This movie is a slightly surreal comedy about moviemaking. It's told with the perspective (if not always from the point of view) of a young fugitive who wanders onto the set and gets hired due to various complications. The movie people all seem larger than life to the fugitive, and since he's a little paranoid anyway, their motives seem complex and suspect. Peter O'Toole gives his usual performance, and he's perfect here as the flamboyant director (he must have had a great time sending up some blowhards of his past with this role). Steven Railsback does his usual disoriented guy on the edge, and he does it with a rather touchingly naive quality this time. Barbara Hershey is the leading lady love interest, delivers an intelligent and understated performance, and is appropriately bewitchingly beautiful.
Roger Ebert didn't like this movie, but he got confused into thinking that it was something deeper than a comedy. It's about as deep as "Get Shorty", but with a completely different feel.
The movie holds up pretty well, although the special effects look a little clunky sometimes, and I remember thinking they were pretty good when I saw the movie in its initial release. But the clunkiness isn't really distracting, and since the movie's attempts to "deceive" are all firmly tongue-in-cheek, it doesn't hurt.
Roger Ebert didn't like this movie, but he got confused into thinking that it was something deeper than a comedy. It's about as deep as "Get Shorty", but with a completely different feel.
The movie holds up pretty well, although the special effects look a little clunky sometimes, and I remember thinking they were pretty good when I saw the movie in its initial release. But the clunkiness isn't really distracting, and since the movie's attempts to "deceive" are all firmly tongue-in-cheek, it doesn't hurt.