Ave Cesar

i don't remember anything about this movie other than it being completely terrible. it should be in the bottom 100, and it will someday as soon as it has enough votes.

1/10

I have seen some bad movies in my life, but this is the worst in years. With the exception of Robert Downey Jr's 6 minutes (at 50 minutes into the movie) or Judd Nelson's 4 minutes (at 80 minutes in), there is nothing redemptive. Samuel L. Jackson must have been paying a bad debt, ant obviously Downey was being generous. Leslie Dannon as the love interest is reasonably hot (especially in the end), but her acting skills run the gamut of a to b. Downey's talent is so clear in the scene and a half that he is in, that he is without equal talent wise in this film.

For a brief time in the mid 80s, i thought that Hall had some talent, but I have been healed of this mistaken belief now. How he got the freedom and financing to direct, produce, and star in a movie, when Judd Nelson's career disappeared, is beyond me. In my humble opinion, Hall is not a pimple on Nelson's hind end (to paraphrase Joe Seneca in Crossroads). Furthermore, it is hard to take anyone seriously who appears to have made a serious effort at looking like Corey Haim.

In addition, the production values suck. The editing sucks. There are noticeable jumps in movement (as if it were stop motion photography) during the Downey Jr scene.

I might add in conclusion that it i would rather pass a kidney stone than listen to another song by Hall.

"Hail Caesar" was actor Anthony Michael Hall's debut as a director. With the exception of an episode of the television show "The Dead Zone", he has not directed anything since. Seeing this movie, the reason for this is pretty obvious. To be fair, he was working with a pretty low budget, which is pretty evident throughout. For example, in several scenes with two people talking, he never shows a shot of the two characters in the same shot - he just shot each actor alone, and edited both sets of footage together. But the problems of "Hail Caesar" go beyond the low budget. All of the characters in the movie are annoying and obnoxious, and the movie doesn't know whether to be a satire of the music business or a goofy comedy about a youth trying to win over the father of his girlfriend. If you are thinking of giving this movie a try because of its cast, a word of warning: Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Downey Jr., and Judd Nelson each just have a few minutes of screen time. Thumbs down for this Roman emperor!

With his hair dyed "mellow yellow" and some dark eye make-up, college failure Anthony Michael Hall (as Julius Caesar MacGruder) decides to be a rock star. When not jamming with his "Hail Caesar" band, Mr. Hall tries to make time with standoffish Bobbie Phillips (as Buffer). Her tycoon father, Nicholas Pryor (as Bidwell), doesn't want Hall in the family. He bets Hall cannot make $100,000 in six months, then hires him to work in one of his pink pencil eraser factories, where Kane Picoy (as Larry Remora) is sent to undermine Hall's efforts. At the factory, Hall stumbles discovers a secret project called "Big Pink" which spells trouble.

Keep your expectations low for "Hail Caesar" in spite of the names Mark Twain, Robert Downer Jr. and Samuel L. Jackson in the credits. They have small roles, along with Frank Gorshin and Judd Nelson, and the film is lightweight made-for-cable-TV fare. It's also notable for Mr. Hall's attempt to both star and direct. He sings well, and seems good at getting Hollywood friends together (even to embarrass themselves). Mr. Pryor is good as the father. It's also interesting to watch (from an actor's viewpoint) scenes wherein Mr. Picoy and the less veteran members of the cast gamely share the screen with their simultaneously directing co-star.

**** Hail Caesar (5/11/94) Anthony Michael Hall ~ Anthony Michael Hall, Nicholas Pryor, Bobbie Phillips, Kane Picoy

You people are failing to see what this film really is! How do you expect all the sundry pay channels that gobble your hard earned money to possibly operate on a 24/7 schedule without airing movies like this once or twice or maybe even all day? Think people! It's We who bankrolled this little gem. Time was, an embarrassment such as this piece of utter garbage would be shipped to the guitar pick factory. Now, its called premium television.