[Bachelor]

I haven't seen any feedback on this movie/dvd. Here is my view.


I like it. I didn't know that George Clooney directed this film until the end credits. I liked his style. This is one of the better movies that I have seen this month. The picture was great and the sound was mostly a front soundstage. Not too much use of the rears. (there may have been more, but I was too immersed in the content to notice)


There are plenty of supplemental features to take a look at. I really like the gong show and tend to watch it when it's on the game show network. Chuck Barris sure makes me laugh. Give this a rental, it may end up being a purchase.

 

[HTCrazy]

I can't wait to see it. I finished the book a few weeks ago and it was a pretty entertaining romp. Not sure I believe all the CIA hitman stuff, but as you say, I hear its a very stylistic movie borrowing from the Coen's and Sohderberg (however it's spelled).

 

[nutt]

I saw this back when it was in the theater and was thoroughly impressed. I think my favorite thing about the movie is that even to the very end, the main question the audience wants an answer to remains ambiguous. Sam Rockwell has impressed me in every movie I have seen him in. If you liked him in this movie, you should check out Heist and Welcome to Collinwood.


Tim

 

[Joseph]

I agree with all of you, this is one worth recommending to your friends. A surprise for me, I didn't expect to enjoy it so much. And, yes, Rockwell is really good - he bears watching, careerwise.

 

[lonwolf615]

Agreed-I REALLY like this movie-sorta like the Coen's only faster paced.And I don't think I've ever seen Roberts or Barrymore give better performances.Clooney too,for that matter.Rockwell shines above all of them however.And theres added depth to the film because its based on a true story...sort of.Maybe.

 

[DOBE]

I started a thread a few months ago asking people to name offbeat or quirky movies. This film should be added to that list.


I remember watching "The Gong Show" in the 70's and thinking that Chuck Barris was a very bizzare but funny host. I didn't read his unauthorized autobiography but after watching this film it's clear Mr. Barris is a very strange man. That seems to be true whether you believe he was a CIA assassin or not. The movie is worth renting just to see Clooney's directorial debut. The film is stylish and inventive. Clooney was clearly taking notes during the filming of "Oh Brother, Where art Thou". Joel and Ethan Cohen's influence is evident in the film.


The movie held my interest and I thought the ending was touching, especially if you remember Barris from the 70's. He accomplished more than the vast majority of people ever do and yet..........

 

[lonwolf615]

Gee,5 posts and they're all positive-I think we have a winner here.

 

[FredProgGH]

Make that six- I thought it was a great film, and Clooney seems to have real potential. The way he accomplished all the set changes and effects in-camera was really slick. And about 10 minutes in I was so convinced that Sam Rockwell was Chuck Barris I forgot what the real Chuck looked like. BTW, Mr. Barris was pretty brave I thought for being so helpful in the production of a movie that, frankly, makes him look like a real freak. My respect for him has gone up a few notches too!

 

[jhstn58]

I had been waiting for this DVD and finally saw it last night. I too thought it was terrific! Rockwell captured Barris' signature moves just perfectly, especially in the screen test cut where he is doing his GongShow schtick.


My daughter went to see Matchstick Men last night, so I pointed out that the movie I watched at home - Confessions - was written by Stanley Kaufmann, whom Nicholas Cage played in Adaptation. Of course Cage is the star of Confessions, and Sam Rockwell is his co-star in that film. Coincidence? I think not!


Great job all around.

 

[Ollie W. Holmes]

More aptly titled, Confessions of a Deranged Mind. Surprising that Chuck Barris is still alive. He seemed to haunt the set, lurking behind every camera. A prophet in his own land, he was treated as a buffoon by the media critics. Where else to go but France, which treats all of our sullied as geniuses.


Do you want to be rich or respected? You really can't be both too easily in the US. The intellectuals will pummel you to death, the more popular you are. Barris' problem was that he desired adulation, and instead, got the opposite. He was way ahead of his time. Like light years. The dumbification of America sells big, and always will. TV or vast wasteland, just two synonyms for the same thing. Jerry Springer, Montel Williams, any of the modern dating shows ... they all owe their genesis to Chuck Barris. Mind in the gutter, where it belongs.


This movie is clever and captivating. It hits all the marks, right on the head. Not only is Sam Rockwell's performance brilliant, but Julia Roberts, the femme fatale in black, does some of the best acting in her entire career. The cinematographer and set designer bend the visual limits of film, and all successfully. A must-buy dvd. Great set of extras, especially the discussions with George Clooney, a great student of film, as well as a first-rate actor. Man, he could have doubled for Hal Holbrook, and probably used him as a model for the CIA recruiter.


If CoaDM is an 8/10, then Auto Focus (the story of Bob Crane) is a 5/10. That's how big a difference a screenplay can make in the development of a movie. Rent both, and compare two similar, but different bios of tv personalities from the same era.