Hail, Caesar! Hail, Coen!

Release Date：Feb/06/2016
Genre：Comedy/Mystery
Director：Ethan Coen、Joel Coen
Cast：Josh Brolin、George Clooney、Alden Ehrenreich、Ralph Fiennes、Scarlett Johansson

Viola's Rating：7.5

Oscar winning Coen brothers’ latest feature film Hail, Caesar! was released on Feb. 5. Being known for genre-bursting films, this time, neo-noir directors Ethen Coen and Joel Coen gave their fans a mysterious comedy which still combines their favorite element, Western.

Originally, the story of Hail, Caesar! was set to take place in 1920s featuring a group of actors performing a play about ancient Rome, but the Coens changed the idea in late 2013 to a concept presenting Hollywood.

As a story within a story, the plot of Hail, Caesar! is set in the 1950s, and it’s about a Hollywood fixer, Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin), who works to keep stars in his studio in line. A fixer is someone who’s good at arranging things and solving problems, and sometimes by using dishonest methods. This specific position in the motion picture is a special job created in Hollywood as a “cleaner” to clean up and cover scandals of the celebrities.

Similar to how Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman presents theater, while conveying the message they want to tell, Coen brothers show the audience how it is like to make movies in Hollywood back in 1950s. Through different aspects such as acting, casting, directing, editing, even capitol meetings and how stars deal with media on their scandals are shown in the movie in an amusing way.

Besides Coen brothers’ multiple time cooperative partners Frances McDormand and Josh Brolin, as the protagonist, casting Ellen Chenoweth got a bunch of A-list stars in Hail, Caesar!, for instance, Channing Tatum, George Clooney, Jonah Hill, Ralph Fiennes, Scarlett Johansson and Tilda Swinton. With different story lines happening in the picture at the same time, merely watching these amazing actors and actresses is an ecstasy.

With the calm narration throughout the feature film, Hail, Caesar! not only reveals the Old Classic Hollywood but also gives moviegoers a chance to peep into the industry. Watching films like Birdman or Entourage satisfies the desire of getting a closer look at the lives of celebrities, and the ambience in Hail, Caesar! is even sharper because it’s from the fixer’s perspective.

Besides the narrative of the story, there are some dancing and singing scenes which provide an optimistic and upbeat atmosphere even though the characters are facing chaos. Laughter is heard from the audience at the theater all the time.

Although compared to other Coen brothers’ motion pictures, Hail, Caesar! seems to lack a compelling final scene to put all the pieces together, it’s still a fulfilling comedy that brings you back to the 50s.