Jimmy Hollywood (BD)

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Joe Pesci has an extensive acting resume: He has played a gangster, a comedian, a thief, and a journalist. Outside of his acting credentials, he is a talented musician as well. His character of Joe LaMotta in “Raging Bull” (1980) garnered enough critical acclaim that it landed him a couple of awards. Of course, this was only the beginning. Sergio Leone’s “Once Upon a Time in America” (1983) made him comfortable in a gangster role. Later, he won an Oscar award in the Best Supporting category for playing a mobster in “Goodfellas” (1990). His gangster persona and his unique dialogue delivery probably by now have been overplayed. Soon, he started exploring the comedy genre, although with mixed success. Apart from “My Cousin Vinny,” Pesci has failed to impress an audience. His 1994 movie “Jimmy Hollywood,” directed by Barry Levinson, represents another of Pesci’s failed attempts at comedy.

Joe Pesci stars as Jimmy Alto, who is in a search of an acting gig in Hollywood. Even after having invested his own money in marketing himself, Jimmy is still out of luck. Jimmy, along with his friend William (Christian Slater), wanders in his neighborhood doing nothing, which soon results in tension with his girlfriend, Lorraine (Victoria Abril). Meanwhile, he is fed up with the gangs terrorizing his neighborhood, and with the help of William, he starts videotaping their criminal acts, which he later turns over to the police. Jimmy is now known as “Jericho” to the police and his community. Seeing, his image transformed to a local hero, Jimmy sees Jericho as a hero from a Hollywood movie. Meanwhile, the police suspect him as a criminal, and soon things get out of control.

“Jimmy Hollywood” provides a lackluster view of an aspiring Hollywood artist. It shows how difficult it is to get an acting break in Hollywood. Too bad Jimmy is totally worthless as an actor, and he is aware of this deficiency. At no point do you feel sorry for him. Instead, he takes us on an adventure that is incredibly dull, with only sparse moments of excitement. Nonetheless, Jimmy’s fascination in filming criminals is still prevalent in today’s media world, like TV reality shows and “Grand Theft Auto” games.

As the movie progresses, we know that Jimmy possesses immense knowledge about Hollywood: its actors, directors, and their styles. He is a guy who lives and breathes Hollywood in whatever he does. He aspires to be another James Cagney, Clint Eastwood, or Marlon Brando, and the film’s last sequence pretty much sums up his mind-set and obsession with Hollywood. Pesci sometimes shines in the role, although I thought he was really irritating at other times. He can carry the entire film, but then you wonder if he has the persona of a lead actor. Probably, I have watched him play a mobster in so many movies that I find it difficult to accept him in comedy roles. Maybe his nonstop talkative dialogue delivery gets to me. In addition, the script lacks any smart or witty dialogue, and as a result Pesci is left to do all the talking in the film.

For me, nothing worked in “Jimmy Hollywood.” Being a comedy movie, this one drags a lot in its running time of two hours. Had the script writers shortened the movie by twenty to thirty minutes, the entire experience could have been more embracing. As it turns out, this is a forgettable flick.


Video:
The 1080p, Blu-ray transfer for “Jimmy Hollywood” can best be described as inconsistent. The image looks dull and soft during close-ups. There is a fair amount grain in indoor and nighttime scenes. However, in daylight scenes the transfer comes to life, though not fully. The colors are well balanced but lack vibrancy. The image is rough in night scenes, with a lack of detail and poor contrast. We have seen better HD transfer of movies from the 90s, but this is definitely not one of them. The movie is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1.


Audio:
Lionsgate provides a 5.1 DTS-HD Master track for this release. The movie does not have action sequences, and as such, the movie’s soundtrack is driven by the front channels. The dialogue is clear, but it sounds a bit flat at times. Overall, the sound quality is acceptable. Also, provided is the option to view the movie with Spanish subtitles.


Extras:
There are no extras included on this disc, not even a theatrical trailer.


Parting thoughts:
Director Barry Levinson has created many good movies, but “Jimmy Hollywood” is not one of them. The movie is a drag, devoid of any smart or witty dialogue. Joe Pesci is acceptable, but the script lacks direction and tightness, and that only makes the movie an underwhelming effort.

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