Maps to the Stars (2014)

A tour into the heart of a Hollywood family chasing celebrity, one another and the relentless ghosts of their pasts.

Director:

David Cronenberg

Writer:

Bruce Wagner (screenplay)

Stars:

Julianne Moore, Mia Wasikowska, Robert Pattinson

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 8 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Julianne Moore	...	Havana Segrand
Mia Wasikowska	...	Agatha Weiss
John Cusack	...	Dr. Stafford Weiss
Evan Bird	...	Benjie Weiss
Olivia Williams	...	Christina Weiss
Robert Pattinson	...	Jerome Fontana
Kiara Glasco	...	Cammy
Sarah Gadon	...	Clarice Taggart
Dawn Greenhalgh	...	Genie
Jonathan Watton	...	Sterl Carruth
Jennifer Gibson	...	Starla Gent
Gord Rand	...	Damien Javitz
Justin Kelly	...	Rhett
Niamh Wilson	...	Sam
Clara Pasieka	...	Gretchen Voss

Storyline

The Weiss family is the archetypical Hollywood dynasty: father Stafford is an analyst and coach, who has made a fortune with his self-help manuals; mother Cristina mostly looks after the career of their son Benjie, 13, a child star. One of Stafford's clients, Havana, is an actress who dreams of shooting a remake of the movie that made her mother, Clarice, a star in the 60s. Clarice is dead now and visions of her come to haunt Havana at night... Adding to the toxic mix, Benjie has just come off a rehab program he joined when he was 9 and his sister, Agatha, has recently been released from a sanatorium where she was treated for criminal pyromania and befriended a limo driver Jerome who is also an aspiring actor.

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Plot Keywords:

aspiring actor | male frontal nudity | male full frontal nudity | sex | dysfunctional family | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong disturbing violence and sexual content, graphic nudity, language and some drug material

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

Canada Germany France USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 February 2015 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bailey's Quest

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$143,422 (USA) (27 February 2015)

Gross:

$347,648 (USA) (27 March 2015)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Prospero Pictures, Sentient Entertainment, SBS Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In an almost 50-year career, this was the very first time that David Cronenberg ever filmed anything in the United States (his previous movies were mostly shot in Canada or the UK). The film shot for 5 days in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills (location manager Scott Trimble) and 24 days in Cronenberg's native Toronto (location manager Marty Dejczak).

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Goofs

When Jerome is driving Havana, they are in a long wheelbase 'L' version of Lincoln Town Car, when they've arrived at her house and are having sex in the back, they are in a standard wheelbase version (it has a shorter quarter glass section in the rear door window).

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Quotes

Jerome Fontana: I think you are a little crazy.
Agatha Weiss: So?

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Connections

References Oprah's Next Chapter: Lance Armstrong the Worldwide Exclusive Part I (2013)

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Soundtracks

Hell Blazer
Written by Supafly and Omar G

User Reviews

Cronenberg now an 'auteur' of weirdness

We used to expect gross-out horror from David Cronenberg. Now he gives us weird and weirder. MAPS TO THE STARS is set in a Tinseltown of designer homes, designer shops and exclusive restaurants. The background 'sheen' is reminiscent of an Almodovar movie, plus there's a Gothic element borrowed from Shyamalan (Agatha and Benjie see dead people). Julianne Moore's performance is in the kind of hyper-drive she brought to BOOGIE NIGHTS, which helps to power the movie's gearshift from Hollywood satire into violent melodrama. One of the themes is incest, which surely needed a deeper and subtler exploration.

Robert Pattinson takes another step away from the Twilight Zone in the role of a limo driver with screen writing aspirations (like every other chauffeur in Los Angeles). Cronenberg is clearly reaching out towards a more discerning class of viewer. MAPS TO THE STARS is very much an 'auteur' movie, highly intelligent and stylized, but perhaps perched uncomfortably between satire and psychodrama.