HOLLYWOODLAND [2006 / 2012] [Blu-ray] [UK Release]
Living in Hollywood Can Make You Famous! Dying in Hollywood Can Make You A Legend!
‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ is a uniquely compelling exploration of fame and identity, inspired by one of Hollywood’s most infamous real-life mysteries. The film is the feature directorial debut for Allen Coulter.
The glamour of Tinseltown permanently fades for actor George Reeves, the heroic Man of Steel on TV’s Adventures of Superman, as the actor dies in his Hollywood Hills home on 16th June, 1995. Felled by a single gunshot wound, George Reeves portrayed by Academy Award® winner Ben Affleck leaves behind a fiancée an aspiring starlet Leonore Lemmon [Robin Tunney] and millions of fans who are shocked by his death. But it is his grieving mother, Helen Bessolo [Lois Smith], who will not let the questionable circumstances surrounding his demise go unaddressed. Helen seeks justice, or at least answers. The Los Angeles Police Department closes the case, but Helen Bessolo hires for $50 a day a private detective Louis Simo [Adrien Brody] soon ascertains that the torrid affair George Reeves had with Toni Mannix [Diane Lane], the wife of M-G-M studio executive Eddie Mannix [Bob Hoskins], might hold the key to the truth.
But truth and justice are not so easily found in Hollywood. Louis Simo pursues dangerous and elusive leads in both high and low places and, in trying to turn up the heat, risks getting burned. The detective also uncovers unexpected connections to his own life, as the case turns more personal and he learns more about George Reeves himself. Behind the icon Superman was a complex man who gave his life to Hollywood in more ways than one.
FILM FACT No.1: Awards and Nominations: 2005 Casting Society of America: Nomination: Best Feature Film Casting in a Drama for Joanna Colbert. 2006 Chicago Film Critics Association Awards: Nomination: Best Supporting Actor for Ben Affleck. 2006 Hollywood Film Awards: Win: Best Supporting Actor of the Year for Ben Affleck. 2006 St. Louis Film Critics Association: Nomination: Best Supporting Actor for Ben Affleck. Nomination: Best Cinematography for Jonathan Freeman. 2006 Venice Film Festival: Win: Best Actor for Ben Affleck. Nomination: Allen Coulter. 2007 Golden Globes: Nomination: Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for Ben Affleck. 2007 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA: Win: Best Supporting Actor for Ben Affleck. 2007 Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards: nomination: Best Supporting Actor for Ben Affleck.
FILM FACT No.2: The film states that if the first season of ‘Adventures of Superman’ was successful, they would film in colour the second season. The series did not film in colour until the third season. During a personal appearance at a children's western show, George Reeves meets a boy with a loaded gun, who almost shoots bullets at him. Reeves talks him into giving up the gun by saying that they would bounce off him, but hurt innocent bystanders. Although George Reeves repeated this story himself, researchers have never been able to find anything to corroborate the story. The depiction of George Reeves's scenes in ‘From Here to Eternity’ suffering audience derision at a test screening and subsequent cutting of his scenes is part of an urban legend. No test screenings took place, and the finished film includes all George Reeves's scenes that were present in the original shooting script. No alternate cuts of the film have ever been proven to exist.
