Review of Hail, Caesar! (2016) by Richard B — 13 Aug 2016

Moral Turpitude.

Told in a frothy style, full of pastiche and wit, Hail Caesar is the first successful Coen light comedy since Oh Brother. It is the tale of Eddie Mannix, based on the real Eddie Mannix, a well known Hollywood fixer. It's always more than meets the eye - but what meets the eye is pretty spectacular.

Josh Brolin plays Eddie, and he is as far removed from his part in No Country - nevertheless, he is the poor loser the Coen's try to destroy. But it his Christlike suffering that keeps him afloat. There is plenty of wonderful pastiche to entertain that lifts the silly story of Baird Whitlock's abduction by stupid screenwriting communists. There is the Esther Williams parody featuring Scarlett, pre-figured in the Big Lebowski, a wonderful pastime of There is Nothing Like a Dame with Channing Tatum, the very silly cowboy movie pastiche - all of this works well. George Clooney loves playing the idiot, and he gets his full stupid in the role of the kidnapped airhead star.

The climatic scenes, when Clooney questions capitalism and Mannix slaps him sill to get him back on course, is masterful, as is Clloney's final speech at the cross to the dying Jesus.

God, I love the Coen Brothers - no one else could make a film so light but so serious, so well constructed, but seem so loose. For those who don't get it, I say, mores the pity. Nearly great.