Wasikowska in her most daring performance to date. A ticking time bomb of emotion, her interpretation of "Agatha" is damn near close to terrifying. Robert Pattinson leaves all his "Twilight" days behind him and continues to evolve as a true performer. Cronenberg obviously knows what the heartthrob is capable of as he continues to use him frequently.

John Cusack and Olivia Williams are a match made in cinema hell, which secretly means heaven. Two people who are despicable together, the pair play insanely well off each other, showcasing luscious movements that all ring true. The young Evan Bird will have all of us learning his name by end credits. Lots of child stars make soft transitions in upbeat films like Little Miss Sunshine and Whale Rider. This is a brave and charismatic performance, channeling the aura of Justin Bieber (unfortunately just based on looks) but with tenacity as such performers as Ryan Gosling.

There are some tough pills to swallow during the viewing. There's incest, murder, "mean girl," moments, children dying which has characters happy to see it, it just doesn't seem to end. However, you will be entranced and placed under its spell from moment one. Cronenberg takes on subjects like violence and family with assurance. He's displayed this ability many times over in his filmmography. Map to the Stars stands tall with all the director's previous efforts.

Map to the Stars is not coy and completely confident in its demeanor. A well orchestrated and symbolic film that stands as one of the year's best films. This is Cronenberg's best effort since A History of Violence.

Makes the Addams Family look like the Waltons

[freemanpatrick7 · 1/10 · 1 March 2015]

In terms of film making, there really isn't any negative. The photography isn't ground breaking, there are no stellar FX, no white knuckle chase scenes. But none of that is called for in this film. Other than the really bad makeup on John Cusack in some scenes, making him look like something from a community theater production, there really is nothing wrong...it's just no good.

What we do have is the story of the most psychopathic, messed up family in the history of mankind.

Not one character has a redeeming quality. No one is sympathetic. All the supporting characters, even the superficial characters are all just self-serving pathetic bottom feeders.

Long before the end of the movie you want them all to just die and go to hell.

I really can't think of what could possibly possess someone to want to make a film like this. I can't imagine what its purpose is, what its message.

In trying to find a central theme, the best I can come up with is this: There's some really f***ed up people in the world, and some of them are famous.

New Maps of Hell

[richardchatten · 7/10 · 20 March 2021]

You could easily sit through this film thinking it the work of David Lynch, but this particular waking nightmare is the work of David Cronenberg. The first film he'd ever actually shot in Hollywood, after seven years it's beginning to look like his swansong; and he certainly wasn't mellowing.

One of the Most Bizarre Movies You'll Ever See

[Michael_Elliott · 27 September 2015]

Map to the Stars (2014)

*** (out of 4)

Incredibly bizarre spoof (I think) of Hollywood about Agatha Weiss (Mia Wasikowska), a burned young woman who comes to Hollywood and quickly gets a job for actress Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore) who is trying to win a major role. While all of this is going on Agatha becomes friends with a limo driver (Robert Pattinson) but her real mission is to get back into her family, which consisted of her younger brother (Evan Bird), a current popular actor, who she earlier tried to kill and her parents (John Cusack, Olivia Williams).

If my plot description makes MAP TO THE STARS sound weird and crazy then you'll be happy to know that I really couldn't do the story justice so the film itself is actually much weirder. In fact, I guess if you took Robert Altman's THE PLAYER and added a ton of cocaine and incest then you'd end up with something like this. David Cronenberg has made a career out of making incredibly bizarre movies and fans of the cult director will no doubt love his take on Hollywood, fame and family.

It's interesting that this movie works on so many levels as it's certainly an anti- Hollywood piece as actors, directors and the entire system pretty much gets ripped apart as a bunch of self age babies who are spoiled and aren't worth nearly as much as they think they are. The film handles all of this with a certain dark satire that really works but the movie also contains very graphic violence and elements of the horror movies that Cronenberg was making in the 70s. The entire mix of violence and comedy and sexuality is certainly something that very few could pull off but the director handles all of it extremely well and makes for a bizarre film that you can't take your eyes off of.

It certainly doesn't hurt that we're given a terrific cast with Moore once against delivering a wild performance as an actress who needs and wants that one last big role. I found the actress to be phenomenal in the part but Wasikowska is also extremely good in her role. She's a rather quiet character full of mystery and the actress adds this without issue. Cusack is as weird as you're ever going to see him as is Williams. Even Pattinson manages to turn in another fine performance. Bird is also extremely good as the troubled young actor.

