Saturday, 20 June 2015

Film Review - Entourage



Hollywood Insights

Film: Entourage
Cast: Adrian Grenier, Kevin Connolly, Jeremy Piven, Kevin Dillon
Directed by: Doug Ellin
Duration: 1 hr 51 mins
Rating:  * * 1 / 2

At the very outset I must clarify that I have not seen the popular television series from which this film is adapted. A cursory check confirms that the series has won several awards and nominations including a Golden Globe for Jeremy Piven who is again right on the money in the here as well.

Entourage, the film itself though is no great shakes, the idea seems to be to cash on the popularity of the series rather than make new fans with this enterprise. Having seen the film, I for one, am not too keen to catch the television show. 

What chic flicks mean to women, Entourage is to men - mach flicks could be the word?  This film is the male equivalent of Sex And The City

Set in Hollywood, these bunch of men have fast cars, enjoy their holiday on luxury yachts (where women in bikinis far outnumber the men, in bikinis and otherwise) in Spain.  They also sleep with women of their choice, sometimes with two different ones on the same day. 

Vince (Adrian Grenier) is a popular actor with aspirations of directing a film. He gets a $100 million from the studio boss Ari (Jeremy Piven) but that is not enough. He needs some more before he can call it a wrap but the billionaire who is financing the studio refuses to put in any more money. Instead, he sends his son (Haley Joel Osmant of The Sixth Sense fame) to check out if the film is any good.

The entourage consists of Vince’s brother Johnny (Kevin Dillon brother of Matt), his producer manager Eric (Kevin Connolly) and his friend Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) who all are dealing with their own issues. Johnny is an actor whose career hasn’t gone too far while Eric is struggling with his personal life.

While the characters are interesting in their own right, the screenplay just skims the surface. Perhaps that is the outcome of adapting from television to screen where time is of essence and has to be utilized wisely. 

Instead, there is a lot of focus on their glamorous lives with the aim of seducing our senses. The interactions and the track between the studio boss and the director are not only entertaining but it also gives us some insights in Hollywood’s functioning. It may appear far-fetched but some of it could well be true.  

Jeremy Piven and Kevin Dillon steal the show as far as the acting is concerned. A film on their characters would be interesting, minus the entourage. 


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