HOLLYWOODLAND(2006)
This is a movie in a movie! The base story is about a private
dick (Brody) who is trying to solve a years old suicide. The old
case is the story within, the case of George Reeves' suicide!
Affleck does a good job playing the "Man of Steel" aka Superman.
The movie is a little long, but non the less a good watch! A-
From Amazon.com:
The fact-based mystery of Hollywoodland takes place in 1959,
when the death of Adventures of Superman TV star George
Reeves cast a pall over the waning days of golden-age Hollywood.
As written by Paul Bernbaum, this intriguing whodunit effectively
evokes the tainted atmosphere that surrounded Reeves' death
(officially ruled a suicide but never conclusively solved), and
speculates on circumstances to suggest that Reeves may have
been murdered. In combining the melancholy course of Reeves'
career with the investigation of a down-and-out private detective
into the possible causes of Reeves' death, the film evolves into
an engrossing study of parallels between lives on either side of
the Hollywood dream. Building upon a distinguished career in TV
including episodes of HBO's The Sopranos, Rome and Six Feet
Under, director Allen Coulter finds a satisfying balance between
the tragic overtones of the Reeves case and the time-honored
elements of the gumshoe genre, with Adrien Brody doing fine
work as private eye Louis Simo, a fictional composite character
who is our conduit to the desperate yearnings of Reeves' final
months.
In a critically acclaimed performance, Ben Affleck plays Reeves
in moody flashbacks, caught between Superman stardom and
financial dependence on his lover Toni Mannix (Diane Lane), the
somewhat predatory wife of Hollywood "fixer" and MGM honcho
Eddie Mannix (Bob Hoskins), whose mob connections suggest
foul play as Simo's investigation progresses. Reeves' subsequent
lover (played by Robin Tunney) may also be culpable, and as
Simo's own personal life unravels, his empathy for Reeves takes
on added significance. In presenting its mystery as a set of plausible
scenarios, Hollywoodland holds interest as a mystery that's
refreshingly compassionate toward the fate of its characters.
Warts and all, they're likable dreamers in a town where dreams
don't always come true. --Jeff Shannon