Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of 'Charlie's Angels' (2004) (TV)

User Rating:

5.2/10   

Director:

Francine McDougall

Writers (WGA):

Jack Condon (book) &
David Hofstede (book) ...

Release Date:

8 March 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Actress | Beautiful Woman

Cast

Christina Chambers	...	Jaclyn Smith
Dan Castellaneta	...	Aaron Spelling
Dan Lauria	...	Fred Silverman
Wallace Langham	...	Jay Bernstein
Tricia Helfer	...	Farrah Fawcett-Majors
Lauren Stamile	...	Kate Jackson
Ben Browder	...	Lee Majors
Bruce Altman	...	Leonard Goldberg
Michael Tomlinson	...	Barney Rosenzweig
Bill Dow	...	David Doyle
Adrian Hough	...	Frederick Pierce
Chelsea Watson	...	Cheryl Ladd
Brandy Ledford	...	Candy Spelling
Adrian Holmes	...	Stevie Wonder
David Palffy	...	Telly Savalas

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Filming Locations:

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Michael G. Larkin Productions

Trivia:

Lee Majors, says that he never told then wife Farrah Fawcett that she had to quit the show because he needed his food on the table when he got home from shooting his series "The Six Million Dollar Man" (1974). This was a rumor that had been floating around Hollywood for sometime that made its way into this production.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The sound mixing board used to record the Charlie voice over did not exist in 1975-76.

Quotes:

Lee Majors: I used to have a wife gave me great backrubs. Yeah, those were the days.
Farrah Fawcett-Majors: Let's not fight...
Lee Majors: She found another guy: Charlie. What's that som'bitch got that I don't?

Movie Connections:

References "American Idol: The Search for a Superstar" (2002)

Once upon a time.....TV shows became fodder for TV movies!

Another recent trend in Hollywood is filming "untold" or "behind the scenes" TV films about previously broadcast TV series...a continuation of the cannibal-like cycle of television programming. Previous TV shows that got this treatment include "Gilligan's Island", "The Partridge Family" and "Three's Company". They're like "E! True Hollywood Stories" with doppelganger actors playing out all the juicy tidbits instead of relying on interviews or footage. This time, "Charlie's Angels" is the subject and, all in all, it isn't too bad. The makers of this flick have gathered 3 ladies who truly do look and sound like the ones they are portraying. That goes a long way in putting the project over. Helfer as Farrah Fawcett-Majors has the hair down pat and shares the wall-to-wall smile, tan and bone structure. The only big difference is that she isn't quite as ditsy-acting as the real lady was. Stamile as Kate Jackson does a tremendous job with the voice. It had to have taken work and she nails it. Chambers as Jaclyn Smith is startlingly right-on in both looks and mannerisms...even her posture and stride. They all are so good at inhabiting the original trio that it does give one that sense of being "Behind the Cameras". The film has ample humor in it as well, with intentionally hammy portrayals of Aaron Spelling, Jay Bernstein and Fred Silverman. There is also a running gag of show ideas that keep getting turned down even though later they were unbelievable successes. If one has seen any documentary on the series or biographies of the stars, there isn't much new here. Still, it's a fairly captivating two hours for those who enjoy '70's nostalgia, '70's clothing or the series itself. One drawback is the lunk-headed, humorless, one-sided portrayal of Lee Majors. It's true that he had some Cro-Magnon views on marriage, but this teleplay makes it impossible to understand why Farrah would have married him in the first place.