Hollywoodland is a well-made film with high quality production values and good acting that just needed tighter editing and a more satisfying ending. It stretches on for far too long and contains far too many subplots, all of which could have been removed without hurting the main story. And by keeping the central mystery of the story a mystery, you are left with a feeling of, "That's it? That's what I sat through for over two hours?".
While all the previews for this movie will lead you to believe that this is a movie about the mystery surrounding Superman actor George Reeves' death, that is only partly true. Reeves' death is the impetus of the plot and it does feature heavily, but Affleck, who plays Reeves, is not the star. Adrien Brody as Louis Simo, the private investigator hired by Reeves' mother to disprove the suicide theory, is the star. This is where the movie went wrong. The Reeves storyline, which is told in flashbacks as Simo digs into his background, is the most interesting part of the story. Unfortunately, too much time is spent on Simo's personal life; his troubles with his ex-wife, his son, and another one of his cases.
The biggest disappointment to me about the movie though is the ambiguity of Reeves' death. At different times during the story, Simo is presented with a scenario as to how his death could have come about. Was it Reeves fiancée, with whom he reportedly was breaking off their relationship? Was it the movie studio mogul, whose wife Reeves had carried on an affair with for years? Or was it, as the police reported, a simple case of an actor, with his career in ruins, taking his own life? All three of these versions are played out in Simo's mind, but none of them are presented as the definitive end of Reeves' life.
At least, since you have to look at it for so long, the movie does look good. The sets, the costumes and the locations are all superbly done and it's easy to believe that you are in Hollywood of the 1950s. There's a funny moment in the movie where Reeves, whose career was foundering at the time, sees Rita Hayworth in a restaurant being followed by a group of photographers. He manages to stand beside her just long enough so that he appears in the papers the next day in one of the pictures.
The acting is also well done. Affleck gives one of his best performances to date as Reeves, perhaps aided by his own recent career speed-bumps. And Diane Lane, as the aging beauty, is equally good. Their moments together are some of the best scenes in the movie. Affleck also provides some of the only lighter moments as he and Reeves have some fun with their Superman persona. "You can't see my penis in this thing, can you?" he asks, just before he makes a public appearance as Superman.
When you walk out of a movie, the one thing you should be leaving with is a feeling of satisfaction. You just spent anywhere from 5 to 10 dollars and invested an hour or two of your valuable time in watching it. Hollywoodland merely teases you with satisfaction, but ultimately comes up short.
