James Franco was quite the prolific filmmaker prior to the recent allegations that he is an abusive predator, which has understandably caused him to fade into the background a bit further. The apex of his achievements came in the form of the incredible The Disaster Artist which brought the making of cult-classic The Room to the silver screen. This was far from his first adaptation as works from William Faulkner (As I Lay Dying, The Sound and the Fury) to John Steinbeck (In Dubious Battle) litter his IMDb page with low critical approval and basically zero cultural relevance. He does not seem to have a great track record for such work, but that does not stop him from trying. One of his latest to be released is an adaptation of Steve Erickson’s 2007 postmodern showbiz satire Zeroville. Filmed in 2014 but not released until late 2019, this messy tale once again finds the creative tackling material with gusto that would be better suited in different hands. There are intriguing ideas to be sure, but it lacks a cohesion that proves necessary for it to be the film it is trying to be.
The ode to showbiz lore follows Franco as Vikar, a “cine-autistic” wanderer and recent seminary dropout who has rolled into Hollywood on the same day as the Manson murders. He gets dragged into custody by two keyed-up officers (Danny McBride, Mike Starr) who suspect he may be involved in the massacre. Their only real “lead” is just his unusual appearance; the bald-headed Vikar sports a tattoo of Elizabeth Taylor and Montgomery Clift from A Place In The Sun stretched across the back of his head. This was the first film he ever watched – eleven months ago – and it really made an impact on him. This sheltered figure has lived a small life and the recent introduction of cinema has really turned his whole world upside down. He is released from custody and finds himself on a rapid ascension from set builder to savant movie editor under the tutelage of Dotty (Jacki Weaver, the gem of the film) who has edited many classics including A Place In The Sun. This nurturing of cinema is the most pure and enlightening section of the film.
Simultaneously the most entertaining and most indulgent aspects of the narrative are the near-constant references and depictions of classic cinema. Seth Rogen plays a figure known as Viking Man who serves as a loose caricature of John Milius. Rogen plays him to brash, cigar-chomping perfection as he takes a shine to oddball Vikar and pulls him deeper into the world of Hollywood. At parties we briefly meet figures such as Francis (Coppola), George (Lucas), Brian (De Palma), Steven (Spielberg) and Bob (Evans) with easy allusions to Jaws and the like. Vikar finds himself unintentionally falling into success as his quiet, forthright ways turns him into an unexpected revolutionary who a more normal city would be able to see was bordering on madness. This plays into the satirical nature of the piece as Hollywood is depicted as the Island of Misfit Toys.
As Vikar, Franco does a fine job but feels as if he is lacking a special spark that another performer may have been able to bring to the material. The remainder of the ensemble seems better suited to their characters from those previously mentioned to figures like an unbilled Will Ferrell as a blowhard studio executive who views sexual harassment as a right of passage. One of the most oddly humorous dynamics in the film is between Vikar and a burglar (Craig Robinson) who seems to be the only person around Vikar who shares a love for cinema in the same way that he does. When an intended robbery turns into a viewing of Sunset Boulevard complete with historical commentary from Robinson, it feels like it is hitting the right heightened reality in which this film feels comfortable. Megan Fox makes a solid impression as Soledad Paladin, a struggling actress who has been cut out of all of the best pictures. The narrative tries to force you to care about a relationship between the two, but that never really lands on an emotional level.
While the first half of the film mostly works in its Hollywood satire way, the latter half adopts some storylines from the source material that radiate a Lynchian vibe without the substance. Vikar’s belief that there is a “secret movie” contained within every movie ever made and questions regarding his true connection with Soledad are ultimately underwhelming and not compelling enough to try to find meaning within. Dotty introduces her philosophy of “fuck continuity” early on when discussing the editing process, and that ethos is tied a bit into the execution of this film as the passage of time is an enigma outside of passing references to films. The film has a dream-like quality that can be enjoyable in the moment but ultimately leaves you questioning everything you have just watched. Subsequent viewings may help iron out some of the nagging ambiguities that keep this one at arm’s length, but it seems just as likely that it would clarify the flaws within the script. Zeroville is an interesting mess of a film that keeps you engaged even when you know it does not completely work.
Video Quality
Zeroville comes to Blu-Ray in a 1080p presentation that features some truly beautiful moments. This is a visually rich film with gorgeous shots of nature and movie sets throughout where you can see an incredible amount of detail. The vivid colors really leap off the screen from the greens of the foliage to some of the colors in the clothing and production design. The white levels are handled beautifully, along with the fairly deep blacks that do not appear to suffer from any compression artifacts. There are no instances of intrusive digital noise in the presentation. Some of the interior footage can look a bit murky and lacking the sharpness of the open-air scenes. The skin tones look very detailed and natural all around. This presentation is definitely a winner from MVD Entertainment
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray disc comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that brings this environment to life perfectly. The music is showcased beautifully here with an enveloping use of the surround speakers. The dialogue comes through crystal clear without ever being overpowered by the sound effects or the score. The sound design is precisely executed with all of the sounds positioned just right in the mix. The environmental effects create a really nice soundscape of subtle party atmosphere sounds. This is not an action-heavy film, so the activity in the low end is primarily saved for musical moments. This is a lovely sounding release that brings the movie to life exactly how you would want it to.
Special Features
- Trailers: There are two trailers provided for Zeroville (2:27 & 3:00). There are also trailers provided for Action USA, Falcon Rising and Camino.
Final Thoughts
Zeroville is a flawed love letter to old school Hollywood that mostly succeeds when functioning as a straight satire of the industry but goes off the rails when it turns into a David Lynch-esque dreamscape. Franco is decent in the lead role, but the remainder of the ensemble outshine him. There are good elements here, but you cannot help but feel another filmmaker would have done a better job of shaping this story into something more interesting. MVD Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray that has a strong A/V presentation but not much in the way of special features. If you are a fan of the talent involved, it is worth a watch to see how it works for you.
Zeroville is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: MVD Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
