Director: David Cronenberg
By Alex Watson
The more recent career of David Cronenberg has been a real departure from his old 1980's insanity and of late, he has focused more towards the focusing on the problems of real people. But the results have not wavered in quality and films such as Eastern Promises and A History of Violence have shown a more honest yet brutally violence side of Toronto's finest. After a mixed reception at the Cannes Film Festival, he brings us his vision of a dark Hollywood in Maps to the Stars.
Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore) is a fading Hollywood starlet who is currently clinging to one final chance of fame by hoping to be cast in a remake of the famous 1960's movie that starred her mother. In the process of reclaiming herself, she hires the mysterious and burn scarred Agatha (Mia Wasikowska) a girl recently arrived in LA with a dark past as her PA. Agatha happens to be the daughter of noted psychotherapist Stafford Weiss (John Cusack) whose family is fighting the drug addiction problems of their 13 year old child star son Benjie (Evan Bird).
Maps to the Stars is an intriguing look by Cronenberg at the shallowness and greed of the Hollywood dream, but sadly it is a dense and rather incomplete one. The original script by Bruce Gadon seems slightly uncertain about where it really wishes to go and we are left with a rather messy criss-cross of story lines. Through the hauntingly shot cinematography of Peter Suschitzky, the movie is given a disturbing aura that makes this dream look like a nightmare vision, but luckily the movie has enough black humour and savage quips about the industry to be an enjoyable enough ride.
Central to the story is fame-obsessed Havana, who is plagued by belittling visions of her famous but sexually abusive actress mother. Here we have a woman who is still clinging her every aging beauty and is convinced that her ticket to fame is a vehicle that once carried her mother. Her age is a constant worry throughout Cronenberg's movie as she knows the roles will soon dry up as the clock ticks over. Havana is a creation that is a great example of tragic self obsession that is very real and painfully honest. Her furious reaction to one piece of casting news is truly frightening as we feel the bitterness flowing out of her like a hose on full blast!
It could be argued that the movie's true shake up is one that arrives in the first frame in Agatha. Arriving from Florida with her arms covered in long black gloves, this lady quickly attaches herself into the main characters lives, including wannabe actor/ limo driver Jerome (Robert Pattinson). She at first relishes the prospect of being Havana's PA but soon begins to learn that this one job that comes with a heavy weight. Throughout Maps to the Stars, Agatha is verbally bashed by the acid tongued actress to almost nasty extremes. Her relationship to her family though, is one that isn't fully explored and the movie loses some needed tension from this.
We are made aware of a tragic incident involving a fire when Agatha was younger that resulted in Stafford ensuring that she was put away. A brooding sense of hate and conflict is conspicuously absent from the story and gives this tale a rather dimensionless feel to it. The side story of mega star son Benjie who is a recovering drug addict has legs, especially as the spoiled punk's multi million grossing film allows him to throw insults at his suffering agent such as 'Jew Faggot' but feels more like a filler than a meaty chunk for the story to devour. The finale doesn't deliver a conclusion that satisfies all tastes and to many, this will most likely leave you feeling slightly baffled at its meaning.
Winner of the Best Actress at Cannes, Julianne Moore gives a tour de force performance as Havana and this could well prove to be the best of her career. Far from being more graceful with age, Moore magnificently portrays and wild and unpredictable monster whose engrossed yet self aware persona is gradually chipping away her chances for success. Mia Wasikowska is also equally impressive as the chatty yet enigmatic Agatha and effortlessly she holds our attention and at times sympathies as she becomes increasingly put upon by her new employer.
The males of the film are treated less fairly as John Cusack and Robert Pattinson are wasted in one note roles that are given little to draw us to them. Evan Bird scores highly though and his excellent portrayal the archetypical hollywood brat marks him out as a real talent to watch in future.
Maps to the Stars may not have been the accomplished picture that many had hoped for, but it does continue Cronenberg's fine run of modern day form. This further demonstrates what a proficient film maker the Canadian has become in his 45 year career. Hollywood has never looked so horrifying!
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