The Last Temptation of Kevin Spacey?

Whenever Filmbrain is feeling a bit self-abusive, he buys one or more of the many screenwriting magazines that are published each month just so he can be reminded of how sadly pathetic the art has become, and what passes for great screenwriting these days. Page after page of articles that basically say the same thing -- follow the rules, remain formulaic, have a concept, grab them by page three, don't write characters the audience hates, etc. etc. Between all the sycophantic gushing and hearty back-slapping there's very little in the way of genuine criticism or screenplay analysis, though there are plenty of pages dedicated to the busine$$ -- articles such as "Show Us The Money!", "Remakes: Why Waste Time With Originality?", or "How Do I Get A Damn Manager?!" Then there are the motivational articles ("Believe Your Way To Success!") or tips from the screenwriter of the Rollerball remake on how to write a great action scene. Of course, no issue would be complete without reading about the various six-figure spec script deals for films about talking pies, King Arthur on a skateboard, or the highly original "three childhood friends decide to rob a bank". Sigh. Ben Hecht, Billy Wilder, Budd Schulberg -- where are you when we need you most? Excuse the slight off-topic rant. Yes, there are still some wonderful screenwriters out there, but apparently few of them are interesting enough for these publications. Occasionally there will be a worthwhile article, such as the one in the latest issue of Creative Screenwriting about the Bobby Darrin biopic acted, directed, and produced by Kevin Spacey, Beyond the Sea. (According to the article, Spacey was a co-writer of the screenplay, but IMDB doesn't list him as such, giving sole credit to Lewis Colick.) Filmbrain's first exposure to Spacey was in 1992's Glengarry Glen Ross, and it was remarkable how he was able to hold his own against such greats as Pacino and Lemmon. That same year he gave a wonderfully creepy performance in the otherwise forgettable Consenting Adults, and two years later showed his talent for dark comedy in Swimming With Sharks. 1995 was his breakout year -- both Se7en and The Usual Suspects were mega-hits, and it was his performance in both that helped those films achieve their great success. He ran hot and cold for the next couple of years until his Oscar winning performance in American Beauty. But then....what happened? He did back-to-back feel-good films (Pay it Forward, K-PAX), and a few films that were outright bombs, or simply forgotten (The Shipping News, The Life of David Gale, The United States of Leland). How and why did this interesting, hugely talented actor continually wind up in such duds? When Filmbrain first heard that Spacey was going to do the life story of Bobby Darin, he was excited -- it seemed a perfect role for Spacey, and he's a good singer to boot. But as a director -- that's another story. His first and only other venture behind the camera, 1996's Albino Alligator showed that he had a modicum of talent, but there was nothing remarkable about it. Judging by the article, he seems much more comfortable this time around, though the scope of the project is far larger than a tiny hostage film. The article tells how Spacey wanted to do this project for years, even back when Barry Levinson was going to direct it. Having finally acquired the rights in 2000, Spacey spent the next few years doing the research as well as desperately trying to find funding for the project. Though Filmbrain wonders if Beyond the Sea will be anything beyond a typical biopic, there is a quote from Spacey in the article that got Filmbrain's attention (and was the original inspiration for this post): "Well, if there are two movies that were guideposts for me in developing this movie, they would be 8 1/2 and All That Jazz." If Spacey is true to his word and has managed to channel a bit of Fellini and Fosse, Beyond the Sea could be one of the most interesting movies of the year. However, Filmbrain's inner, cynical voice keeps repeating - Sylvia, Man on the Moon, Bride of the Wind, A Beautiful Mind. . . Will this be the film that re-propels Spacey to the top, or will it be his downfall? We'll know in a couple of weeks.

Comments

[Greg Samsa]

Still waiting for the Hong Sang-Soo interview, come on little buckaroo!

[dvd]

I saw Beyond The Sea last week, and it's definitely better than those four rather turgid biopics you listed. While Spacey doesn't completely avoid the problems that typically come of fitting a real person's life story into two hours, he does his best to jazz things up and break the mold -- and the Fellini/Fosse influence is certainly evident (the latter more than the former).

[rob leickner]

You didn't mention LA confindential-where I thought he did and admiral job of playing up the Dean Martin myth. I haven't seen Beyond the Sea but I might check it out. I don't think it'll be up to the standards of American Splendor but what biopic is?

[Filmbrain]

Great biopics -- a good topic for discussion.

I agree with you wholeheartedly about American Splendor. Another that comes to mind in a flash is Lawrence of Arabia.

[Tim]

Beyond the Sea's a pretty sad exercise in narcissism. It plays less like anything close to a biopic of Bobby Darin and more like a commercial for all that is Kevin Spacey, singer, dancer, director, actor, ageless wonder, writer, putrid self promoter. However, you haven't really lived until you've seen Spacey in way tight red pants high kicking along with a chorus of actresses in their early twenties. (The joke here is that he's supposed to be the same age as them, as he's playing Darin at the beginning of his career in the sequence. This conceit, a forty or fifty something year old actor playing a twenty something singer/actor, is made even creepier during his scenes with Kate Bosworth.)

[dvd]

Following that comment, I should probably note that I went into Beyond The Sea without any knowledge of Bobby Darin, aside from the title song and 'Splish Splash.' Not knowing what he looked like probably helped me accept Spacey in the role. And I was pretty damn impressed with his dancing.

Great biopics: Raging Bull, Ed Wood and Nixon are the first three that always pop into my mind.

[Ed]

There were close to 25 writers on this project before it came to the screen, but several of them did not want their names on the final project because Spacey's draft was so different. I played a minor role in the pre-production of this film and read many drafts of the script and can say that before this was shooting, the idea was that this was going to be "experimental" of sorts and would be highly influenced by Fosse. I was left rather cold by the experimental style and feel that Spacey is such a charming guy, his talents don't benefit from such regimented material.

[Filmbrain]

25?! Ouch -- that's a bad sign.

Not having seen the film, I obviously can't comment on the success/failure of the experimental style, but based on the comments above, it doesn't sound all that great, and I'm afraid Tim's comment is probably spot on. Still, narcissistic projects can be fun. (Think of Kinski's Paganini).

[vivian]

Even though some of Kevin's post-American Beauty films did not do well at the box office,HIS performances in them were ALWAYS on the mark.After seeing his concert in SF last weekend ,I am convinced there is nothing he can't do in the entertainment category.The audience was just blown away by his talent.Fortunately,the man has chosen to go his own way instead of worrying about what the critics have to say.I can't wait until the film comes to my local theater!

[gwenda]

Sadly, at least one of the screenwriters on the Rollerball remake -- Howard Rodman -- is an awesome writer and one of Hollywood's best... he wrote F. (one of the best unproduced scripts around) and Joe Gould's Secret.

[phyrephox]

As someone who has no interest in seeing this film, what exactly is "experimental" about it?

[freethinker]

Bobby Darin Not the Man,The talent, style, and the story of his music I believe is what Kevin had in mind. Get past the age. See and hear the history value.. P.S. I am 65. Just a teenage with Bobby Darin. Believe me, That Teenager inside, is not what you would see if we passed in the night.

[a]

i hate the fucker

[Merle]

..he produced, driected, sang, danced his own numbers...quiet remarkable. I loved the movie and the soundtrack. I played it for my mom who is in her late 70's and knows what Babby Darin sounds like. She thought that it was him...it was Kevin Spacey.

He's a great actor and takes on very interesting roles and projects. Thumbs up! Aloha!