Hollywood Kills

Eric Bogosian of "Talk Radio" fame stars as Chris Neville, a hotshot young filmmaker. His career is going downhill fast, so he decides to try something unusual. He films himself murdering aspiring starlet Mary Jean (the late Zoe Lund of "Ms. 45" cult stardom), then proceeds to make a movie telling Mary Jeans' sad life. Swept into the filmmaking process are Mary Jeans' husband Keefe (Brad Rijn, "Smithereens"), and the detective (Kevin O'Connor, "Let's Scare Jessica to Death") investigating the case; the detective quickly gets stars in his eyes. Neville actually finds a young woman who's a dead ringer for the murdered actress, also played by Lund.

There is a good idea here, about satirizing the entire movie-making business, and showing what happens as real life and reel life blend together. It's written and directed by low budget movie icon Larry Cohen, so you know that he will come up with some interesting material, and movie moments. (It IS intriguing to think what a filmmaker of Brian De Palmas' sensibilities could have done with this!) It's a good blend of art and trash, with a little bit of sex and shots of the beautiful Lund baring her body. It's also a marvel of art direction: dig that garish studio and townhouse in which Neville does his dirty work. Perhaps the most entertainment value arises out of O'Connor enjoying his "technical adviser" capacity and becoming fixated on receiving the appropriate credits. Given that Neville is such a smarmy character, you watch and keep waiting for him to get his just desserts. Michael Minard supplies a fun electronic score that unfortunately is used a little too much.

The performances are fine. Lund has a field day in her dual roles. Bogosian is superb as the creepy director. Rijn, O'Connor, Bill Oland, H. Richard Greene ('Mad Men'), and Steven Pudenz offer fine support.

The most striking image of all: Neville standing on a floor completely covered with headshots. (Among those he thumbs through is one of Dustin Hoffman as "Dorothy Michaels" in "Tootsie".)

Seven out of 10.

Keefe Waterman (Brad Rijn) travels to New York to find his wife Mary-Jean (Zoë Lund), who has abandoned him and their young son to find fame and fortune as a movie actress. Mary-Jean, now going by the name of Andrea Wilcox, is none too pleased to see her husband, and escapes to the swanky pad of film director Christopher Neville (Eric Bogosian), who talks the woman into his bed. However, when the aspiring actress realises that Neville is filming their romp, she rejects him, which leads to the director strangling her to death.

The discovery of the strangled woman's body in her car on wasteland leads to the arrest of Keefe, but he is bailed out by Neville, who reveals that he is intending to make a film about the murder, with Keefe playing himself. All they need is someone to play Mary Jean. That person is Elaine Bernstein (also played by Lund), an exact double of the dead woman. The filming commences, with Neville planning to splice in the actual footage of the murder into his movie. His plan also involves setting up Keefe for an exciting final act in which the young man dies - for real!

Special Effects is B-movie director Larry Cohen's attempt at a sexy, sophisticated thriller al la Brian De Palma, a film that attempts to say something meaningful about the world of movie-making, in particular the way in which film-makers can use the medium to break down the boundaries between reality and make-believe. Perhaps if Cohen had employed better actors than Zoë Lund and Brad Rijn as his protagonists, the theme of blurring of illusion and real life might have been more effective, but at no point are his performers remotely believable. Eric Bogosian, as murderous director Christopher Neville, is a much better actor, but even he can't make this trite nonsense bearable, his character insufferable (he would have been more chilling had he been more charismatic).

True to his B-movie roots, Cohen ensures there's some nudity, sex and a modicum of violence, and one can't help but feel that, in trying to be stylish and classy, the director is punching way above his weight, and that things would have been much better had he just been out and out exploitative in his approach.

3.5/10, rounded down to 3 for the extremely intrusive and irritating synth score.

After making a disastrous, special-effects laden film, a movie director decides to make a low budget biography of a murdered actress. To make her murder look as real as possible the director murders the actress himself. Could have been a very good film about snuff films, but the film's direction is a letdown. Zoe (Ms. 45) Lund (in a dual role) and particularly Eric Bogosian are very good in their respective roles of the murdered actress and the actress playing her, and the Cecil B. Demented director. Brian DePalma would have had a field day with this film.

"Special Effects" could easily pass for a weak episode of "Columbo", except for two things. There is nudity and there is no Peter Falk. I can just imagine an episode titled "Reel Death" on my television screen. This is not far fetched, as director Larry Cohen wrote no less than three episodes of "Columbo". Unfortunately "Special Effects" has problems. The gorgeous Zoe Tamerlis would not be one of them, that is until she opens her mouth. Her acting was perfect in Ms.45 since she played a mute. The New York locations and Eric Bogosian's artistically decorated film studio offer more entertainment than the film itself, which is almost awful ........................... MERK

"Special Effects" is a thriller that delves into the darker aspects of Hollywood, where reality and illusion collide. The film tells the story of a megalomaniacal movie director, Neville, who murders a young actress and then casts her husband as the patsy in a film about the crime.

While the premise is intriguing, the execution falls short. The film's pacing is slow, and the acting is uneven. Zoe Tamerlis's performance is particularly cringe-worthy, making it difficult to watch her scenes without wincing.

However, Eric Bogosian and Brad Rijn fare better, bringing some much-needed depth to the film. Larry Cohen's direction is also noteworthy, as he attempts to emulate the style of Brian De Palma.

Despite its flaws, "Special Effects" is a thought-provoking commentary on the darker side of Hollywood. The film's exploration of the blurred lines between reality and illusion is both fascinating and unsettling.

Overall, "Special Effects" is a mixed bag. While it has its moments, the film's poor acting and slow pacing make it a chore to sit through. However, fans of Larry Cohen and those interested in a behind-the-scenes look at Hollywood's darker side may find it .