| The Rundown:
The movie Confessions of a Dangerous Mind chronicles the life of
game show host/creator, of such shows as The Dating Game, The Newlywed
Game and The Gong Show, Chuck Barris, which is based upon his memoir
of the same name. Barris (played exceptionally well by Sam Rockwell)
claims to have led a double life as an assassin for the CIA (never
proven) during his career in the game show industry. The movie is
darkly funny, tactlessly gaudy, utterly surrealistic, habitually
sharp, richly creative and thoroughly enjoyable.
The Screenplay was written by Charlie Kaufman of Adaptation (2002)
and Being John Malkovich (2001) and marks the directorial debut
of George Clooney who did a respectable job in front of as well
as behind the camera. The film also stars Drew Barrymore and Julia
Roberts.
The Review: minor spoilers
Sam Rockwell gives a breakthrough performance as Chuck Barris,
famous (or infamous) game show host/creator who supposedly, according
to his autobiography (it has never been proven to be true or to
be false), was also an assassin for the CIA. His portrayal of Chuck
Barris is dead on believable, he even manages to capture the real
Barris’ quirks (reportedly, watched hours of Gong Show episodes
and followed Chuck Barris around for days) and viewers can really
relate to the character on screen. You feel his emotions, smile
when he is up and frown when he’s down.
Penny (portrayed by Drew Barrymore) is a free spirited gal who falls
in love with Chuck Barris, who in turn falls in love with her, in
his words, “in [his] own way.” He who previously frittered
from one relationship to the next, her compassion for him anchors
him somewhat, but cannot wholly ground him either. Julia Roberts
has a relatively small but pivotal role in the movie as Patricia,
a mysterious agent who is hired to help Barris with his missions,
or should I say hits.
Jim Byrd (George Clooney) is a CIA agent who confronts and hires
Chuck Barris to join the CIA to become a hitman. Clooney’s
performance is dark though given the mood of the flick - humor pitch
black in nature - fits in well.
For George Clooney’s directorial debut this movie is surprisingly
well done. The scenes where he blends original footage with newly
recreated sets are done phenomenally well and one always looks forward
to the game show bits though is never disappointed when scenes switch.
Keep an eye out for brief cameos of Matt Damon and Brad Pitt. I
must admit, parts of the movie seemed bland and overdone and had
something of a “been there, done that, seen it before”
feel to it but Clooney manages to pull it off nonetheless and the
otherwise unoriginal bits never seem second-rate.
This movie is given an R rating for language, violence, and sexual
content though this has more to do with the dark nature of the film
than anything else. “Confessions” is enjoyable not just
because of its dark twists and turns, but also for its portrayal
of a driven, yet tortured man who flounders from one shallow relationship
into another, who finds satisfaction in murder (his hits), and the
thought that such a distasteful protagonist can actually gather
the support and affection of the audience is surprising though the
thought that this support is given to a despicable character (he
isn’t exactly the story book hero) never crosses one’s
mind, rather, at the end of the movie, we actually like Mr. Barris.
In the end, how much was fact and how much was fiction doesn’t
really matter (In the special features, it is mentioned by those
that knew him back in the day that he would disappear for weeks
at a time and no one, not even his secretary knew where he was).
By the time the credits are rolling, you won’t care whether
Chuck Barris really was an assassin for the CIA or not. It was money
well spent and 113 minutes you will not regret squandering.
The Rating: (8 of 10) B+/A-
The Recommendation:
The movie is definitely a must see, if not for reminiscent game
show sets and newly added game show scenes, then at least you can
watch a great performance on part of all the major players and a
pleasurable story. The special features included in the film are
what are typically found on any DVD. You have the deleted scenes,
the Behind the Scenes look at the film, even Sam Rockwell’s
screen test, including a rather funny one with George Clooney.
Would I recommend getting the DVD is a different matter altogether.
As with all dark comedies, they really are hit or miss (Death to
Smoochy and Very Bad Things) and really depend on one’s taste
for such films. It is nonetheless worth seeing, and I highly recommend
watching Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. As for me, the DVD will
find a welcome home in between my copy of The Bourne Identity and
Dogma.
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