DVD Cat's Meow - Signature Series
A Hollywood scandal springs to life in Peter Bogdanovich's lively Cat's Meow. In 1924 the immensely powerful publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst held a yacht party that ended with a gunshot. Between Hearst's influence and that of his glitterati guests (including Louella Parsons and Charlie Chaplin), no satisfying account of what happened ever made it to the public. The Cat's Meow reconstructs one of the more whispered-about possible scenarios and has quite a bit of fun doing so. Cast and crew alike skewer 1920s Hollywood decadence and, by extension, today's. Eddie Izzard is a boldly odd casting choice as Chaplin, but he succeeds, refusing to fall back on Little Tramp mannerisms. There are several other good performances, but best of all is the cool-as-sherbet Joanna Lumley as the deliciously jaded Elinor Glyn. The script is a strong one, never stooping to the excesses of its characters--Bogdanovich's take is far from the most lurid allegations of what happened that weekend. --Ali Davis |
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Review(s): DVD Cat's Meow - Signature Series | |
| An interesting theory of a mystery |
Not much is really known about that cruise in 1924 on the yacht of William Randolph Hearst. All we know for sure is that Thomas Ince died just days after the trip ended. None of the passengers on the boat were willing to concede any details, in fact, stories from the different passengers conflicted greatly.The trip is really a pleasure cruise for Hearst (played very well by Edward Herrmann), Marion Davies (Kirsten Dunst), and a few of Hollywood's elite. The main focus for the group is trying to keep up with the seemingly imminent love affair between Davies and the devilish Charlie Chaplin (wickedly played by Eddie Izzard) Chaplin has just gotten his 16 year old co star pregnant and now has designs on Davies. She resists for a while, but eventually falls prey to his charms. The film is an interesting character study. Herrmann shows us a Hearst who despite his riches, realizes that he is much older and less attractive than the wolves who are pursuing his girl. One particularly sad scene is when the band strikes up the Charleston, and Hearst is able to participate only for a few seconds before sitting the rest out. He watches as Marion has a blast with Charlie and the others on the floor. Ince(played by Cary Elwes) spends the movie hooking up with his mistress and trying to gain information about other people to benefit himself. He was a powerful name in the movies at one time, and now is trying to get back to where he was. He snoops in rooms looking for information, and when he has put the pieces together, disaster strikes in the form of a gun shot. What is interesting is Hearst's reaction to the shooting of Ince. Immediately this man who has spent the movie looking weak and helpless springs into action with a pack of lies, trying to cover up what has happened, even calling Ince's wife and making up a despicable story. We will never know the truth, but this is not only a credible guess at the events, but also a very good film which shows us a different angle of the characters involved.
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| "Cat's Meow" is the cat's pajamas |
"Whodunnit?" This movie tries to answer that -- in 1924, a star-studded boat trip went wrong when someone got shot, and the truth of it was never investigated. This is one thing that might have happened. The actors appear to be enjoying themselves romping through Roaring 20s decadence, but rise to the occasion when genuine acting is called for. It's like an Agatha Christie murder mystery, except no Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot.A bunch of Hollywood glitterati arrive at a boat belonging to William Randolph Hearst, a rather obnoxious Hollywood mogul. Also on the boat is Marion Davies, Hearst's actress mistress, who is being actively pursued by Charlie Chaplin (who recently got his sixteen-year-old costar pregnant), a cool-and-calm eccentric novelist Elinor Glyn, irritating columnist Louella Parsons, fading superproducer Thomas Ince and his frustrated girlfriend, and a slew of others. Rumors fly about Marion and Charlie's suspected affair, and though Hearst doesn't want to believe it, the clues pile up -- with the assistance of Ince, who wants Hearst to be his business partner. A single gunshot threatens all of them... This is one of the movies that probably won't appeal to the average viewer, simply because a lot of the people in it, with a few exceptions like Chaplin and Davies, are not now remembered clearly. But if viewers can shut off their "hey, I don't know who that was" signals, then they will find a sort of whodunnit without the detective, a juicy soap wrapped up in a mystery wrapped up in a "Hollywood what-if" tale. Perhaps the biggest problem is that the last part is a bit anticlimactic and the buildup is rather insubstantial -- the biggest buildup is Hearst tearing through the boat in search of Chaplin. Kirsten Dunst shines brightly as Marion Davies, showing both a deeply conflicted young woman and a flirty party girl. She's never been better, even if she does wear a giant butterfly on her head. (Weird headpieces are a constant in this movie -- watch for Tilly's birdcage) Cary Elwes of "Princess Bride" returns as a desperate man who will go the extra mile to revive his career. Edward Herrmann plays a very intriguing Hearst, who is both obnoxious and tender, jealous and angry, controlling and generous. Eddie Izzard plays an insincere predator as Chaplin, who cares more about the conquest than about the woman; Joanna Lumley is rather underused, but she imbues all her scenes with a hilarious dry wit; Jennifer Tilly plays an irritating flibbertigibbet who has an unexpected cunning streak. The dialogue is fast, dry and enjoyable -- one of my favorite lines was "Hollywood, a land just off the coast of the planet Earth." There's some sexual content (nothing too graphic) and a fair amount of profanity; teens who like Kirsten Dunst particularly will enjoy this, but younger kids will be bored silly. This is not the movie that will appeal to the bubble-brained. But anyone who likes witty dialogue, sparkling costumes, a well-thought-out plotline and the shivering thrill of wondering if this was how it happened will think "Cat's Meow" is the cat's pajamas.
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| a olden type movie |  |
This movie takes place in the past, the 50's I think and on a boat. It's just a bunch of actors and writers and rich people. Kirten Dunset plays a young actress, I think Maryln Monroe (I think the other characters call her Maryln). She is very good int his role because it requires her to ACT! SHe has to be both serious and funny when people arent looking. Alos on the boat is an actor named Charlie who is having an affair with Kirsten. Overall a good movie, but its a who dun it?! A who dun it is when theres a crime and nobody knows who did it and the audience has to figure it out like a puzzle. American Beauty was a who dun it and so is this movie. It hink its a cheat cause the writers theysleves dont know who dun it, but if yoiu can ignore that and you are a fan of old movie type ACTING, then The cat's Meow is for you.
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