Cast: Adrien Brody, Diane Lane, Ben Affleck, Bob Hoskins, Robin Tunney, Kathleen Robertson, Lois Smith, Phillip MacKenzie, Larry Cedar, Eric Kaldor, Caroline Dhavernas, Kevin Hare, Molly Parker, Zach Mills, Neil Crone, Gareth Williams, Seamus Dever, Vladimir Jon Cubrt, Ted Atherton, Diego Fuentes, Dash Mihok, Veronica Watt, Joan Gregson, David Bolt, Todd Grinnell, David J. MacNeil, Ayumi Iizuka, Eric Fink, Jeffrey DeMunn, Jeff Teravainen, Brendan Wall, Eric Weinthal, Steve Adams, Jack Newman, Brad William Henke, Joseph Adam, Lorry Ayers, Robert B. Kennedy, Sven Van de Ven, Gray Powell, Michael Rhoades, Tim Campbell, Joe Spano, Richard Fancy, Kerin McCue (Superman Announcer), Jeff Cowan, Peter James Haworth, Tim Dorsch, Alexander Drogemuller, Jason Spevack, Dendrie Taylor, Jody Jaress, Murray Oliver, Walter Rinaldi, Terry C. Barna, Bill Lake, Natalie Krill, Erin Gooderham, Cameron Mitchell Jr., Cotton Mather, Steve Brandes, Donald Burda, Charlie Lea, Matt Amar (uncredited), Jordan Barker (uncredited), Yaron Betan (uncredited), Patrick Dussault (uncredited), Crystal Joy Hall (uncredited), Michael Janik (uncredited), Austin Macdonald (uncredited) and Jennifer Sims (uncredited)
Producers: J. Miles Dale, Jake Myers, Jill Rachel Morris, Joe Pichirallo and Glenn Williamson
Screenplay: Paul Bernbaum
Composer: Marcelo Zarvos
Cinematography: Jonathan Freeman (Director of Photography)
Image Resolution: 1080p (Color by DeLuxe)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio: English: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
German: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English, English SDH and German
Running Time: 126 minutes
Region: Region B/2
Studio: MIRAMAX Films / FOCUS Features / STUDIOCANAL
Andrew's Blu-ray Review: ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ [2006] begins with a point-of-view shot of soaring through clouds, to give you the impression of Superman, but then we quickly plummet to the Hollywood Hills and are outside George Reeves house, and we are informed it is the 16th June, 1959, the day George Reeves, TV’s most famous Superman, was found with a bullet in his head. Did he kill himself? Was he murdered? Was it an accident? The film suggests all three, and happened in a house tucked between Sunset Boulevard and Mulholland Drive. The death was alleged to be a suicide, but with films as usual they love a tasty murder, which is why Ben Affleck has packed on the pounds, slipped on some tights and given this exasperating film far more than it gives in return.
‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ tells several stories, and especially of a cautionary tale about making it in the Hollywood film scenario, and George Reeves was a smoothie with brilliantine hair as slick as his lines in his Superman films. In the early 1950’s George Reeves was hustling hard, hitting auditions while the sun was up and cruising the nightclub scene after dark. George Reeves was at the same time trying to build on his decent roles in forgettable films and negligible parts in memorable ones.
‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ marks the end of the road for two men chasing fame, especially in the career of Ben Affleck, as TV's Superman George Reeves. Whereas Adrien Brody is the lynchpin take on a true story, playing a low-rent gumshoe looking to boost his profile when George Reeves is discovered with a bullet in the brain. Although it lacks enough suspense, director Allen Coulter's film debut powerfully evokes the grit and glamour of 1950s Tinsel town. Paul Bernbaum crafts a script that gets the period details right without skimping on the emotional ones. To deal with the facts of George Reeves story, Paul Bernbaum invents a fictional character, in the guise of a really desperate and deluded private detective named Louis Simo.
The question of whether actor George Reeves committed suicide or was murdered will go down in history as one of Hollywood's great unsolved mysteries. Allen Coulter's ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ is a fictionalized account and uses both apocryphal stories and confirmed events of an investigation of the death, presents the three most common scenarios. The film is balanced in its presentation of the evidence for and against suicide. Ultimately, however, ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ is only peripherally about the life and death of George Reeves. The film's real main character is a seedy Private Investigator Louis Simo [Adrian Brody] who attacks the mystery and, by chasing George Reeves's ghost, finds his own path to redemption.
The film unfolds across two time lines. The primary one starts on the 16th June, 1959, the day of George Reeves's death, and continues through a period spanning roughly one week. It follows the trail of private investigator Louis Simo, a fictionalized representation of the real-life Jerry Geisler, as he convinces George Reeves's mother, the superb Lois Smith to hire him to investigate her son's passing. The official explanation of the death is suicide but Simo puts forth an alternative. All the clues don't add up but maybe it was murder. At first, he really doesn't believe this. It's just a way to get his name in the papers. However, as he digs deeper and meets some of the principals of the case, he begins to wonder. Eventually, he attracts the attention of mob-connected Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film mogul Eddie Mannix [Bob Hoskins], and things go from bad to worse.
