Hot on the heels of the far more serious Trumbo comes another paean to Hollywood in the 1950s, in the form of the Coen brothers’ manic comedy, Hail, Caesar!. If you’re a fan of the movies from that period, this film will be unmissable. For everyone else though, I suspect there’s likely to be a degree of head scratching, trying to figure out what the heck is going on.
The main character of the piece is Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) – who was a real person, by the way – the West Coast head of (fictional) Capitol Pictures (the real Mannix worked for MGM). In addition to liaising with the New York based studio owner, a big part of Eddie’s role is to be a “fixer” for the studio’s contracted stars. Whether it’s convincing “horse opera” star Hobie Doyle (Alden Ehrenreich) he can act in a sophisticated comedy of manners directed by perfectionist director Laurence Lorenz (Ralph Fiennes); managing the demands of gossip columnists Thora and Thessaly Thacker (both played by Tilda Swinton) or arranging legal loopholes to deal with an unexpected pregnancy for unwed star DeeAnna Moran (Scarlett Johansson), there’s nothing Eddie can’t handle. That is, until word comes that the headlining star of the studio’s expensive Biblical epic “Hail, Caesar!”, Baird Whitlock (George Clooney), has been kidnapped.
For aficionados of cinema or of the Coen brothers, there are Easter eggs aplenty to pick up. For example, the studio Capitol Pictures, was the studio featured in the Coen brothers’ Barton Fink (1991). One of Eddie’s tasks is to insinuate a romance between the dimwitted Hobie and a rising Latina star, Carlotta Valdez (Veronica Osorio). Now if you know your Hitchcock, you’ll know that Carlotta Valdez plays a significant role in the master’s Vertigo (1958). And that’s just scratching the surface here.
The film references some of the events of Trumbo, with references to Communists, screenwriters and “naming names” (plus Thora and Thessaly Thacker are thinly disguised ciphers for Hedda Hopper). However, these aren’t explored in nearly the same depth. They’re basically included simply as a part of the rich tapestry of time and place the Coens are trying to create.
Where the head scratching comes in will be for those who go into this movie “cold”. The myriad storylines flit into and out of each other at breakneck pace, leaving little time for much in the way of either character or plot development. Indeed, there’s not really a cohesive plot at all – more a collection of vignettes paying homage to the craziness of the time and the many classic films and genres of the 50s. While there’s quite a lot of humour, much of it is either distinctly understated, or paradoxically overplayed.
The real genius of Hail, Caesar! is that it’s simultaneously a history lesson on, a satire of, and a love letter to, the films of the 1950s. That’s quite an achievement, and one it took me a while to wrap my head around. The attention to detail is remarkable, and the sprawling cast of characters continually intriguing. The Coen brothers’ direction is in their usual precise style, though the film does have a couple of flat spots.
Josh Brolin is excellent as the hard-nosed, fast-talking Eddie. There’s not a false note in the entire performance. George Clooney plays it largely for laughs as the vain but none-too-bright Baird Whitlock. Alden Ehrenreich does the “singing cowboy” routine to a tee; Scarlett Johansson is fine but under-utilised as the brassy DeeAnna; while Ralph Fiennes is in his element as the persnickety Brit. The show however is just about stolen by two exceptional supporting turns from Tilda Swinton as the twin journos and Channing Tatum as song-and-dance star Burt Gurney.
A film for film nerds, Hail, Caesar! is another intriguing addition to the Coens’ diverse canon. Tonally, it’s more aligned with the likes of Burn After Reading or Intolerable Cruelty although there are also elements of films like The Big Lebowski and Barton Fink thrown into the mix. I’m almost certain this film will divide both dyed-in-the-wool Coen brothers fans and general audiences alike. Some will see it as a clever if frothy homage to a significant time in film history; while others will experience a bewildering assault of characters, themes, genres and styles. Which side you’re on can only be decided by seeing it.
Director: Joel & Ethan Coen
Cast: Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton, Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson, Jonah Hill, Frances McDormand
Release Date: 25 February 2016
Rating: PG
David Edwards
David Edwards is the editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television