The screenplay by Bruce Wagner is certainly brave and you can tell from the start that it's not afraid to break a few rules and this aspect gives the film a very fresh feeling. You certainly watch the movie and can tell yourself that you don't quite know what it's going to do or where it's going to go. It's rare for a movie like this to work but it's even rarer for anyone to even attempt something like it. The movie was a flop at the box office but that's understandable because it's certainly not for everyone.

Same old Cronenberg...

[christophe92300 · 6/10 · 7 June 2014]

It's always good to see that some writers still can write real good dialogues that are able to captivate, and this quality participates greatly to the enchanting aspect of the movie.

But if David Cronenberg and Bruce Wagner managed to depict the cruel world of Hollywood and its backstage with verve, cynicism and a lot of humour, why did they feel compelled to do too much especially with those ludicrous visions that completely annihilate a movie that started off pretty well ? As often happens with Cronenberg, we therefore wind up with a few risible and unbelievable points that makes the film look like a Z movie, just thinking about the scene with the dog and the reactions of the characters, or the final confrontation between Havana and Agatha — and Julianne Moore's terrible acting — is cringeworthy.

It's real shame because the writing quality only serves a scenario whose plot is badly defined and weighed down by some very dispensable elements.

Another masterpiece by Cronenberg

[kaprijoias · 9/10 · 18 September 2014]

This film is a feast for Cronenberg-Fans and I loved it. Yeah, Hollywood. I worked there for a while and then I quit because I thought it was insane. David Cronenberg surely seems to feel the same way.

This is a good story with a fluid script, beautiful filming and great actors. Lots of industry-talk (yes, they really do talk that way) and all the stress, the pushing for success, the attention needed at all cost and the eagerness to do anything it takes to get there are greatly told. As well as all the bad things even a small success can do to people.

The story is mainly about a family in Cronenberg-condition, meaning they are really messed up and totally unpredictable, way beyond mental sanity. The irony is that in this insane Hollywood environment that appears to be quite normal, and inevitably it generates a great body-count.

Of course, Dad is a shrink and bestselling author. He doesn't seem to do a great job at home, though, as his 13 year old child-star-son is in drug rehab and his daughter was just released from a mental institution and is on a 12-steps-program. Mom is way out there and sometimes it gets hilarious indeed.

The end is almost poetic and a fitting conclusion to all the madness going on.

Applause to Julianne Moore for her outstanding performance.

The only thing that I found not necessary was the overly explicit sex- scene.

Good acting but movie goes nowhere - what a crock !

[francescaffaren · 2/10 · 31 May 2014]

The only reason I gave this film a 2 (instead of a 1) is because of the great acting by Moore, Wasikowska, Bird, Cusack, & Pattinson. But what a waste of time and energy. The movie is slick, but full of clichés. Bruce Wagner's screenplay has a couple of funny lines, but seems to go off on too many tangents. The film leaves one wondering whether it's supposed to be a sardonic comedy or a dramatic commentary on Hollywood. Now, if you work in the film industry, this film will undoubtedly make you chuckle more than once. I sat through the film, but kept glancing at my watch waiting to see whether it would go anywhere. Long, weird, tedious (even for David Cronenberg). Three people walked out of the cinema before the film's end, at that one showing. There are a lot of far more interesting films at Cannes this year. This unfortunately isn't one of them, IMHO.

A hidden gem for those who get it

[nothingforzoie · 10/10 · 16 May 2022]

I am personally shocked by the underwhelming reviews for this movie. It has become one of my favorites and I have re-watched it many times. I even bought the dvd to always have it on hand. It is a movie That I've showed all of my friends and they all love it. I don't recall this movie being talked about, and I don't remember seeing any advertising. I only knew about it because I am a Cronenberg fan.

If you are a fan of Bruce Wagner, the screenwriter, and enjoy his sense of humor this would be a movie for you. It has such a uniquely dark sense of humor. I understand how this is not a movie for everyone. Personally I hope this movie goes down as a cult classic one day. I often feel sorry for people who haven't watched it especially if you are a big Cronenberg fan as I am. Julianne Moore is incredible. As is John Cusack. So many quotable lines and iconic scenes. A movie that makes no sense in our reality. And in order to enjoy it you have to surrender and immerse yourself into the reality this movie exists in. Where ghosts are real. Characters have deep human trauma. Mental illness. Hallucinations.

Sit down, forget reality- open your mind. See where it takes you.

some good performances

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 1 August 2015]

Agatha Weiss (Mia Wasikowska) arrives in town from Jupiter, Florida. She hires a limo driven by Jerome Fontana (Robert Pattinson). Benjie Weiss is a crude child star of the franchise Bad Babysitters managed by his mother Christina Weiss (Olivia Williams). Agatha is actually his sister returning from a troubled past. Dr. Stafford Weiss (John Cusack) is his father and a psychotherapist with celebrity clients. One of them is aging actress Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore) who itches to remake her dead mother Clarice Taggart (Sarah Gadon)'s iconic role. Her mother keeps appearing to her in hallucinations. She hires Agatha as her new assistant.

