3.5 stars. Rated R, for strong sexual content, drug use, nudity, crude humor and relentless profanity
By Derrick Bang • Originally published in The Davis Enterprise, 12.12.14
Caught an interesting film the
other day.
Concerns a disillusioned movie
star who, having turned his back on a crowd-pleasing and profitable pop-culture
franchise, attempts to re-invent himself as a serious actor by writing,
directing and starring in a highly unlikely vanity project. And, to make things
more intriguing, this film’s approach and directorial style are self-referential
to the point where real life and reel life blur before our eyes.
 |
| Much as he hates to play along, Andre (Chris Rock) agrees to smile for the ubiquitous cameras on behalf of his fiancée, Erica (Gabrielle Union), a realty TV star who insists that her entire life take place in full view of her devoted fans. |
No, I’m not talking about Birdman. As it happens, I’m referring to Chris Rock’s Top Five.
Yes, Virginia; it would appear
that these Hollywood types have been reading each other’s mail again.
I mean, seriously, how does this
happen? How many forlorn, anguished twentysomething women attempted to find
themselves via thousand-mile solo treks through wilderness in the late 20th
century? And within months of each other, we get biographical movies about both
of them?
The celluloid gods do work in
mysterious ways.
But I digress.
Although Top Five doesn’t have
the ambition or directorial pizzazz of Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman, the similarities are strong ... as is Rock’s savage indictment of today’s
vanity-laden, social media-obsessed excuse for popular entertainment. And, much
the way Iñárritu employed cinematic legerdemain to add visual snap to his
narrative, Rock employs the rat-a-tat delivery of stand-up comedy to tell the
story of New York City-based comedian-turned-film star Andre Allen’s effort to
re-cast his career in a manner that fans aren’t about to embrace.
The results are uneven, with some
of Andre’s sidebar detours plunging too far into wince-inducing vulgarity, but
there’s no denying the shrewd, insightful analysis of how we tend to devour our
celebrities these days. We must remember that Rock masterminded four hilarious
and sharply savvy seasons of TV’s Everybody Loves Chris, which unerringly
skewered school- and family-induced teen angst while simultaneously being quite
funny.
Andre (played by Rock), as far as
his fans are concerned, hasn’t been funny for a long time. He abandoned
stand-up years ago, seeking success in Hollywood; he found it in a series of
slapstick Hammy the Bear action comedies where only his voice could be
recognized beneath his fur-laden costume. Needless to say, the artistic returns
have been limited. (Imagine if Tim Allen, having graduated from the improv
stage, achieved fame solely as the voice of Buzz Lightyear in Pixar’s Toy
Story franchise.)
