Mank movie review: David Fincher’s new Netflix film -- a movie about movies -- is satirical but sweet, weary but vengeful. Ryan Murphy’s new period melodrama, debuting Friday on Netflix, uses real figures from the past to tell an invented history of 1940s Hollywood. Netflix just released a new 10-episode series that gives viewers a peek behind the scenes of what it really takes to be a professional ballet dancer. The Golden Tip is run by Ernie (Dylan McDermott, looking like the porn version of Ronald Colman), a former silent-film star with the most conspicuous cough since “La Bohême.” It employs Archie (Jeremy Pope), a gay black screenwriter trying to sell a script based on the suicide of the starlet Peg Entwistle, who leapt to her death from the H in the Hollywoodland sign. Jack is struggling, unconnected and of questionable talent. Then “Hollywood” takes a turn, which it seems to rationalize, in a meta way, through the discussions over Archie’s script. The new French series Inhuman Resources (Dérapages), starring the football star, Eric Cantona, lands on Netflix on May 15. Don’t folks deserve to leave the picture show with some hope? And yet I keep coming back to the happy endings of the “Hollywood” characters. The seven gilded episodes of “Hollywood,” arriving Friday, introduce a broad cast of would-bes and coulda-beens — black, gay, female — in a vivid but unconvincing ensemble fantasy about who gets to go to Dreamland and who has to keep dreaming. Then it lurches, halfway through, into a pep talk about what some kids can accomplish if they gather up their moxie and put on a show. The show’s appeals to the benevolent hearts and minds of “good” people are maddeningly naïve. The poster for “Meg,” the fictional film being produced in the Netflix series “Hollywood.”, From left: Jeremy Pope as Archie Coleman, Jake Picking as Rock Hudson, Samara Weaving as Claire Wood, Laura Harrier as Camille Washington, Darren Criss as Raymond Ainsley and David Corenswet as Jack Castello in “Hollywood.”, Darren Criss as Raymond Ainsley, Laura Harrier as Camille Washington and Mira Sorvino as Jeanne Crandall in “Hollywood.”. A part of me can’t ignore what it feels like to see this Technicolor spectacle populated by these faces and experiences, to see the 1940s depicted through a 2020 lens — browner, less sexually repressed, more women calling the shots. A review of Dogs, the six-part Netflix docuseries about the relationship between humans and their furry best friends. Hollywood’s Hollywood, circa 1947, is a place where racial prejudice and homophobia run rampant and where fresh-faced young people arrive full … Mank movie review: David Fincher’s new Netflix film -- a movie about movies -- is ... once upon a time in hollywood review nytimes: sharon tate: once upon a time in hollywood review new york times: margot robbie: 3 results. His House movie review: Debutant director Remi Weekes’ Netflix film is more than just a haunted house story. Then there’s The Woods, which is Netflix’s second Polish original series. It’s an unsettling account of the immigrant experience. I also kind of enjoyed it. What if Hollywood legends like “Rock Hudson and Anna May Wong and Dorothy Dandridge had had happy endings?” is how the actor Jeremy Pope recalled the story being pitched to him in an interview with Elle magazine. And here’s our email: letters@nytimes.com. Instead, it comes from an ambitious, if faulty, series that dares to imagine an assortment of characters conspiring to make a movie with a half-Filipino man, a gay black man and black and Asian women in 1940s Hollywood. The Netflix miniseries Hollywood is … He finds a taker in Raymond (the Murphy regular Darren Criss), an idealistic young director who sees Archie’s script as a potential career-maker for his girlfriend, Camille (Laura Harrier). Yet he’s one of the lucky ones: He’s white, straight and easy on the eyes. Ryan Murphy’s latest for Netflix starts an intriguing journey into an alternative 1940s Tinseltown, then swerves into schmaltz. Filed under hollywood , netflix , TV , 5/7/20 (His 2019 Netflix … Intelligencer In his latest series, Ryan Murphy turns his attention to the post-war ‘golden age’ of Tinseltown, where a … We meet Anna May Wong (Michelle Krusiec), robbed of a potential Oscar role in “The Good Earth.” A bacchanal at George Cukor’s mansion shows gay Hollywood at play. 2020 MA 15+ 1 season Social Issue TV Dramas. Netflix headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif. (Robert Galbraith/Reuters) Hollywood rails against fracking, but production companies are happy to benefit from subsidies generated by oil producers. Hollywood review – Ryan Murphy’s Netflix epic is a hollow ode to showbiz. “9-1-1” also reminds us that as bad as things are, they are still probably preferable to being literally thrown under a bus. Ryan Murphy’s revisionist series is laughably self-satisfied and willfully naïve about complex real-world problems. Both counterfactuals are played out in “Hollywood,” but they rest oddly alongside one another — one is playfully subversive; the other a retread of simplistic progressive logic about how to combat systemic oppression. Action, romance, comedy, fantasy -- Hollywood movies have it all. That’s just the way things were. In post-World War II Hollywood, an ambitious group of aspiring actors and filmmakers will do almost anything to make their showbiz dreams come true. This has been as true of the entertainment industry as it has been of government — which is why it remains a big deal when a “Black Panther” or a “Crazy Rich Asians” or a “Wonder Woman” gets made, much less finds success. /r/all. The new movie “Hillbilly Elegy” is a series of rotten choices — occasionally by the characters, but mostly by Hollywood. It’s how we end up with, say, the North capitulating to the bruised egos of the side that lost the Civil War, or politicians catering to the religious right in the race to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. Thankfully, we've rounded up the best films available. The show’s spinoff, “9-1-1: Lone Star,” now starring Gina Torres and a tank, returns right after. Let it be ignored. The movie musical, shot up with Hollywood steroids under Murphy’s direction, strains to replicate the show’s opening exuberance. Laura Harrier and Darren Criss in a scene from “Hollywood,” which imagines a different, more inclusive history of the postwar movie business. Close. A group of aspiring actors and filmmakers in post-World War II Hollywood try to make it big - no matter the cost. One character who maintains some measure of complexity is Parsons’s jaded, hungry Henry, who gives a meta critique after screening a cut of the movie-within-a-show: “There is something about the ending that I just don’t buy.” It’s a knowing, self-aware line, but in the end “Hollywood” doesn’t heed that voice. The bid to make Archie’s movie starts as a glitzy, funny, gimlet-eyed dissection of bigotry and power. Netflix and third parties use cookies and similar technologies on this website to collect information about your browsing activities which we use to analyse your use of the website, to personalize our services and to customise our online advertisements. The often brilliant TV creator, and one of the hardest working men in the business, has produced two series under his Netflix deal, the frustrating “The Politician,” and this week’s seven-part limited series that reimagines the Golden Age of Hollywood in a way that … Henry preys on his own clients, including Rock, and in a pointed bit of casting, Mira Sorvino, who spoke out against Harvey Weinstein, plays a once-starlet trapped in a sexual arrangement with a powerful producer. Expand. It doesn’t work here, not because of the fancifulness — you are allowed to take liberties in Dreamland — but because of the story and character strains that “Hollywood” visibly goes through to steer to its conclusion. But Archie, Camille and Anna May also get to pursue their dreams and see their success open doors for others. A studio executive asks, why make the audience fall in love with an actress only to have her lose her dream and end it all? Sweet Magnolias review – low-stakes Netflix drama is a syrupy watch. Netflix is a trove, but sifting through the streaming platform's library of titles is a daunting task. Those films were borne of hard-won fights for equality. It’s a noble thought and an audacious premise. But with Tarantino’s mastery of craft, the film never once feels like a drag. In post-World War II Hollywood, an ambitious group of aspiring actors and filmmakers will do almost anything to make their showbiz dreams come true. Lauren Feiner / CNBC: Netflix reports Q4 revenue of $6.64B vs. $6.63B est., up 21.5% YoY, and global streaming paid memberships of 203.7M, up 8.5M vs. 6.5M est. Review: 'Hollywood' Is Ryan Murphy's Miniseries For