Bowfinger, roi d'Hollywood

Bobby Bowfinger (Steve Martin) is a Z-list producer who lies, steals and schemes to make a movie out of a script written by his accountant. He gets A-list Hollywood producer Jerry Renfro to greenlight the script if he could get superstar Kit Ramsey (Eddie Murphy) to do the movie. Kit kicks Bobby out of his car but Bobby promises his crew that Kit agrees to do the movie. His idea is to shoot the movie without telling Kit. Soon his actors are approaching Kit on the street with strange dialog. He hires hungry newcomer Daisy (Heather Graham), actress Carol (Christine Baranski), Kit lookalike Jiff (Eddie Murphy) who turns out to be Kit's brother and the cheapest crew possible. Kit is a crazed narcissist who finds counsel from Mindhead leader Terry Stricter (Terence Stamp). When actors keep approaching him with weird dialog, he starts to suspect that aliens are really after him.

This is simply a brilliant satire. Bowfinger is sleazy but with a heart. He just wants so badly to make a movie. Steve Martin is such a charming lead. I love Daisy sleeping her way up the Hollywood ladder. This is two of Eddie Murphy's best performances. The movie is hilarious. Every other scene hits it with big laughs.

Steve Martin, the funniest man alive in the 80s, lost his way in the 90s with the likes of "Leap Of Faith" and "A Simple Twist Of Fate". Now, after sterling work in David Mamet's "The Spanish Prisoner", Martin's return to writing and acting in straight-up comedy is surprisingly, reassuringly good. "Bowfinger" is a movie about movies, with all the potential for in-jokery and self-indulgence that brings, but for the most part dispenses with the clever-clever, isn't-Hollywood-shallow stuff to deliver laughs.

Martin's Bobby Bowfinger, a struggling producer desperate for a hit before he reaches the 'unemployable' age of 50, hits on the idea of putting action star Kit Ramsey (Eddie Murphy) in his new sci-fi film "Chubby Rain" without the star knowing anything about it. Consequently, Bowfinger's inept crew follows Ramsey around in increasingly crazy and surreal fashion, utilising everything from 'Will Work For Food' signs made of foil to cranes mounted on trucks to get the shot they need. When Bowfinger stumbles across a Kit double (Murphy again) who will do anything the director asks including fetch the coffee, he starts to think all his birthdays have come at once. Meanwhile, the neurotic Ramsey, never that stable to begin with, begins to lose it altogether as he becomes convinced that sex-crazed pod people are stalking him.

It's a simple plot and, while the script throws a few barbs at Hollywood, it's played mainly for big laughs - and gets them. Heather Graham is spot-on as the ingenue literally just off the bus from Ohio who is prepared to sleep with anyone to get longer scenes, and Jamie Kennedy is all laconic wit as Bowfinger's long-suffering assistant. Really, though, it's Martin and Murphy's show. The original wild and crazy guy shows he hasn't lost all his manic energy in the title role, nor his wit with the sharp script. Surprisingly enough, though, the standout performance is Murphy's; he is brilliant as both the paranoid, highly-strung Kit and his dumb-but-sweet double Jiff. This might even be a career-best.

It's simple, lightweight and throwaway of course, but comedies that try to SAY something, even if they're good, often just don't make you laugh that much. Bowfinger will.

Bowfinger How does Bobby Bowfinger, Hollywood's least successful director, get Kit Ramsey, Hollywood's biggest star, in his ultra low-budget film? Anyway he can. With an ingenious scheme and the help of Kit's eager and nerdy brother, Jiff, an ambitious and sexy wanna be actress and over-the-hill diva. Bowfinger sets out to trick Kit Ramsey into the performance of a lifetime.

To describe Bowfinger, it is a stupid idiotic film, which works. I thought it was terrific. Steve Martin (who wrote the film) plays the part of a hopeless director perfectly. While the other main star Eddie Murphy, again pulls off another great double as both Kit and Jiff Ramsey. Is there an end to this guys talent? i look forward to seeing Nutty Professor 2 soon. Heather Graham was again at her sexy best as Daisy. The other stand out actor for me in this film was Terrence Stamp. Can you remember him from Superman 2? That's right he was General Zod and in Bowfinger he is Terry Stricter, Kit's Councillor. His role was also well done. A final mention to one star, but with four legs, Mindy (aka Betsy) who was used perfectly. Animals who star on any movie or TV show have a special talent, this dog is no exception. Bowfinger is also a movie within a movie, which at any time must be hard to shoot, but thanks to Aussie director Frank Oz, Bowfinger comes out beautifully. Bowfinger Scores 3.5/5 Stars or 7/10. If you want a laugh see this wild, funny comedy!

One of Steve Martin's best movies, and one of Eddie Murphy's best too. This has several laugh out loud moments.

Plot In A Paragraph: Hollywood, today: Bobby Bowfinger (Steve Martin) a down on his luck actor-producer-director, has a script which a friend has written. Completely convinced of its quality, he decides to take a last shot at fame and fortune. A famous producer(Robert Downey Jr) promises him to do it, but there is one condition: Kit Ramsey (Eddie Murphy) Hollywood's number one star, has to be in it. So, Bobby tries his luck with Kit, who rejects him, so he then decides to shoot the film himself. Featuring an aspiring beauty from Ohio (Heather Graham) and Kit Ramsey - who does not even know he's being filmed.

Steve Martin has made some fine comedy movies - 'The Man with two Brains' 'All of Me' 'Dirty Rotten Scoudrels' and 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles' to name just few. He has also made some wonderfully touching movies like 'A Simple Twist of Fate' where his acting ability really shows through. Unfortunately he does have a knack of making too many films that are merely mediocre or worse; films like 'Mixed Nuts' 'Sgt. Bilko' 'Bringing down the House' and 'Cheaper by the Dozen'

I am pleased to say that Bowfinger shows us Steve Martin close to his best; he plays the lead role and he also wrote this totally crazy, unbelievable and madcap comedy; and it is genuinely funny for all the right reasons. It is cleverly written and has a really interesting storyline. I thought it was brilliant fun, and well worth watching.

Steve Martin Fans will love this one 7/10