Review: ‘Hail Caesar!’ has a lot of funny moments but it never strings them into single film

Posted on February 12, 2016

By MARK VIOLA

Ethan and Joel Coen, known best as the Coen brothers, are some of the best filmmakers in the business, typically writing, directing and even editing their films themselves. Over the past three decades, they’ve been responsible for such films as “Raising Arizona,” “Fargo,” “The Big Lebowski,” “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” “No Country for Old Men” and “True Grit.”

While I admittedly haven’t seen their entire collection of films, I do typically try to see each new movie they produce. When I saw the trailers for their latest effort, “Hail Caesar!” and saw that it was a rather whimsical look at the Golden Age of Hollywood, I was hooked.

Having now seen the film, I can say it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, and while it’s not a bad movie, it’s not a great one either. There is plenty to like to be sure, from its zany characters and even zanier situations, but it lacks a narrative drive to keep the story moving forward at a pace to keep us engaged. There are plenty of humorous moments, but they never string together into a cohesive plot, so when the film wasn’t actively making me laugh or being overly creative, it definitely lagged.

That missing drive to the story, along with a lack of a true antagonist, may leave you wondering just exactly what you saw. In fact, as I left the theater, the guy walking next to me asked his girlfriend that very question, “What did I just see?” Now I’ve heard that before, and most of the time, I think the people asking it just weren’t paying attention, but this time, I can’t really argue with the sentiment, because I’m not entirely sure either.

You’re enjoyment of “Hail Caesar” will be directly proportional to your interest in homages to old-school 50s Hollywood films, because they are quite good, and the acting is excellent from top to bottom. But if that doesn’t sound like a entertaining 106 minutes, then this probably isn’t for you.

The film is rated PG-13 for some suggestive content and smoking.

(This is a abbreviated version of the full review available in our printed or e-edition papers.)

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