willman85

Boiler Room aka Lost in Hollywood can best be described as The Wolf of Wall Street but in the world of telesales instead of stock-market trading.

I found the whole story pointless, with the ending unsatisfying; and while I didn't find the film boring and unengaging, I did find the whole affair a waste of time. I did like the setting and the idea. Unfortunately, like Scarface the story was all rather gratuitous and doesn't seem to have a point other than some vague moral of 'try not to be like these people, ok?'

There really isn't much more to say than I already have. The story doesn't have very much to it. Cool cover art though.

Peter LaVilla is at his best when he's attempting comedy. This is his attempt at drama, and it fails at first step. A character study, they are so one-dimensional as to be cartoons. With his rom-coms, his vanity as a human being carries through to the characters he plays, and it makes their journeys more satisfying, as well as being funny. Here, the vain character played by Sally Kirkland lacks that authentic edge he had. She's nothing more than a caricature. Rosemary Gore puts in a fair performance as the titular Mollie; and it might seem as if multi-Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominee Sally Kirkland would contribute something if not authenticity. Unfortunately the low-rent production drags her down with it, and her accolades mean nothing. She's been in two hundred films including Private Benjamin, JFK and Bruce Almighty, but you'd never guess.

The film is set mostly inside the shelter and it gets a bit monotonous. Being character-based with few sets, it could easily have been a play instead... so why wasn't it? Why waste money shooting a movie - with a Hollywood veteran no less?

Screenwriters just think 'teenage protagonist' + 'teenage issues' = story. Rarely do they ask 'why teens specifically?' Teenagers have a blinkered outlook. There is also raging hormones, an irrepressible impulse to do certain more grown-up things, the opposite ***'s insidious physical maturation, the confusing conflict between libidinal energy and romantic love, and the pressures of school and parents. You can't blame grown-ups for forgetting all this. Teens aren't just immature adults - they're people who are dealing with a lot of things for the first time. And at the same time. It is as much an irony that they live such a blinkered existence at a time they could really do with vision and foresight, as it is that Romeo and Juliet committed suicide.

Here, we have a laser focus on teen angst. Several Ways to Die Trying is a film that is mostly dialogue. It is a real dynamic between the two characters, who we stick with like glue. It is a sweet, heartfelt tale. They're both performed well, too - especially for the production's small scale.