Review of Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002) by Bill T — 27 Nov 2008

On the box of the DVD of 'Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind', it says that it's in the tradition of 'Oceans 11', which is a bit of a stretch, even though it stars 2 of the remake's stars (well, 4 if you count the cameos), and is directed by George Clooney. While this involves a lot of spying, espionage and double crosses, the big difference between Oceans and Confessions, is that Oceans 11 had a lot of charm and tongue-in-cheek with itself.

Sam Rockwell plays Chuck Barris here, as you probably know, if you've read his so-so book, was not only a hammy game show host, but also a CIA agent. Rockwell is just okay as the agent in question here. Rockwell just doesn't have the acting chops to make the Barris character stronger, and it sure doesn't help when a whole pile of Big Stars wander in and out of scenes. Julia Roberts, Drew Barrymoore, George Clooney and Rutger Hauer are all great here. I actually almost felt, while watching Julia Roberts scenes, that she was thinking "Boy, Clooney owes me a big fat favor here".

So-so story, so-so main character, excellent supporting actors.. Sorry it doesn't add up.