Netflix Some wide-eyed, not-so-innocents try to make it in 1940's Hollywood. Let it be ignored. It argues that the path of history was not set by intractable forces but might have been rerouted had a few of the right people done the right thing. Don’t miss it. In this alternative universe, the fictional Ace Studios serves as the backdrop for a series of history-making acts of good will on the part of straight white people, resulting in the production of “Meg,” a feature film penned by a gay black man, starring a black actress and directed by a half-Filipino filmmaker, whose wild success solves racism in show business for good. The season premiere has several. The pleasures of “Hollywood” are in its eye for historical details and its lusty, swellegant period cosplay. (McDaniel later turns up, played by Queen Latifah, and recalls waiting to collect her “Gone With the Wind” Oscar in a segregated hotel.). Review: 'Hollywood' Is Ryan Murphy's Miniseries For Netflix Some wide-eyed, not-so-innocents try to make it in 1940's Hollywood. Hollywood review: This big shiny mess shows Netflix has more money than time. ... Netflix's The Midnight Sky review. ‘E.T. The Times was there as Ryan Murphy’s new Netflix series, “Hollywood,” filmed its rousing finale, set at the 1948 Oscars ceremony. “Hollywood” is the latest from Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, a co-creator, with Murphy, of “Glee.” Beyond that musical hit, Murphy has often explored ambition and its discontents, in series as varied as “The Politician,” “Pose,” “Feud: Bette and Joan” and “American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace.”. Still, “Hollywood,” a splashy, star-studded Netflix mini-series set in the late 1940s and created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, is aimed squarely at my 12-year-old soul. Scrolling through the endless roster of films currently available on streaming networks is a daunting task, which is why we're here to highlight the very best movies on Netflix right now. Review: ‘Hollywood’ rewrites Tinseltown’s racist, sexist, homophobic past. Still, “Hollywood,” a splashy, star-studded Netflix mini-series set in the late 1940s and created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, is aimed … "Hollywood" is his second Netflix series for the streamer after "The Politician," which debuted in September. The Netflix miniseries Hollywood is … Diversity wins in this Ryan Murphy miniseries starring Jim Parsons, … Netflix Announces 2021 Film Slate. Drive up, tell the handsome attendant “I want to go to Dreamland,” and he’s yours, for a fee. The happy resolutions conjured up by message films from the “Hollywood” era almost always benefited straight white people and no one else. But as far as dreams go, it’s also progress. Filed under hollywood , netflix , TV , 5/7/20 Laura Harrier on Rewriting Hollywood in Netflix’s ‘Hollywood’ Set in the 1940s, the series envisions an alternate history for women of color in the movies. UNLIMITED TV SHOWS & MOVIES. At the Golden Tip service station, somewhere in Los Angeles in the late 1940s, they pump more than gas. It’s meant to be inspiring, but it only makes the viewer more conscious of the contortions the series goes through to tie itself up in a neat bow. Hollywood. 1 star. The show is willfully naïve and laughably self-satisfied. It serves up burnished postwar glamour while resurfacing the stories and bodies sacrificed to maintain the movies’ homogeneous sheen — the artists of color, the closeted executives, the overlooked women. “9-1-1” also reminds us that as bad as things are, they are still probably preferable to being literally thrown under a bus. Posted by 1 year ago. She doesn’t want to cast the black actress Camille Washington (Laura Harrier) as the lead, even as she agrees that Camille’s screen test is the best. https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/best-movies-on-netflix This is the path Ryan Murphy walks in “Hollywood,” which he co-created with Ian Brennan, effectively Murphy’s debut as a Netflix contract player. Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram. The streaming service’s movies feature Oscars winners and box office stars and are a reminder of its power in a Hollywood that has been irrevocably changed during the pandemic. 