Hey folks, Harry here... In a little bit, I'll be posting my review of Paul Schrader's amazing biopic about Bob Crane called AUTO FOCUS -- given that story is coming out this Fall/Holiday season... then this Chuck Barris biopic... We certainly have the wacked beyond words television celeb film arena covered. If Clooney did as good a job as Schrader did in telling Crane's story, then this will rule pretty hardcore. Though I have no doubt that AUTO FOCUS is the less commercial (because not enough people appreciate the naked bodies of 1960's and 1970's women) So here ya go, with the first FULL ON Review of CONFESSIONS that I've seen anywhere.... Enjoy, not many spoilers here...
Hi Harry,
Just thought I’d drop you a line about a test screening of Confessions of a Dangerous Mind I had the good fortune of attending last night (Aug 1) at the new Century 20 theater in Daly City (just south of San Francisco). Going in, I didn’t know too much about the movie other than that it was about TV executive Chuck Barris, and that he was somehow involved the CIA(huh?). The partial cast listed on the flyer (Sam Rockwell, Drew Barrymore, George Clooney, Julia Roberts) intrigued me but my husband and I almost didn’t go because I was feeling a little off and we were enraptured by a certain major DVD due out this Tuesday that we were able to obtain in advance(he! he! he!). It was friends we were planning to attend the screening with coming by that finally talked us into going and I for one was glad we did.
The theater was packed with a pretty diverse cross section of age (18-49specified on the flyer) and ethnic background. The movie began with the standard disclaimers about the credits(like the style but incomplete) and music being temporary (sounded good and appropriate to me), the picture and sound might not be perfect (nothing too distracting) and then added that we were one of the first test audiences to see this film. Their energy level wasn’t too high, but they responded appropriately and enthusiastically when appropriate.
I don’t want to go too deep into spoiler territory so I’ll just summarize the plot. The movie follows Chuck Barris (Sam Rockwell) from an energetic but disturbed young man on a quest to get laid, develop TV game shows, and maybe do something significant/memorable with his life during the sixties, to a mental meltdown and decision to write his memoirs in the early eighties. Along the way he is recruited by Jim Byrd (Clooney) to become an operative for the CIA during the tail end of the cold war and eventually finds love. I don’t know enough about the man to know if he really did become a CIA contractor or not, but the storyline provides tension and drama which is relieved by the antics surrounding his life as a TV executive.
On to the performances. Rockwell’s turn as Barris is dead on and at times creepy. He disappears into the role and his mimicry of Chuck Barris’ on camera persona while hosting the Gong Show was absolutely uncanny. Drew Barrymore did a good job as Penny, his long suffering girlfriend, but doesn’t have a whole lot to do besides serve as a point of stability for the off kilter Barris. The supporting cast also did a wonderful job. Clooney’s low key, but tense CIA agent identifies Barris as a candidate and essentially makes him an offer he can’t refuse is dead on, and Julia Roberts plays her CIA contractor with hard edged sex appeal but doesn‘t have a whole lot of screen time(so all you Julia haters can relax). There are also a few big name cameos that I don’t want to spoil, but all I can say is, keep you eyes on Bachelor’s #1 and #2 during the first prime time version of “The Dating Game.”(IMDB has them listed if you really want to know) and no, they don’t get picked.
I found the story to be compelling and with twists and turns that weren’t too predictable and the inserted interviews with friends and coworkers, while not confirming everything, add weight to some of the more unbelievable episodes. I found some of the camera work a little disconcerting and jumpy, but I think that was because I was forced into the second row of a stadium style theater which is a little closer than I normally like sit. The other nitpick I have is that there were a few too many rear shots of Rockwell as a middle aged Barris standing naked in a hotel room as he breaks down and eventually decides to begin writing. They shouldn’t be eliminated completely, but I think some linger a little too long and some can be cut all together. They had a fairly detailed double sided questionnaire where they asked what we liked and didn’t like about the film, how would you rate the various performances and relationships, how would you describe it to friends etc. I gave Confessions a generally positive to very positive marks with a few bits of constructive criticism (mainly too much skanky man butt) hopefully they will just tighten up the approximately 2:15 running time a bit (didn’t drag or feel too long, just need to eliminate a few unnecessary scenes) and not muck with things too much. As a whole, think it’s a very strong first outing as a director for Clooney’s with an “independent” feel and look forward to what he does next.
Now it’s time to return to the world of that DVD we put aside last night.
Until next time,
Amnell
