Interesting interaction between characters
This film is about a top executive in a Hollywood studio being
threatened by a series of postcards. He kills his suspect accidentally, and his life is never the same again. "The Player" is somewhat engaging and thrilling, but that is not the main selling point of the film. I find the interaction between the characters more interesting. The movie executives are portrayed to be egocentric and two faced. They never have time for anyone. The passionless interaction between Griffin and Bonnie is the most memorable. I am also impressed by the number of cameos in the film. It is almost like watching a who's who! On my Hong Kong version VCD of the film, it lists the stars as Bruce Willis, Julia Roberts, Whoopi Goldberg and Tim Robbins. It turns out that Julia Roberts' role is a cameo lasting for two minutes, while Bruce Willis' role is a minute shorter than that. I know it is not the fault of the American studio, but I was disappointed by the deliberate misleading information on the cover.. 
Robert Altman at his brilliant best.
After spending the eighties more or less in the Hollywood wilderness,
Robert Altman came back with a vengeance in 1992, courtesy of The Player, his best film since the mid 70's. What makes The Player such an outstanding movie is the fact that it's not one, but many movies. You can enjoy it as a satire on Hollywood, but also as a romantic comedy or as a thriller. The script by Michael Tolkin is crisp and witty and the performances of the actors are just perfect, which is only to be expected from an Altman film. Especially Tim Robbins shines, displaying charm en repulsion at the same time. Still, we can't help but love his character. But the real star of the movie is Robert Altman's direction. In less capable hands The Player might have turned out a dud, but Altman, with his years of experience working inside AND outside the Hollywood system, manages to poke fun at the right times without being disgruntled. And then there is of course that wonderful opening tracking shot, clocking in as a single take of 8 minutes plus. This opening sequence is already up there with the likes of Omar Shariff's mirage appearance in Lawrence of Arabia and Jimmy Stewart's sense of Vertigo in Hitchcock's film as one of the most audacious shots in movie making ever. All in all, The Player is probably the best film to come out of the nineties and it has left an indelible impression on me.. |
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