Paparazzi

I just saw Paparazzi this evening. Considering that the studio did not have an advanced screening for the press I was not expecting very much, trust me I have seen far worse this summer - Exorcist the Beginning comes to mind! I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised; it was a pretty decent movie. I was entertained for the full 90 minutes. Tom Sizemore nailed the role of a true scumbag.

Keep an eye open for Chris Rock, the coolest Pizza Guy you are likely going to see any time soon.

If you are looking for an entertaining end of summer movie this certainly might be worth your while to check out.

This is an average B-movie, and like all B-movies, if you approach it right, it's bloody entertaining. That said, I found it curiously entertaining that some of the "reviewers" on this board (you know, those guys that spend 3 or 4 days writing their reviews?) hate this movie not because they hate THIS movie, but because Mel Gibson's name is attached as producer. LOL. One guy was gay, since he mentioned Gibson's name and politics about 90% of the time, and the other guy just hates Gibson. Dudes, this is a fun B-movie. Get over yourself and stop polluting the board with your childish rants against people you've never met, and will never meet in your life.

That said, Cole Hauser is the da man. I like this guy in PITCH BLACK and I like him here. Tom Sizemore is so good as the ruthless photog. Bloody hell, these guys make this movie!

I saw it last night. I think this movie is misunderstood.

I want to believe that the reasons behind this movie's dismal reviews in the main have to do with the fact that certain people with certain political leanings WANT to hate it and hate Gibson for the sheer and utter sole reason that he made THE PASSION OF THE Christ, that it has a so-called (and totally off-the-wall -- and wrong!) message of anti-Semitism... and that he made the movie anyway, despite protests from the political Left of Hollywood. Have you noticed that Mel Gibson actually placed his name in the credits of this movie as its producer? I can't think of any other Icon Productions film in which his name is placed at all. Granted, Mel doesn't need the money. As far as money goes, he's set for the rest of his life and the rest of his kids' lives. But he has a passion (no pun intended) for making movies, and he's proving that you can't keep him out of Hollywood, by placing his name in the forefront of the credits of this particular Icon Productions project.

It's a fun movie. First and foremost. That's the point of having so many uncredited cameos, most prominently Mel Gibson as an Anger Management patient sitting in the doctor's office scribbling away in the 5 workbooks piled up in his lap.

Secondly, this is a western set in modern society. Whatever you might think of westerns as a genre, PAPARAZZI is for the most part Gregory Peck's THE BRAVADOS with a Hollywood film-making setting. Westerns have long been a staple of the family for Hollywood film-makers since its beginnings. Also, Gibson has himself stated that in prepping BRAVEHEART for filming, he watched -- among other movies -- Gregory Peck's THE BIG COUNTRY. I think Gibson is a fan of Peck's as well as a huge movie buff in his own right; and PAPARAZZI is a tip of the hat to westerns in general. Also, add to the fact that the main character of PAPARAZZI hails from Montana.

Lastly, believe it or not, I think this movie is oriented to the family. Not only does this movie have Mel Gibson in a cameo, but also Vince Vaughan and Matthew McConaughey. It also features Chris Rock who appeared with Gibson in LETHAL WEAPON 4, as well as Fay Masterson who was in Gibson's directorial debut THE MAN WITHOUT A FACE.

This movie isn't on the scale of BEN-HUR or THE BIG COUNTRY. This movie is what it is... fun. I applaud Mel Gibson and crew for delivering the goods.

In Beverly Hills, the Montana family-man actor Bo Laramie (Cole Hauser) becomes a superstar with the franchise of his action movie "Adrenaline Force". His family and he lose their privacy with the success, being stalked by four tabloid paparazzi leaded by the despicable Rex Harper (Tom Sizemore). When the photographers provoke a tragic traffic accident with Bo and his family, his wife Abby Laramie (Robin Tunney) is seriously injured and his son Zach Laramie (Blake Bryan) enters in coma. When Bo unintentionally causes a fatal accident with Kevin Rosner (Kevin Gage), he decides to plot revenge against the other three scumbags to protect his family.

"Paparazzi" is flawed, but is also an entertaining tale of revenge. Tom Sizemore is amazing in his performance of a nasty guy, and there are the uncredited participations of many VIPs, such as Vince Vaughn, Mel Gibson, Chris Rock and Matthew McConaughey among others. It is funny to see the evolution (?) of the naive character Paparazzo, performed by Walter Santesso in Federico Fellini's "La Dolce Vita" to the present days. Do not think too much about the flaws, and you will certainly see an enjoyable film. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Paparazzi"

Bo Laramie (Cole Hauser) is living "The American Dream". Money, fame, fortune beyond his wildest dreams. But unfortunate for Laramie, fame comes with a price, by the name of the Paparazzi. The persistence of the paparazzi leaves Laramie in the hospital, and his son in a coma. The press will clearly do anything to get the perfect shot. Laramie decides that the only to stop his problems is to take them out one by one.

A team of four relentless paparazzi soon are the ones who become the victims. The ringleader of the gang, Rex Harper (Tom Sizemore) soon realizes that he and his gang are the ones in danger. Wendell Stokes (Daniel Baldwin), Leonard Clark (Tom Hollander) and Kevin Rosner (Kevin Gage) make up the four paparazzi that Laramie is bend on destroying.

One of the highlights of my summer was "Paparazzi". I wanted to see this since I first saw the trailer for it. Looked like a pretty interesting take on the action/thriller genres. The lead roles Cole Hauser and Tom Sizemore are quite impressive. In my opinion, Sizemore owns this movie. While it's not the role he was born to play, I can't see many others playing the role of Harper.

One thing I found interesting is that Mel Gibson along with other producers of Paparazzi were inspired to make this film upon reading articles of paparazzi attacks. Not as serious as the one in the film, but nevertheless.

The film is one of the first of its kind. That I've seen anyways. Exploiting the paparazzi. It just sounds like a fun movie to me. One that I haven't seen before. Paparazzi is other all, a very fun, enjoyable and a very entertaining flick. Check it out. You won't be disappointed. I wasn't.

***/*****