Hail, Caesar! Review
Hail, Caesar! is directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and follows an ensemble cast of Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Alden Ehrenreich, Ralph Fiennes, Scarlett Johansson, and Channing Tatum. It follows Josh Brolin as Eddie Mannix, Capitol Pictures’ fixer, as he attempts to resolve issues involving the many films in production and their stars as well as juggle his own personal life. The film places itself confidently into the world of early 1950s cinema and comments upon the issues of post-war America through the lens of filmmakers. The target audience is niche with Hail, Caesar!’s deep dive into film production as its primary agent of storytelling. However, that does not mean the average movie-goer will not be able to appreciate the Coen brothers masterful recreation of Hollywood’s golden age.
On the surface, the Coen Brothers created a simple “day in the life” film of lead Eddie Mannix that has viewers finishing the film asking themselves “what was the point?” Yet on closer inspection, Hail, Caesar! offers an analysis on how outward ideals differ from a gritty reality using an historical Hollywood to convey this message. It was key to place this movie within its chosen time period as 1950s cinema was viewed as pure and unadulterated. Hail, Caesar! shows the opposite and reveals that utopia is corrupt on the inside. Capitol Pictures is a clear representation of the capitalist model and is dichotomous to the communist “study group” that appears throughout the narrative with each being shown as fraudulent in their own ways. The filmmakers in the story put on a facade for each of their actors that mask their true, mistake-ridden selves. Similarly, the communists are shown preaching ideas of shared wealth and the body politic yet fight amongst themselves and bicker over money. The tainted but shiny Hollywood is especially prominent when the communists are shown to have subtly implanted their ideas into their films and easily converted actors to their cause. It tears down an idealized version of Hollywood and questions the nature of entertainment itself. The Coen Brothers attempt to walk this extremely fine line between legitimate critiques and a showcase of their world-building and characters, sometimes being more successful than others. Their shortcomings become apparent through inconsistency in their underlying messages as Hail, Caesar!’s existence itself is one major contradiction. The cracks in the themes are rare but still appear when the viewers realize that the Coen Brothers use entertainment to attack it.
Hail, Caesar!’s foundation is its setting and relies heavily on the expertly modeled version of old Hollywood. The Coen Brothers achieve this in part with their recreations of films ranging from westerns to dramas to musicals that feel like they could have been pulled straight from the 1950s. It also blurs the lines between film and reality through editing techniques and non-diegetic sounds. Similarly, the opening scene with Eddie Mannix taking a young actress away from a photoshoot bears a resemblance to 1940s noir. The narration, transitions, and score also all appear to be pulled directly from the style of Greek and Roman movies. However, the score that pays homage to Greek epics and the god-like narration are not used during Baird Whitlock’s version of Hail, Caesar! but instead the one that we as an audience see which is meant to easily draw parallels between the themes and plots of the two. This setting is also crucial to building the previously mentioned idea of appearance vs. reality as the films we see being made present themselves as perfect and pure. However, once it pulls away and allows the viewers to see the characters as actors, it is slowly revealed that public knowledge is hidden from the truth if the truth is bad press. Because of this, the setting becomes a character in and of itself and is by far the strongest part of the film making it often more entertaining to watch than the actual plot.
The narrative of Hail, Caesar! is a major weakness as the writers appear to have no urgency in the story they want to tell but just want to use the plot to express certain themes. In its essence, the story is quite loose and has no particular direction. It simply follows a man solving problems but has nowhere that it wants to go so that each issue that is resolved feels meaningless and has no payoff. As viewers, we watch Eddie handle certain cases like that of Scarlett Johansson’s character, DeeAnna Moran, whose illegitimate pregnancy would tarnish her image in the media. Yet in resolving this subplot, the story comes no closer to a conclusion. It’s a narrative diversion that is merely there with no actual importance to the story besides just being an example of what Eddie does for a living. The greatest film writers often discuss how every beat in a movie should make progress in the narrative and if one finds themself writing a scene that begins and ends at the same place then it should be cut. This is the most pressing issue in Hail, Caesar! and the story of Eddie Mannix finds itself many times with nowhere to go and no impactful story that it wants to tell. However, at the very least, there can be enjoyment in the film’s upbeat and comedic tone. The mood stays consistently lighthearted even when handling darker narrative turns and the Coen Brothers never try to take the film too seriously. This runs into trouble when certain comedic aspects fall flat such as a pair of twin reporters with alliterative names that appear too cartoonish for the world that is created. Yet the occasionally misguided attempts at humor can be overlooked for what is ultimately a funny-enough and appropriately positive tone.
The film also makes good usage of its star-studded cast. No actors stand out as being notably bad and I found each character to be extremely believable. They all appear to be a real person more than just an actor playing a part. This can too often be taken for granted since it’s easy to have a lack of believability when an actor presumes the life of a fictional human being. An especially noteworthy character for me was Alden Ehrenreich’s performance as a cattle wrestler turned western actor who lacked the talent to carry a drama. There is a certain irony in an actor performing exceptionally well in a role that is based around not knowing how to act and this part of the movie led to some quite funny and captivating moments. There is little surprise to have excellent character writing in a Coen Brothers film as that is a strong suit in many of their pictures. While the characters may lack the uniqueness or depth as those in other movies of theirs such as The Big Lebowski or No Country for Old Men, they are still delicately written and entertaining.
It is not made outwardly clear throughout the film, yet with some research it can be discovered that Eddie Mannix is actually inspired by a real life Eddie Mannix, a former fixer for MGM. This could either be obvious to the viewer or completely surprising dependent on their knowledge of the history of cinema. The real Mannix is shrouded in controversy who made many contributions to the film industry but whose life also consisted of affairs and alleged fake marriages, forced abortions, and murders. While I do not want to dive into a debate about his life, I do want to question the Coen Brothers depiction of the character. Mannix in the film shows glimpses of unethical behavior but never stoops as low as the supposed behavior of his real life counterpart. He is a patriarch of his family, loving father of two children, and a fixer because he does not want to take the easy way out in life. I find this to be an issue since historical inspiration was not a necessity for any of the characters. Hail, Caesar! could have been equally effective by utilizing an entirely fabricated character instead of making a real person appear to be kinder and more morally righteous than he has been shown in history.
Overall, Hail, Caesar! achieves everything that it set out to do. It had clear and thought-provoking themes and character driven plot points that were handled gracefully and with an understanding of the craft. Yet that does not mean that the film is without its faults. Its plot was quite uninspired and lacked any real focus or direction. It had little exigence in the story that it wanted to tell and viewers who choose to see this film should definitely not go in expecting a compelling narrative. For a regular movie-goer, this may also not be for all tastes as its target audience is niche and distinctly defined. It is quite obviously intended for lovers of film production and those who appreciate the foundations that built and inspired modern Hollywood. It does not reach the masterpiece status that many of the Coen Brothers films have achieved but is still an enjoyable experience nonetheless. Hail, Caesar! is a must see for cinephiles and Coen Brothers fans alike, however that is not meant to deter those who do not fit into those categories. The film creates a colorful world full of witty writing and characters that can please anyone if they are just able to overlook the faults. 8/10
