Hail, Caesar! (2016)

Well here we go again with the Coen Brothers; a new movie of theirs has now once again landed in cinemas... let's get on with this. For those of you who don't know I hate the Coen Brothers; I've never really got their style of filmmaking. You know, their kind of dialogue (which to me is all over the place & rancid), diabolical characters (in which I've never cared in the slightest for), ridiculous stories (which don't land or stick with me), and the movies themselves (which just make no sense at all). I've never really understood why the Coen Brothers are so highly acclaimed by both audiences & critics alike; I always believed that the critics and audiences were bribed to say it was great or they just like rubbish for films. The last time the Coen Brothers directed a movie it was Inside Llewyn Davis and that movie got such appraisal from people (critics especially); there was a review in the Empire magazine that I read of Inside Llewyn Davis and surprisingly it was a 5 star review. To me that movie was just totally offensive (because it forced you to care for characters which were completely foul), it was just rancid, disgusting, foul, off-putting, torturous, and many other horrible words to describe it; I would say that it has to be seen to be believed but I wouldn't want you guys seeing it because I don't want to see you guys jumping down the same rabbit hole that I did... I'm telling you now that rabbit hole is full of so many horrors. Anyway, now on to Hail, Caesar! which is the new movie directed by them (and written by them too... as always) and it's basically a love letter to old Hollywood; at that point I was already cautious of this movie because it was basically the Coens getting their filthy hands on something that I really love, and from that point on I was in a state of worry because I thought that they were going to make a Llewyn Davis out of the Hollywood movie business. When the trailers came out showing a kidnapping of an actor I was warming to the film a bit more but then I remembered when I saw the Llewyn Davis trailers and realising that there is a difference between trailers and the overall movie; because I like the trailers for Inside LLewyn Davis however as you know I hated the film (I consider it the worst film ever made). So there was a bit of excitement for Hail, Caesar! however there was still a lot more trepidation than excitement; then the second trailer came out showing one specific scene playing where a specific actor is directed to say "would that it were so simple" and whilst watching that trailer something happened which I had never done before that involves anything to do with the Coen Brothers... I laughed. Now I don't usually find their type of humour that funny... in fact if anything the humour is just crass, stupid, vulgar, unfunny, embarrassing and just absolute tosh; so to laugh in this new trailer for a Coen Brothers movie I was absolutely surprised. My excitement got even stronger than ever before however... it was a Coen Brothers movie; so again there was still trepidation there & I still knew that this was only a trailer. Finally, Saturday March 5th 2016 I finally get to go and see Hail, Caesar! at my local multiplex going in with the lowest expectations possible; just knowing that the Coen Brothers are probably going to make a mess of something I really love (the film business). Going in to the cinema saying things like "torture chamber 2" as apposed to screen 2; sitting down watching the adverts & trailers... then the moment of truth happens: the film starts. I got really anxious at that point; I felt extremely unsettled and I was really unprepared for what was coming next... 1 hour 46 minutes pass and I came out of the screening with a feeling of crushing disappointment; the whole movie to me was a disappointing for one very huge reason: for now on throughout the course of my life I have to go through it all knowing (not thinking) that the Coen Brothers' past work would have been GREAT IF THEY MADE THEM LIKE HAIL, CAESAR! Oh... my... goodness the Coen Brothers have finally made a good movie at last! Joel & Ethan Coen really do have it in them to make good movies when they want to; I don't know how this has happened but it has... this feels like an actual attempt from them to be proper directors & writers so good job Joel & Ethan Coen, you've impressed me hugely. Let's get on to the key factor to why I like this movie so much; the dialogue is not coeny. That's a new phrase I've made up to describe Coen dialogue; the dialogue in this movie is just golden... it sounds like things people would naturally say, it doesn't go into that bonkers, all over the place, crass, annoying territory that the Coens are known for diving into. It feels fresh, alive and vibrant like it just wants to fly off the pages of the script; I did check to see if by any chance someone else write the script for this movie but they didn't it was entirely written by the Coen Brothers. The dialogue itself is also really funny at times especially in the sequences involving actors performing out scenes in from their movies, or when they attend film premiers or when the films themselves are screened; the most funniest sections of the movie are the ones that feel the most natural... they are not ones which are forced upon by the Coens themselves, the ones that are forced are not funny in the slightest such as the scene in which Baird accidentally gets a chair he was originally sitting on between his legs. That's one thing I would like to point out in this movie seemingly I just mentioned about that; there are times in this movie in which you can notice Coen fingerprints and when you do notice them (which come in both verbal & visual details) you can't help but just go "Coens, you couldn't just help yourself could you?". But thankfully these scenes are too few & far between to be much of a major problem, and all the natural & most funniest moments of the movie win over the forced moments (which like I said are rare in this movie). This was the most major improvement I've seen this movie from the Coen Brothers themselves... Another improvement includes the plot itself; usually the plot in a Coen Brothers movie just makes no sense what so ever. it's like they just don't care about how bad their movies are; they really just don't give a damn at all... however Hail, Caesar! is a different story I feel like the Coens have pulled something off here. This movie is essentially a love letter to the old 50's Hollywood and to me that is enough of a plot to make the movie for me; I'm onboard with basically anything that promotes films, the love of films, the making of films, films about films, etc. You could say that the film is about the kidnapping of an actor but I see this film in a different light; I think that ultimately the kidnapping of an actor is a side-plot (you know, kind of like a