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Overall, I like Woody Allen movies, but I get there by hating some, loving some and feeling everywhere in between on others. The average is close to like, but the dispersion, as they say in statistics, is quite stretched.
"Hollywood Ending" is much closer to the "hate it" side of the continuum as, about 50 minutes in, when Allen's character - dating somebody, of course, ridiculous younger than he is - went into another off-the-shelf Allen lament about sleeping alone and his closet full of fears, I had had enough.
Even Tea (with and accent over the "e," really?) Leoni - one of my favorites who should have had a better career - couldn't save this mailed-in Allen effort. Allen playing an insecure director was too much self-absorption wrapped inside self-absorption for me.
Two other quick thoughts from the movie: George Hamilton looks almost too much like George Hamilton - the image of a Hollywood star, playing a Hollywood star and Debra Messing should be very happy "Will and Grace" made her - that was a lucky break for her.
And one more thing - the only really good thing are the classic New York City settings - the Plaza, Bethesda Fountain, Balthazar and a never-looked-better-on-film Bemelmans Bar were almost, but not quite, worth staying with this mind-numbing effort.
"Hollywood Ending" is much closer to the "hate it" side of the continuum as, about 50 minutes in, when Allen's character - dating somebody, of course, ridiculous younger than he is - went into another off-the-shelf Allen lament about sleeping alone and his closet full of fears, I had had enough.
Even Tea (with and accent over the "e," really?) Leoni - one of my favorites who should have had a better career - couldn't save this mailed-in Allen effort. Allen playing an insecure director was too much self-absorption wrapped inside self-absorption for me.
Two other quick thoughts from the movie: George Hamilton looks almost too much like George Hamilton - the image of a Hollywood star, playing a Hollywood star and Debra Messing should be very happy "Will and Grace" made her - that was a lucky break for her.
And one more thing - the only really good thing are the classic New York City settings - the Plaza, Bethesda Fountain, Balthazar and a never-looked-better-on-film Bemelmans Bar were almost, but not quite, worth staying with this mind-numbing effort.