Hail Caesar! – Movie Review :)

Hail Caesar is the new feature by the prolific filmmaking duo the Coen Brothers, the men responsible for Fargo and No Country For Old Men, as well as my favourite comedy of all time, The Big Lebowski. As such I have been eagerly awaiting this film for some time as in my opinion any opportunity to see the Coen’s at work is a good opportunity. However, did this new film live up to expectations? Will this be yet another Coen’s Cult hit, or will it just disappoint? Here are my thoughts:

The film is set in the golden age of Hollywood, Josh Brolin plays Eddie Mannix, a Hollywood fixer responsible for making sure that all of the film stars are happy and that their personal lives stay out of the news. However, his job gets more complicated when Bairt Whitlock (the star of the biggest films in production “Hail Caesar”) gets kidnapped setting a series of crazy scenarios in motion as Mannix enlists the help of various A listers in order to resolve a potentially risky situation. Trying to distil all of the various plot threads and subplots to form a concise synopsis is so difficult as there’s just so much going on in the movie. Structurally it’s a bit all over the place (with all of the various movies within movies being a bit hit or miss) and I think that may put a few people off the movie. However, I think if you look at some of the Coen Brothers’ best work you can tell that narrative cohesion has never been their strongest asset. Hail Caesar is more focused on great characters, memorable jokes and giving cinema-goers a wacky ride through the depth of Hollywood than providing a clear story – something which I personally loved.

Some of the jokes in this film were absolutely marvellous and had me in hysterics for pretty much most of Hail Caesar’s runtime. I was in a relatively small cinema with about 5 other people in the audience and it got to the point where I was laughing so much that I started feeling guilty about it. The comedy in Hail Caesar is a subtle blend between the absurdist humour of something like Monty Pythons “Life of Brian” and the deadpan sarcasm of a Wes Anderson with a touch of the Coen brothers classic snappy dialogue that was just so much fun to watch. I think whether or not you find it funny will depend entirely on your sense of humour. For example, there’s a brilliant scene involving the rehearsal of the line “would that it were so simple” that I thought was one of the funniest scenes I have seen in a comedy recently, you can see it in the trailer (which I’ve attached above). If you find that scene enjoyable then you will love this film.

The film has an absolutely magnificent cast with some of the biggest names in cinema at the moment showing up at points. Some of these stars only show up briefly (or as cameos) but they all looked like they were enjoying themselves and brought to life some really awesome characters that were quite different to their usual roles. It was really nice seeing Ralph Fiennes appear as a character that almost felt like a revival of his character from “The Grand Budapest Hotel”. Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johansson also kill it as the musically talented sailor (with pretty impressive dance skills) and the femme fatale style character with a string of dodgy exes.  For me however, Josh Brolin stands out as the best performance in the film showcasing his excellent comedic timing in a role that is completely different to how we normally see him.

The whole movie is clearly a love letter to Hollywood and the golden age of film. From the epic set designs to the colourful cinematography by the always fabulous Roger Deakins, you just get the feeling that everyone involved has a lot of affection for classic cinema. The film seemed to have this magical quality to it (as I believe film is a truly one of a kind experience) that left me grinning throughout it.

This film isn’t going to be for everyone, I think this is evident from the incredible divide it has caused between critics (with some people singing its praises and others slating it). I think I fall somewhere in the middle, I don’t think it’s the Coen’s best work (and if you’re someone who is not fond of Coen brother films – this isn’t going to magically convert you), but truth be told I really enjoyed it.

Overall I give Hail Caesar – 8.1 🙂

Have you seen Hail Caesar yet? If so I’d love to hear what you guys think about it in the comments. I’m so sorry I haven’t posted in a while, my life is so hectic at the moment with college and stuff but I’ll get back to putting up more reviews soon.

Till Next Time … DUDE OUT!!

Sam 🙂