The old man has told this fable many times before, but it’s been a while. Delighted to have an audience, he can’t help but take tangents and add embellishments that make the fable as drawn out as a four-day drive from Philadelphia to Detroit. Still, there’s the same cast of characters portraying the survivor’s tale of allegiance versus betrayal, honor versus law, the family business versus the business of family. But with one more deep directorial breath, Martin Scorsese twists the ending. In “The Irishman” (2019), we’re left to wonder whether it would have been better to have lost bravely.
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If #metoo existed back when “Hurlyburly” (1998) was being filmed, a mob of anarchist feminists would have descended on the set and murdered all the male characters. Historians can debate whether we’d be better off. Anyway, this is probably the worst of those 1990s movies that tried to portray the vacuousness of Hollywood wheeling-dealing. It’s definitely the most misogynistic. And to think, 15 years later, Robin Wright and Kevin Spacey would team up again for “House of Cards.” And by the time she negotiated an equally inflated salary, he’d get me-tooed and she’d ultimately lose her job. It’s next-level karma.
It’s a story about journalism hidden inside a story about rock and roll. If you ever wanted to understand the love triangle between sage, subject and story, re-watch “Almost Famous” (2000). For the masses, it’s a fun ride on the wild side of 1970s rock starring Billy Crudup, drugs, music, groupies, fashion and Cameron Crowe’s poetry. Just beneath the surface is a coming-of-age story – two of them – starring Kate Hudson and Patrick Fugit. But way down deep, it’s really Fugit and Philip Seymour Hoffman in a story about a story and the friction between truth, friendship and exploitation. Impressive, huh?
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