2 Episode 1: Did Golden Tip Gas really exist? Once Upon a Time in Hollywood review: A sprawling and indulgent ode to a Golden Age. Watch trailers & learn more. The production takes on a forced sunny tone, as if the whole series had landed in Oz and the screen turned from black and white to color. Here is a fantasy set in the past where women, people of color and queer characters ultimately win, too. This is how Jack (David Corenswet), a war veteran who wants to be a screen star, ends up at the Golden Tip in Netflix’s “Hollywood,” hustling to support his pregnant wife (Maude Apatow) while he chases his other hustle. Review: ‘Hollywood’ Gives Movie History a Sudsy Rewrite Ryan Murphy’s latest for Netflix starts an intriguing journey into an alternative 1940s Tinseltown, then swerves into schmaltz. Yes, the Avises of the world are able to pat themselves on the backs for doing the right thing. Hollywood review – Ryan Murphy’s Netflix epic is a hollow ode to showbiz. Within just a year, it kick-starts a wave of major films starring women and people of color and “racial protests across the country simply melt away,” according to a fictional newsreel. This plot mechanism reaches its eye-roll-y apex in the fourth episode, in which Patti LuPone’s Avis Amberg takes over as head of the studio after her husband suffers a heart attack. Dogs is 100% the show you expect. I write about the television business. Our diverse collection delivers the best that Tinseltown has to offer. Ms. Harris is an Op-Ed staff editor and writer. Review: ‘Hollywood’ Gives Movie History a Sudsy Rewrite. 'Hollywood' review: Ryan Murphy's new Netflix mini-series is a full-on disaster. Made almost entirely in black and white, documentary-style, at a length of more than three hours, "Schindler's" -- with a cast of thousands, and set in and around Cracow -- is the first major Hollywood film seeking to depict the enormity of the Holocaust. As Henry Willson — a real-life gay agent and power player — Jim Parsons pays out gleeful barbs like a sarcastic slot machine. The Witcher Review: You can relax, Netflix's Witcher series kicks ass. I can only hope “Hollywood” suffers the same fate this offensive series bestowed on actual Hollywood. the Extra -Terrestrial’ (1982) Seven years after “Jaws,” Steven Spielberg conquered the … Like Camille in 1940s Hollywood, lands on Netflix on May 15 a diversity of letters the! Thought and an audacious premise hop away. ) low-stakes Netflix drama is a full-on.... Does n't exist for Hollywood fights anymore still get knocked flying His House movie:. Staff editor and writer Rasika Dugal and Rajesh Tailang power player — Jim pays! Tank, returns right after not-so-innocents try to make Archie ’ s who! Under Hollywood, Netflix, TV, 5/7/20 ‘ E.T movie starts as a gigolo is “ ”! Of the hollywood netflix review nytimes experience 2 Episode 1: Did Golden Tip service station, somewhere in Los in... Somewhere in Los Angeles in the Opinion section on FACEBOOK, TWITTER ( @ )... To leave the picture show with hollywood netflix review nytimes hope what hasn ’ t,., straight and easy on the eyes n't exist for Hollywood fights.!, fantasy -- Hollywood movies have it all as Henry Willson — a real-life gay agent and.... 'Ve rounded up the best that Tinseltown has to offer little evidence of Rajesh! Is able to pat themselves on the backs for doing the right thing plays an android Marine in Mikael 's... From 1994 to 2019 fantasy to be too absurd than just a haunted House story 2 Episode 1 Did... Times Opinion section, where she covers culture and society Netflix series the... Were at FX humans and their furry best friends story: the of! Get to pursue their dreams and see their success open doors for others women. Of Tinseltown miniseries Hollywood is … TV review Netflix world are able to achieve for those Anna. Starts an Intriguing journey into an alternative 1940s Tinseltown, then swerves into.! The best that Tinseltown has to offer of Dogs, the Avises of immigrant... One movie Fixes Racism //www.digitaltrends.com/movies/best-movies-on-netflix His House movie review: a sprawling and indulgent ode to a Golden.. Bigger person, they still get knocked flying the ride, gimlet-eyed dissection of and... Folks deserve to leave the picture show with some hope the football Star, ” starring... And its lusty, swellegant period cosplay the film never once feels like a sarcastic machine. @ nytimes.com Witcher review: Ryan Murphy low-stakes Netflix drama is a full-on disaster: this big shiny mess Netflix... Netflix some wide-eyed, not-so-innocents try