This movie centers on three main characters. Mia does a simple and compelling job. The kid is given a really juicy role but he isn't able to get it all. It's a difficult task to ask a child actor to grab the spotlight away from so many great actors. He's not bad but fails to excel. The person who truly excels is Julianne Moore. She continues her great work. This is a scathing stab at Hollywood culture but it's not anything unusual. Nevertheless there are a few good performances.

It's a Cronenberg film!

[kethanoc · 7/10 · 24 December 2018]

Why this is listed as a comedy I don't understand. I found nothing comedic about it whatsoever. Anyone who watches films know that David Cronenberg is a horror director, and this is a horror film. It's not like your typical horror film, where the monster looks obviously like a monster. This is a story about the monsters out there who are human, but inside they are very different from the average person. They attack without warning because people don't realize they are monsters until too late.

Mulholland Drive on a Lesser Scale

[assignbydesign · 7/10 · 9 December 2021]

A typical Hollywood psychological drama, if there ever was one. It comes together like some strange dream, but I suppose that's how Cronenberg wanted it. It's as much as it could've been, just wished to have gotten more from Pattinson. I felt like his role could've been played by someone trying to land a role, not someone already established.

Bad things happening to bad people and "vanity-free" bits and pieces

[dierregi · 1/10 · 26 January 2015]

This is the story of a bunch of creeps, Hollywood-style. If you can sympathise with the following characters, you probably will like the movie:

*Benji, ex-junkie teenager TV show star, jealous about child actors; *Cristina and Stafford, couple of weirdos parents, exploiting said teenage junkie; *Agatha, homicidal schizophrenic girl stalking her family; *Havana, washed-up actress, consumed by the desire of playing her mother's part in a remake.

On the other hand, if you think that the rich are different from you and me, you will probably find it difficult to sympathise with a "poor" kid actor earning only 6 million per season instead of 8. In fact, you might not get the point of this flaccid tale, unless that is "even rich people have their problems".

If emotional engagement is not your thing, you might still have problems with the script and editing. The movie contains several overlong scenes that add nothing to story, except underlining how depraved the Hollywood crowd is. The party scene, with the despicable conversation among teenagers is a very good example.

Then there is a scene with Havana, the Moore character, sitting on the crapper and farting away, while having a conversation with her assistant. This is usually described as "vanity-free" interpretation by the critics. Which means, Hollywood stars looking like you and me in the morning, rather than their red-carpet version. In turn, this is interpreted as "mega-stars demeaning their supernatural status, thus deserving an Oscar".

Finally, several "ghost scenes" are scattered liberally in the story. They are among the worst I have ever seen, Havana's ghost mum being the most risible of the bunch.

Eventually bad things happen to bad people and the movie ends not a second too soon, but who cares: this is a movie -as somebody wrote- that you want to forget you saw.

A Hollywood Greek tragedy

[adamscastlevania2 · 9/10 · 9 October 2014]

(87%) A warped (or is it?) look into modern day wealthy Hollywood life that is filled with rotten to the core characters, and some really uncomfortable subject matters that mixes a perfect cocktail of both dark satire and horror. The film switches focus constantly throughout between the multiple leads, with Julianne Moore stealing the show with the finest performance I have ever seen of her as a morally backward ageing star with a heap of baggage and multiple mental health issues. While Mia Wasikowska plays one of the more memorable characters of the year. The film is quite script heavy and it really is something that requires the fullest attention to properly take in and appreciate everything it has to offer as the plot cleverly zig-zags between the interlocking characters both on and off screen. Old master Cronenberg really has created a jet black horror/comedy drama to be considered among the finest, even if it won't be for everyone, but I thought it was pretty great.

David Cronenberg lol what!!!!

[Christianchancellor · 7/10 · 12 May 2021]

This was by far the most bizarre movie I think I have ever watched. It had such a shock value and I got invested so much into it. I always love watching Cronenberg movies bc they are so unique, you know when you are watching them. He's the master of body horror. This movie was a complete 180 from his other films I have seen. I will never truly know what genre this was, IMDb said it was a comedy and drama but I disagree. It's on Netflix right now, if you want to be invested so intensely, watch this film, this was one of the most unique films I have ever watched. So vulgar, not much plot but overall I enjoyed it. The special effects at the end were awful that's my only thing I have to say I didn't like about this.