filler) and the main plot is practically seeing actors go to work in the 1950's doing what they do best at... acting! Also it's about seeing directors go to work, the film crew getting to work, film premiers, seeing filmmakers & actors communicate, and many more involving the world of film... it really is expressing the love of cinema & film. You do not need a plot involving a man and his ginger cat going around doing practically nothing for the whole movie because there is one thing I've learnt from that movie and that is it's depressing, boring & obnoxious... don't ever do that again to me, ok? All you really needed to make this movie work was a simple plot which shares the love of the film industry; thank you Coens for recognizing that and going along with this plot because it really worked for the movie. The characters themselves have also been improved in this movie; I liked everybody in this movie: Baird Whitlock, Eddie Mannix, the communists, DeeAnna Moran, Joseph Silverman, Hobie Doyle and the list goes on... this is something that has never happened in a Coen Brothers movie before; I've always had a tendency to hate every single character in a Coen Brothers movie but this one is definitely an exception. I liked being around every single character in this movie there was never a point in the movie in which I just wanted them to go away; I actually wanted them to stay and I actually missed seeing characters when they went off-screen... those that lept off the screen I instantly wanted them to come back on because they are really that likable. There is only one problem I have with the characters and that is I do feel that there is an overabundance of characters in this movie; which means with so much going on there isn't really enough time to develop all the characters in the movie. Usually in a Coen Brothers movie the Coens just don't really seem to want to develop their characters and because of that I just usually question why I'm spending my time with these characters; in Hail, Caesar! on the other hand there is a sense that the Coens really want to develop their characters and there is development & investment in all of the characters in this movie. But the problem is because there are so many big names in this movie the film ultimately feels very over-crowded; meaning that overall the film doesn't have time to fully develop it's characters... all of the characters do get developed to an extent but not to their full potential. This isn't much of a problem though because firstly the two main players in this movie (Eddie Mannix and Baird Whitlock) are fully developed and they both run at their full potential, and secondly all of the characters are likable anyway so that in itself deserves appraisal especially because these characters are made likable by the Coens themselves... so good job Coens! The acting in this movie is great; the actors in this movie help bring the characters to life and they do a really good job at that. Usually in a Coen Brothers the acting is just god awful and the actors in their other movies don't really do justice to the characters (part of it is because of the scripts not being able to delve into good development for the characters because of the Coens' poor talent for writing; except in this movie of course). Thankfully because of the improvement in writing meaning a better development of the characters; the actors are able to bring their characters to life in the best way possible... meaning that I was onboard with the characters all the way through the movie. The actors do a great job at delivering the dialogue as well in this movie; everything that came out of the actors' mouths worked for the most part apart from the scenes where it slightly tips over into Coen tropes... but like I said before these scenes are too few and far between so overall their acting works in this movie, and I want to see more acting like this in future Coen Brothers movies. Other things that really worked in this movie include the soundtrack which sounds beautiful when the movie is playing; I personally wouldn't mind getting the soundtrack for this if it went down to sale price. The soundtrack isn't amazing unlike in movies such as Crimson Peak for instance because that soundtrack I desperately want to get; but overall the soundtrack in this movie was great and if the soundtrack went down to sale price I would buy it. The costume design is fantastic too as well as the sets, props, and the feeling of the era this movie is set in; the movie does a fantastic job at making you feel like that you're in the 1950's and really if your movie is set in that era then really that should be an objective of yours, and thankfully the Coen Brothers did a great job at completing that objective. Finally there is a musical number in this movie which surprisingly works unlike the musical number in Inside Llewyn Davis; I personally wouldn't mind watching the musical number from Hail, Caesar! on a loop because it's surprisingly good. If I have any other problem it's that the film does drag at times; that's not to say that the movie is too long because it's not but it could have been better if some scenes did pick up the pace a little bit. But otherwise I'm very surprised by this movie... I went into this with no expectations at all and I came out with a big smile on my face (actually no it was more of a shocked face because I was surprised by how good this movie was); I hope that the Coen Brothers can make more movies like this for now on because this looks like a step in the right direction. I hope as well that this movie review shows that I'm not biased about anything when it comes to movies, directors, etc. I have an equal opinion about everything even when it comes to a director a particularly don't like; the Coen Brothers I don't like as directors overall but I have to confess that I'm very pleased with them for this. If there is any chance that the Coen Brothers are reading this movie then please listen up: make more movies like this... it's obvious that when you're going to be at your best it's when your probably going to make movies like Hail, Caesar! a movie with a great human-like script, great likable characters, a great plot, and overall a great movie. By the way if this is in any way an apology to me for Inside Llewyn Davis then I forgive you; yes I know I consider that movie to be the worst movie ever made but you guys have delivered to me what is the biggest cinematic surprise of my life... so you can't leave this review knowing that I haven't forgiven you. Good luck with your next film and don't let me down... but until then I shall Hail, Caesar! (pun intended). I'm going to give Hail, Caesar! an extremely enthusiastic and surprising 7 out of 10; this movie is going to appear on "my best films of 2016 honourable mentions" list because of the fact that this movie has really surprised in every way possible.