Hot Air

The main character used to do a show in Britain were he was an old radio guy, and it was pretty darn funny. So now I'll watch anything with him in it.

Now I both love Steve Coogan and I tend to be easily-drawn to sentimental schmaltzy stuff I wasn't too agreived of the lack of any real political satire in this incredulous farce. I was charmed by the lovely characters wearing away at the hard heart of our comedian's comedian doing a questionable somewhere-in-the-USA accent. In fact the gutteral rasping was so indeterminate that it was both a bad American accent, but also a bad English one! There's nothing original in the political narrative of the Trump-era culture wars, but some great character driven comedy, a manic pace going nowhere, which gets all jumbled up with random action sequences, extended human interest and skin curdling cringe-inducing romantic bits... which both terrified me but also had me blubbering by the titles. So, in summary it was because of, not despite of its weird flawed hubris that really liked it.

The story line is an ancient one, but its a good one. The acting didn't feel like acting, it became an internal of the external. Ends well, and in between throws enough salt around to get in just about every crevice.

That the Coogan character's searing indictment of aspects of modern American life might not go down so well with some viewers and reviewers, regardless of their political persuasion, kinda proves his point.

The parallels in Hot Air to our current administration are striking and painfully clear, making this a bold and courageous film. Surely there are plenty of people on the conservative right who will see their reflection in Steve Coogan's character. The filmmakers knew this but were steadfast in making their proclamation to the world about their beliefs. In my mind that is entirely commendable and demonstrates integrity to the highest degree.

At one point Neve's character says, "They just want to see you burn the house down." That's exactly what I felt when Trump was elected. He's not the only bad apple in Washington, there are tons more and I secretly hoped that he'd bring the entire regime--that which we call the Corporatocracy--down with him so we can start over from the beginning and build something that's actually sustainable. Imo, Trump and every President in recent memory before him only served to uphold the antiquated systems that continue to divide the country. Trump is a morally bankrupt figurehead--that much is obvious. But his antics are a mere distraction from the real problem of the ever-burgeoning health and income inequality. And everyone seems to take the bait every time he feeds it to the media.

That said, I somehow wish Hot Air came out two years ago while the talk of impeachment was strong. I believe it would have been even more polarizing then, which would've been a great thing for America, imho. Sad to say but I feel like America (or maybe just NYC where I live) has checked out of politics. Or maybe I live in a bubble in my wellness community. No one I know ever talks about anything remotely related to politics anymore unless it's about Andrew Yang, UBI, and automation. That seems to be the stuff that's on the forefront of intellectuals these days.

But overall, I thought the pacing was great and the soundtrack was fun! The cast did really well in their roles. Neve looks as great as ever and I loved the chemistry between her and Russie. I'm sure Russie will go on to do great things! I'm not sure if I ever felt anything positive for Steve's character, but the Asian guy was hilarious!

Watch this film!