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The Bottom Line

Based partly on fact, Hollywoodland takes a fictionalized look at the death of real-life actor George Reeves, who became famous playing the title character in the popular TV series Adventures of Superman. Hollywoodland is entertaining when it depicts the world of George Reeves, but the movie loses energy by spending too much time in the world of a dull private eye. There are three worthwhile featurettes on the DVD, each seven or eight minutes long.

Also on the DVD are four deleted scenes. Finally, there's a feature-length audio commentary by the director, but this failed to capture my interest.

Pros

• Sometimes engaging story about 1950s Hollywood that occasionally sparkles
• A largely successful attempt to evoke 1950s L.A
• Fine performances by Ben Affleck and Diane Lane

Cons

• About 20 minutes too long for such a lightweight film
• Not completely successful in handling shifts in tone
• Sometimes heavy-handed, especially about the lesson learned by the protagonist

Description

• DVD containing drama Hollywoodland (2006)
• Movie stars Adrien Brody, Ben Affleck and Diane Lane
• DVD provides feature-length audio commentary by director Allen Coulter
• DVD contains 3 featurettes with total run time of about 22 minutes
• DVD has 4 deleted scenes with total run of time of approximately 5 minutes
• MPAA rating: R for language, some violence and sexual content
• Feature film run time: 2 hours 6 minutes
• DVD release date: February 6, 2007

Guide Review - Hollywoodland DVD Review

Based partly on fact, Hollywoodland takes a fictionalized look at the death of real-life actor George Reeves.

In the 1950s, Reeves became famous playing the title character in the popular TV series Adventures of Superman, so it was big news when he was found dead of a gunshot. In the movie, a private detective deals with problems in his own life as he investigates Reeves' death.

Hollywoodland is entertaining when it depicts the world of George Reeves, who is played surprisingly well by Ben Affleck. Reeves got a lot of minor acting jobs, but he was bitterly disappointed that his career didn't develop more along the lines of, say, Clark Gable. Also, Reeves had a long affair with the older Toni Mannix (Diane Lane in another fine performance). Toni was married to tough-as-nails MGM big-shot Eddie Mannix (Bob Hoskins).

But the movie spends more than half its time in the world of gumshoe Louis Simo (Adrien Brody), where the energy goes out of it. In an effort to jump-start the PI business he's operating out of his apartment, Simo investigates Reeves' death. At the same time, Simo has problems with his divorce and his new girlfriend. Too many of the scenes involving Simo feel labored and soap-opera-ish.

There are three worthwhile featurettes on the DVD, each seven or eight minutes long. One is about how Hollywood of the 1950s was re-created for the movie, a second has the filmmakers distinguishing between fact and fiction in Hollywoodland, and a third explores the nature of the Hollywood movie business in the 1950s.

Also on the DVD are four deleted scenes with a total running time of slightly over five minutes. Finally, there's a feature-length audio commentary by director Allen Coulter, in which he shares the details of his thinking scene-by-scene, but this failed to capture my interest.