I imagine that Bobby Daris must have been one of Kevin Spacey's fantasies or obsessions. It clearly blinded him. Much like Norma Desmond in "Sunset Boulevard" seeing herself as the young and sensual Salome. Did Kevin Spacey really believed that one line of dialog "you're too old to play yourself" was enough to redeem the fact that he was too old to play Bobby Darin? I think that age was just one of the problems. Bobby Darin's success was based, mostly, on his persona. A good singer yes, but his quirky, sexy presence did the rest. Kevin Spacey is a good actor, specially playing devious characters or insignificant people but one could hardly call him sexy. The film has some wonderful moments, terrific musical numbers, an unrecognizable and very funny Greta Scacchi as Sandra Dee's mother, but it would have been such a great, intelligent move,on Mr Spacey's part to keep himself behind the camera and find the perfect Bobby Darin to nurture the legend. Well, I assume that the portrayal of a fragile ego by an egomaniac makes some sense somewhere along the line.
Review of Beyond the Sea
