The Player (1992)reviewed by Benn "Where's the Humanity?" Farrell
Based on the novel by Michael Tolkin, "The Player" is about a Hollywood studio executive named Griffin Mills, played by Academy Award® winner Tim Robbins (Mystic River), who is being blackmailed by a disgruntled writer whose script he rejected; however, Mills can't tell which script or which writer. Eventually, the executive thinks he found the writer, a non-successful bitter drunk named David Kahane, played by Vincent D'Onofrio (The Cell), and accidentally kills the writer in a fight. Soon after, the blackmail continues, making Mills realize he's killed the wrong culprit. The movie is my favorite directorial work from Robert Altman (Short Cuts, Gosford Park) and it's loaded with Hollywood insider jokes. Not only that, it also holds the record for having the most celebrity walk on performances and cameos in movie history. I believe it's 69, most of which appeared for no pay. Altman asked every person he knew in the entertainment business to be in the picture. In every case where a celebrity had a cameo with dialogue, the actor(s) improvised every line. The best thing about the movie is the mystery of the blackmail. You really want to know where the clues are going to lead Mills, or the police investigating him for Kahane's murder. You get very wrapped up into the story. Robbins did well as the uptight a**hole Mills. Fred Ward (Tremors) also did a good job as the studio's head of security who's always walking around like he's a Hollywood player himself. Cynthia Stevenson (Forget Paris) also did a great job as Mills' starting girlfriend and studio script girl Bonnie. We haven't seen much of Stevenson since, except for the "Agent Cody Banks" movies. Richard E. Grant (Spiceworld) as filmmaker Tom Oakley and Dean Stockwell (TV's Quantum Leap) as his manager were also a hoot later in the film. The worst part of the movie is the screentime devoted to the building romance between Mills and Kahane's girlfriend June, played by Gretta Scacchi (Presumed Innocent). With the exception of their first scene over the phone, each scene between the two characters seemed to slow the picture down. Maybe it was a lack of chemistry between Robbins and Scacchi. My favorite choice director Altman made for this work was the 8-minute tracking shot to open the picture, while having characters talk about the lengthy tracking shots in both "A Touch of Evil" and "The Sheltering Sky." What's more, the entire shot was unscripted, as far as dialogue goes, and improvised by the many actors involved in it. It was masterful. The entire shot took fifteen takes. Overall, I think this is one of the most original thrillers to come out of the early 1990s. It's very well paced, minus the romance scenes, and keeps its viewer wondering what's going to happen next, or at least which celebrity will make a cameo next. I think it's well worth seeing, as I did when I saw it in the theater in 1992. Benn - Where's the Humanity?
I love that this movie serves two functions; one, it shows an insider's look at the cutthroat nature of the Hollywood film industry, and two, it is an original thriller with an off beat Hollywood ending.