There have always been three primary theories about George Reeves's death during the early morning hours of 16th June, 1959. The first is that, in an alcohol-induced daze and despondent over the lack of movement in his career, George Reeves shot himself. This is what the official record indicates. Another possibility is that, during an argument, Lenore accidentally shot him, and then uses the 45 minutes between George Reeves's death and her call to the police to stage a suicide. A third possibility is that Eddie Mannix hired someone to eliminate George Reeves because of problems the actor was causing in his marriage. ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ examines all three scenarios but in the movie, as in real life, no definitive answers are to be found. Unlike ‘Auto Focus,’ another film about the life and death of a famous TV personality, ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ does not "pretend" to know the truth.
With close attention to detail, first-time director Allen Coulter creates two distinct worlds specific of their time, Louis Simo's a no good seedy Los Angeles Private Detective, forming a bleak contrast to the glamorous, and formal Tinsel town George Reeves so longed to be embraced by. An accomplished act for a first time director, ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ offers viewers a believable look into Hollywood's most glamorous bygone era.
‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ works wonders as an old-fashioned potboiler, an enthralling period drama, and an actor's showcase. The production design by Leslie McDonald and art direction by Patrick Banister brilliantly creates the 1940s and 1950s era Los Angeles totally impeccable. The performances are first-rate across the board and the cast fittingly chosen. And, if the plot arrives in the end at a predictable destination, it is in the mounting layers of the characters, many of whom are much more than they at first seem, and the narrative's look at the dark shades of the entertainment capital of the world where ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ endures as a fulfilling and memorable cinematic experience. To this day, George Reeves is still most remembered for his work as Superman. Hopefully with the release of this respectful and genuinely affecting biography, his legacy will extend, as it deserves to, beyond a sad footnote in a historic cinematic genre.
HOLLYWOODLAND MUSIC TRACK LIST
LONELY BOY (Lyrics by Paul Anka) [Performed by Paul Anka]
COULTER GOES TO CIRO’S [Performed by The Jason Moran Trio]
SCUSE THESE BLUES (Lyrics by Quincy Jones) [Performed by The Arturo O'Farrill Orchestra]
YOU’RE CRYING (Lyrics by Leonard Geoffrey Feather and Quincy Jones) [Performed by King Pleasure]
SIN UN AMOR (Lyrics by Alfredo Bojalil Gil and Chucho Navarro aka Jesus Navarro) [Performed by Ben Affleck and Diego Fuentes]
AMBUSHED (Lyrics by Jack Shaindlin) [Performed by Jack Shaindlin]
THEME FOR ERNIE (Lyrics by Fred Lacey) [Performed by John Coltrane]
AQUELLOS OJOS VERDEA (Lyrics by Nilo Menendez and Adolfo Utrera) [Performed by Ben Affleck]
SUPERMAN M E (Lyrics by Leon Klatzkin)
EL CUMBANCHERO (Lyrics by Rafael Hernández) [Performed by The Arturo O'Farrill Orchestra]
THE GREAT PRETENDER (Lyrics by Buck Ram) [Performed by The Platters]
BO DIDLEY (Lyrics by Ellas McDaniel) [Performed by Bo Diddley]
ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE STREET (Lyrics by Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh) [Performed by Frankie Laine]
FLYING HOME (Lyrics by Benny Goodman and Lionel Hampton) [Performed by Lionel Hampton]
CHEEK TO CHEEK (Lyrics by Irving Berlin) [Performed by The Arturo O'Farrill Orchestra]
ELEPHANT WALK (Lyrics by Quincy Jones) [Performed by The Arturo O'Farrill Orchestra]
FANNIE MAE (Lyrics by Waymon Glasco, Clarence Lewis and Morris Levy) [Performed by Buster Brown]
THE GIRL CAN’T HELP IT (Lyrics by Bobby Troup) [Performed by Little Richard]
HE WILL BREAK YOUR HEART (Lyrics by Jerry Butler, Calvin Carter and Curtis Mayfield) [Performed by Jerry Butler]
FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (Composed by Walter Scharf)
BLUE SKIES (Lyrics by Irving Berlin) [Performed by Peter Eldridge and The Arturo O'Farrill Orchestra]
IT’S ONLY MAKE BELIEVE (Lyrics by Conway Twitty and Jack Nance) [Performed by Conway Twitty]
AT LAST (Lyrics by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren) [Performed by Arturo O'Farrill and The Chico O'Farrill Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra]
Blu-ray Image Quality – With the combined effort of MIRAMAX Films, FOCUS Features and STUDIOCANAL bring us this Blu-ray with a wonderful stunning 1080p image presentation and equally enhanced 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The late 1950s and early 1960s Hollywood is recreated really faithfully, making you feel you are there, and the film is given a look of lovely burned-out orange glow. Primary colours remain strong, as well as a very vivid robust presentation. Whereas the Louis Simo scenes do look a bit more "hard-boiled" compared to the George Reeves flashback sequences, well I supposed it is to give the impression this Private Detective is totally cynical of the police investigation, but despite this, contrast remains consistent and is not at all distracting. The wonderful hues colours remain nice and solid, on top of all that the black colours look really excellent, and on top of all that, I felt the print looked very impressive and wonderfully pristine, in giving us a wonderfully smooth, detailed look, and also looked very sharp, and there is no apparent edginess to the image presentation overall. So all in all, ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ looks totally stunning and makes you wish you could have experienced that glamourous side of tinsel town. Please Note: Playback Region B/2: This will not play on most Blu-ray players sold in North America, Central America, South America, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Learn more about Blu-ray region specifications.