HOLLYWOODLAND

Right off the bat, I’m going to say that three of the four slices I’m giving this movie were earned by actress Diane Lane, who turns in a surprisingly heartbreaking and effective performance in an otherwise entirely forgettable and dull movie.

Set in 1950s Los Angeles, the film follows half-assed private eye Louis Simo (Adrien Brody), who starts to wonder whether the supposed suicide of popular actor George Reeves (Ben Affleck) might have actually been murder. Simo’s down on his luck professionally and personally, so this is just the kind of case to get him back on top! Thing is, his story makes up the bulk of the film, and it’s profoundly uninteresting. Far, FAR more fascinating is the subplot, told in flashbacks, about Reeves’ life and his relationship with Toni Mannix (Lane), the comely wife of a rather gruff studio exec (Bob Hoskins).

Toni is a petite force to be reckoned with, and once she sets her sights on the strapping Reeves he becomes putty in her hands. They fall into bed almost immediately and carry on a passionate affair for years as his fame grows thanks to his TV gig as Superman. But Toni, for all her wealth and power, is lonely, insecure and easily hurt. When Reeves begins dating a rather trampy younger woman (Robin Tunney), Toni’s pain is palpable. Equally pained is Reeves, who longs to escape his superhero alter ego and carve out a real acting career, but who’s trapped by the very comic-book entity that made him a star. Audiences can’t see the man, only the character, and he suffers for it. Gradually, both he and Toni begin to feel the strain of age and time – she over competing with younger women, and he over his eroding looks and evaporating career.

Meanwhile, back in the boring “present,” Simo continues his investigation and hypothesizes a whole lot. Maybe this guy did it! Maybe this one did! YAWN. Can we please get back to Diane Lane and Ben Affleck now? Sadly, more often than not over the course of the film, the answer to that question is no. No, instead of probing the complex, symbiotic romance between the older woman and younger man, we’re stuck watching Adrien Brody get himself drunk and struggle to connect with his young son or estranged wife. The filmmakers clearly misjudged which angle would be more compelling and, as a result, loaded all their eggs into the Louis Simo basket. Big mistake. Lane and Affleck get precious little screen time, and the story would have been much better served by eliminating the Simo character altogether and simply focusing on Reeves’ troubled life.

Oh, and just in case you’re hoping that this movie is some kind of salacious exposé that will shock and amaze you by revealing the truth behind Reeves’ death, keep hoping. All it does it posit a few theories and then circle right back around to absolutely nothing.