À Beira do Caos

Hey, it's another movie about nihilism run amok in Hollyweird! Without the powerhouse cast this movie would be unwatchable, but with the likes of Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Chazz Palminteri and Gary Shandling(!) menacing the screen, how can you say no? Meg Ryan finally gets to play the hooker with the heart of gold and pulls it off nicely. And little Anna Paquin (The Piano & Flyaway Home) is maturing, er, well, never mind (she doesn't actually show anything...).

Penn is to the "way-too-wired sleaze-bag" what De Niro is to the "Mafia hood," and I guess this is his Godfather II. The movie makes men look as ridiculous as ever, but then aren't we?!? As in real life, women fare only slightly better...

You liked "Glengarry Glen Ross"? You're gonna love THIS one. Kevin Spacey doing his patented "snide" riffs. Anna Paquin growing up and showing some range. Garry Shandling? Who knew? Meg Ryan finally playing something besides America's Sweetheart. Disturbingly funny in some sequences (particularly the Sean Penn-Chazz Palminteri duets) and laugh-out-loud vaudeville in others (the Spacey-Penn cell phone bit is an instant classic). The ensemble cast, with excellent direction, gets all the rhythms of the script. It may look a little over-the-top here and there but it seems to be a conscious choice by the director in this epic send-up of 80's Hollywood excess.

While it's readily apparent that no one is going to go home humming the tunes from this one, it's still a bit surprising that the film garnered no major nominations. Same deal as "Glengarry". Give 'em a great ensemble in a black comedy with no discernible "star", a solid script and inventive direction and be prepared for the icy shoulder at Oscar time. It's an unjust world we live in. This movie deserves a wider audience but owing to the subject matter, it probably won't get one. But I'll give it an 85, Dick. It's got a great beat and you can dance to it!

I remember watching Sean Penn walking up to the podium, accepting his Best Actor Academy Award for his (in my opinion) decent and somewhat accomplished role in Mystic River, and thought to myself the award was more of an achievement for his body of work rather than for the particular film. His role in Hurlyburly is far more impressive than the Jersey-speaking gangster in Great Clint's emotional waterfall of a film. I've always been a fan of Hurlyburly since seeing a heavily edited version of it for the first time on UPN years ago, mainly for its writing and acting performances. The entire ensemble is wonderful - Penn, Spacey, and Palminteri especially - and the writing is believable and clear cut, even though I've never met or been exposed to anyone even close to characters like the ones depicted in the film. The low rating on IMDb surprised me, but maybe I can see why the majority of people either don't like or are rather indifferent about the film. The film-making is not ground breaking by any means, but the content and passion exuded from the actors involved stand out amongst other films like it that heavily rely on idiosyncratic and interesting dialogue. I'd like to see Rabe's stage version to see how he nails it - because the movie is a treat for anyone who enjoys a dose of something a bit off-beat and different.

If you are in the mood to watch a play turned into a film, much like, "My dinner with Andre", this is the movie for you.

This is definitely a PLAY written for the screen. Most of the reviews I read here kept using a particular word to describe this film. WORDY. In my humble opinion, that is because the writer wrote the play and wrote the screenplay for this film.

This film is also written in a style most of the reviewers never mentioned, mainly because I dont think they have ever heard of it. Most haven't. Mainly because it is definitely not the style of writing someone would normally use for a film. It is called STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS writing. You start with one thought and go, naturally letting your mind just take the reigns and not stopping, no punctuation, just words.

That is this film. Just lots and lots of words. Maybe if they had chosen someone other than the guy that wrote the play, to write the screenplay, maybe it would have been more palatable.

a lot of the negative reviews of this movie are a consequence of the viewers simply not enjoying this type of work. it aint a happy movie and its not for everyone. if you've never spent serious time in NYC, LA, SF or some similar city, then you probably do not 1) know and interact with people like this on a regular basis, 2) understand the true to life social context of the scenes/plot or 3) comprehend the use of drugs amongst nearly every ladder rung within certain industries and hence can't recognize that the writer/director is making a parody of it all. the writing is clearly very witty (you try writing it) and if you know people like those portrayed, then you would also see that the acting also first rate. if you don't like this because of its repetitive babble, self absorbed characters, harsh realities and use of nose candy then perhaps you just don't know that this movie is a near documentary. i recommend you visit your friends in any big city and see if you can't get to a few banker / journalist / academic / consulting / advertising / acting parties. experience, re-watch, then review.