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – MIRAMAX Films, FOCUS Features and STUDIOCANAL presents us with a brilliant and wonderful 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio. The film sound design experience is really good and very evocative, and makes you totally get immersed in the sounds of 1960s tinsel town, and is very well done to really impress. The surround aspect of the film is very sporadic, but when necessary, is put to good use. The party scene with George Reeves and Toni Mannix is lively, with some nice discrete effects, like the background crowd noise, but with the crowd scenes the does not over power the scene you are viewing. We get to hear some nice melodic film score music by Marcelo Zarvos, also blends well and does not over power certain scenes, and you do get to hear some of the music in the back speakers, but again is very discrete ambience, but never quite underscores the moment as powerfully as it could have been. The dynamic aspect of the audio holds up well in certain scenes, and the dialogue reproduction is really excellent and is a very warm pleasing sound experience for the entire frequency range. Also the bass aspect of the sound is very well reproduced, when required. Sound effects are very well recorded, and the few of the gunshots have a nice good kick. Overall, it is a very professional soundtrack that serves the needs of the film very well, and adds to the overall feel of the old style Hollywood.
Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
Special Feature: Recreating Old Hollywood [2006] [1080p] [1.78:1] [6:33] With this special feature, it takes an in-depth look behind-the-scene at recreating the old style of Hollywood for the film ‘HOLLYWOODLAND.’ We also get to take a look at the production design, costumes, and photography, as well as the historical research needed to capture the period in Hollywood in that era. We also get lots of interesting comments from the cast and crew, and especially what it would have been like to work in that period in Hollywood depicted in the film, plus we get lots of clips from the film to emphasise what they were trying to create the style of glamour of tinsel town, evocative of that period, as well as showing us the not so glamorous side of the film industry in California. They talk about the night life scene of where the “who’s who” and movers of glamourous Hollywood used to hang out in, and especially having a good time at the plethora of nightclubs, that included Ciro’s in West Hollywood, Mocambo in West Hollywood and The Ambassador & Cocoanut Grove in Los Angeles. So all in all, this a quite a nice little special feature. Contributors include: Allen Coulter [Director], Bob Hoskins [Edgar Mannix], James R. Bacon [Columnist], Linda Dowds [Make-Up Dept. Head], Leslie McDonald [Production Designer], J. Miles Dale [Executive Producer], Ben Affleck [George Reeves], Julie Weiss [Costume Design] and Adrien Brody [Louis Simo].
Special Feature: Behind the Headlines [2006] [1080p] [1.78:1] [7:00] Here we take a look at the real headlines in regards about the real George Reeves case and how the fictional Louis Simo character was integrated into the story. It also takes a looks at the speculation of what might have happened George Reeve’s in his home on that fatal night on the 16th June, 1995. They also go in-depth away from the headlines in the American press, especially in the village of Hollywood, but they also wanted to look at the actor George Reeves and the ongoing speculation of what might have actually happened on the fatal night of the actor who played the famous Superman, and they especially did not want a bio picture about George Reeves. We also get lots of clips from the film, in showing scenes relevant to this special feature and again speculating on the mystery surrounding the fatal shooting and death of George Reeves, and what we get in the film is two opposing stories that gradually come together, but unfortunately is never resolved and leaves you to speculate what actually happened. They also wanted to show the glamourous side of Hollywood, but also the seedy side of tinsel town we come into contact in the film, especially via the Private Detective Louis Simo investigating the sad demise of George Reeves. We find out that Ben Affleck watched all of the episodes of the TV series ‘Superman’ that starred George Reeves to try and get inside the character of that actor and try to portray him as realistic as possible and get behind the mask. Contributors include: Allen Coulter [Director], Paul Bernbaum [Screenwriter], Adrien Brody [Louis Simo], J. Miles Dale [Executive Producer], Glenn Williamson [Producer], Ben Affleck [George Reeves], Jack Larson [Jimmy Olsen of TV series Adventures of Superman], Diane Lane [Toni Mannix], Bob Hoskins [Edgar Mannix], Jim Beaver [Actor/Historian] and Robin Tunney [Leonore Lemmon].