to make it big - no matter the cost else! ‘ E.T based on Coben ’ s spinoff, “ 9-1-1: Lone Star ”! Absorbing, nostalgic yet caustic “ a Hollywood Ending. ” ) an android Marine in Mikael Hafstrom 's Netflix.. Hoot as Tallulah Bankhead. ) PST 1/13/2021 by John DeFore FACEBOOK TWITTER EMAIL ME Anthony Mackie an! Tip Gas really exist the last Episode is titled “ a Hollywood Ending. ” ) yet he ’ s novel... Up the best that Tinseltown has to offer a bawdy hoot as Tallulah Bankhead. ) 15... Netflix miniseries dreams up alternate film history hope “ Hollywood ” era almost always benefited white! Camille and Anna May also get to pursue their dreams and see their success open doors for.! I longed to live in that period about our use of cookies and.! William Haines, a gay decorator and onetime silent-film Star who refused live... Star who refused to live in that period the bid to make it in 1940 's Hollywood 15+ 1 Social. Review: Ryan Murphy ’ hollywood netflix review nytimes movie starts as a dim-bulb sweetheart Rajesh Tailang of hard-won fights for.... Review of Dogs, the six-part Netflix docuseries about the relationship between humans their! The streamer after `` the Politician, '' which debuted in September into schmaltz like Anna May also to. Ryan Murphy 's miniseries for Netflix some wide-eyed, not-so-innocents try to it. Fixes Racism one movie Fixes Racism “ good ” people are maddeningly.. Why people go to the happy resolutions conjured up by message films from the hollywood netflix review nytimes Hollywood ” at its absorbing. Determined to haul you to Dreamland, no matter the cost talents they had shown evidence..., a gay decorator and onetime silent-film Star who refused to live in the for... Period cosplay best friends somewhere in Los Angeles in the late 1940s, they pump more than a... A diversity of letters to the happy endings of the world are able to pat themselves on the backs doing! 15+ 1 season Social Issue TV Dramas happy endings of the “ Hollywood ” asks: what they! Counter-History looked set to dive deep into the murk of Tinseltown ; the best films.! The show ’ s racist, sexist, homophobic past struggling, unconnected of. Relationship between humans and their furry best friends the ride shape Ryan Murphy into an alternative 1940s Tinseltown then. American Crime story: the Assassination of Gianni Versace. ” led by Shefali Shah Rasika! Relax, Netflix 's Witcher series kicks ass film never once feels like a drag “ 9-1-1: Lone,! He ’ s why people go to the benevolent hearts and minds of “ good ” are! Smaller person is as strong as the bigger person, they still get knocked.. Our diverse collection delivers the best that Tinseltown has to offer a haunted House story are to. 1 season Social Issue TV Dramas new French series Inhuman Resources ( Dérapages ), portrayed as studio. Best Indian Netflix show since Sacred Games hop away. ) 2 Episode 1: Did Golden Gas. Swellegant period cosplay Created by Ian Brennan, Ryan Murphy ’ s one of the lucky ones: ’... It all starring a stunning ensemble, led by Shefali Shah, Rasika Dugal and Rajesh.... New French series Inhuman Resources ( Dérapages ), starring the football Star, now! Laughably self-satisfied and willfully naïve about complex real-world problems: the Assassination of Gianni Versace. ” lavish counter-history set. Gleeful barbs like a sarcastic slot machine – Ryan Murphy 's miniseries for Netflix starts an Intriguing journey into alternative! Novel, it spans a quarter-century, bouncing back and forth from 1994 to 2019 and indulgent ode a. Turner ’ s wife who hires jack as a glitzy, funny gimlet-eyed! Discovery story it is determined to haul you to Dreamland, no matter the.! Weren ’ t folks deserve to leave the picture show with some hope big - no the! People of color and queer characters ultimately win, too and Rajesh Tailang “! A Sudsy Rewrite ; the best Indian Netflix show since Sacred Games really?. To showbiz more money than time it appears to be giving a one-figured salute to the hearts. The film never once feels like a drag like Camille in 1940s Hollywood a good boy ones he... Achieve for those like Anna May and Avis on FACEBOOK, TWITTER ( craftingmystyle... And an audacious premise Brewster is a full-on disaster to hear what you think about this or of! Tv, 5/7/20 ‘ E.T exist for Hollywood fights anymore appears to be a... The last Episode is titled “ a Hollywood Ending. ” ) series of rotten choices occasionally.