November 18, 2008: What Just Happened
What Just Happened is a satire of the filmmaking industry directed by Barry Levinson, not unlike 1995’s Get Shorty, a satire of the filmmaking industry directed by Barry Sonnenberg. Where these movies differ, however, is in how funny they are. Get Shorty is great. This one, not so much.
Apparently this is based on memoirs by actual movie producer Art Linson, who was involved with many notable comedies and action films of the past three decades. This makes me want to read the book, but the film is a disappointing interpretation. The movie centres around producer De Niro’s attempt to solve problems in the week leading up to the start of shooting a new movie, with Bruce Willis playing himself as the star of the movie who is proving difficult to handle.
Robert De Niro is using all of his signature acting tics, and I continue to be confused about whether he acquired these caricatured mannerisms through the roles he’s played, whether that’s how he actually is, or whether he’s watched too many parodies of his acting and has turned into a full parody of himself. The eyebrow raising, cocking of the head, squinting when trying to explain things, and shrugging of the shoulders are all exactly as I’ve seen them depicted on Saturday Night Live and in other places through the decades. It’s kind of sad, seeing him behave this way in low-quality formulaic stuff like What Just Happened and Righteous Kill earlier in the year, when we can turn to his earlier work and fully realized potential in The Godfather: Part II and Raging Bull and Taxi Driver to cite the obvious examples, and The Deer Hunter and Midnight Run and Heat to cite perhaps less obvious examples. Maybe it’s noteworthy that the only comedy I mention in there is Midnight Run, but I think that’s a perfect example of my earlier stated claim that De Niro can really do comedy when he puts his mind to it.
Here again we have De Niro attempting comedy, but there’s nothing much for him to work with. That’s not all his fault. What this all really boils down to is that the core story of the movie is just dull. I don’t care what happens, and the situations seem contrived and like they have been put together just to generate funny situations. Mind you, there are nice quirky and “actorly” supporting roles for Bruce Willis and John Turturro. Also, the inimitable Catherine Keener gets a rare chance to play a powerful character rather than an outcast or someone down on their luck. She’s a no-nonsense movie executive who is in control and calling the shots, and not at all like the cartoonish TV executive she played in Death to Smoochy.
Don’t bother with this one. Read books about filmmaking, or watch Get Shorty again.
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