Special Feature: Hollywood Then and Now [2006] [1080p] [1.78:1] [7:34] With this special feature, we take a look back at the old Hollywood studio system and its culture, but also take a look at the glamourous side of this unique culture in the 1950s, where we are informed that not many people lived there and was more like a village atmosphere, and especially there was no pollution compared to what people experienced with smog in Hollywood, especially in the 1960s, but what was especially different that you would of seen in the early days was valleys and farms, but as the film industry grew and more and more land was swallowed up, as more and more studios proliferated and a massive building bonanza of housing estates expanded. What also stood out in old style Hollywood, was the studio system and long contracts that helped actors to become stars, but in the 1960s all this started to disappear and actors wanted and demanded to be their own boss and decide what films to make. We also get to view lots of nostalgia of that period in time, and especially with old rare behind-the-scenes of cast and crew. We hear about the CEO’s of the studios that had a real grip on power and especially controlling everything, and if the boss heard that certain staff had a television in their office, they would be sacked on the spot, as the studios were totally scared of television, because they felt it was a threat and also felt television was a second rate form of entertainment. On top of all that, Hollywood had a strict attitude that if you are an actor on their books, you could not appear on any kind of TV series, and TV actors would be looked at as second class and were not allowed to appear in any Hollywood films. But of course in modern day Hollywood there is no discrimination and is a two way street, but most importantly there is Hollywood studio system, whereas old actors preferred the studio system, as it guaranteed them work. So all in all, this is another fascinating special feature and well worth a look. Contributors include: Rudy Behlmer [Film Historian/Author], Jim Beaver [Actor/Historian], James R. Bacon [Columnist], Alan L. Gansberg [Hollywood Historian], Jack Larson [Jimmy Olsen of TV series Adventures of Superman], Paul Bernbaum [Screenwriter], Glenn Williamson [Producer], Allen Coulter [Director], Dianne Lane [Toni Mannix], J. Miles Dale [Executive Producer], Ben Affleck [George Reeves] and Bob Hoskins [Edgar Mannix],
Special Feature: Deleted Scenes [2006] [1080i] [1.37:1] [6:33] Here we get to view three deleted scenes from the film ‘HOLLYWOODLAND,’ and were felt that it would of slowed up the flow of the film and the deleted scenes we view, included George Reeves funeral and more of Louis Simo's detective work.
Finally, the film ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ shows us that director Allen Coulter, who is a Television veteran, but now, has become a motion picture newcomer and his work with this film indicates he is someone to watch out for in the future. With the film ‘HOLLYWOODLAND’ the pacing is slow, methodical and deliberate. There are a few narrative hiccups and there are times when changes between the time line are not immediately apparent, especially as the older “headlines” dovetails with the "present," but these are only minor issues and do not erase the film's totally compelling qualities. This is a fine opportunity to peer through a window into the unglamorous side of Tinsel town's golden years. It's also no small irony that an A-list cast tells this B-movie story. In the "Superman" sequences, Ben Affleck perfectly mimics George Reeves's acting style, but also conveys the actor's humiliation and his ever-present awareness that time is running out on his career. The notion of Diane Lane as a fading beauty, but here she is as Toni Mannix, and informing George Reeves she has seven good years left and it is a lovely performance, but at the same time a very sad performance and an attitude people in the Hollywood film industry felt at the time. Adrian Brody's portray of Louis Simo probably has the most screen time of anyone in the film, and his quest for redemption becomes the real centre aspect of the film. So all in all, we all hope that the truth will be told, but not justice, is the American way in the history of Hollywood depicted in this film. Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado Le Cinema Paradiso United Kingdom
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