The Big Picture (1989)

If you are thinking about being a filmmaker, you need to see this. It has so many real world aspects that are Hollywood. Christopher Guest does a great job on his first feature. The funniest part is Martin Short as the goofy agent. I wish I'd seen this before I got involved in the business. I would have been prepared. It holds up well considering it is 28 yrs old. The script structure is very commercial in that everything moves as it should and we all live happily ever after. Terry Hatcher is quintessential as an actress out for herself and her next role. I think my favorite line is "I fought for you". Kevin says this to his DP when in fact he didn't fight for him. This has happened to me in real life.

Film school grad Nick Chapman (Kevin Bacon) thought his career was made after his award winning short film, but discovered Hollywood wasn't as easy as it seems.Greenlit by David Puttnam of Columbia Pictures, the president was ousted two weeks after production began, and the subsequent regime at the studio, according to Guest, were unable to figure out what could be done with the film as many executives at the studio didn't like the film because they felt like they were being brutally satirized in it. Columbia quietly gave The Big Picture a limited theatrical release (despite opening to positive reviews) before sending it to video.With all the names attached o this film, the clever writing and positive message, it is amazing this one slipped under the radar. It might satirize Hollywood, but by no means do I feel it insults it or calls out anyone in particular (though, who knows what the writer had in mind).I especially enjoyed the role played by Jennifer Jason Leigh. She may be one of the best actresses of modern times, no one seems to recognize it. Between "Fast Times" (1982) and "Hateful Eight" (2015), no one seems to have noticed her. And why not? She was dynamite in so many things, and this film is the evidence.

We have a fairly new movie channel called "Movie!" and it shows quite nice, older movies. I found this one on yesterday.Released in 1989 and probably filmed in 1988, a young 30-ish Kevin Bacon stars as Nick Chapman. His character is probably early 20s, graduating filmmaker and his short film wins a student contest.The thrust of the movie, and its story, is how first, Hollywood gets on the trail of a new young filmmaker, often without even seeing his winning film. And second, after seducing him into working with them to make his new film, they start asking him to change things that will drastically alter his story.Here Nick has a love-triangle story set in the winter, with two men and a woman in a vacation cottage. The first requested change is to make it a man and two women, and the women have an affair, changes that make it a totally different story.Of course Guest is his own guy, a truly independent filmmaker, known for shooting 5X or 10X or more film than is needed, and building a movie in the editing room. So this is his parody on the corporate Hollywood machine, and how a young filmmaker needs to stick to his principles.I found it mildly interesting, it was also fun to see some of today's veteran actors in younger roles.

The Big Picture is an under-rated, excellent and funny movie with solid performances all around. The comments by Guest and Bacon in the Extra Features section (evidently made years after the movie's release) are entertaining as well, adding another level of behind-the-scenes to this behind-the-scenes flick. Especially interesting was the tidbit about life imitating art regarding a disaster plot point in the movie that almost happened *to* The Big Picture while it was being made - and came near to shutting it down. Also interesting was Guest's insistence that the actual interference of management in the creative process (with bozo ideas thrown out wily-nilly during script "development" meetings) is often more outrageous than that depicted in the film.Only disappointment was that the deleted Billy Crystal scene mentioned by Guest was not included in the DVD's Extra Features' Deleted Scenes.