'Hail Caesar!' Insipid rather than inspired!

When I hear there is a Coen brothers movie opening, I am generally right there, first in line to marvel at their quirkiness.  While 'Hail Caesar!' is definitely quirky, the narrative is so uneven it takes away from some really outstanding performances.

Set as a homage to the early 50's Hollywood system which was ripe with communist paranoia, there are fantastic moments that remind one of a Gene Kelly extravaganza amongst far too many 'WTF' moments.  Josh Brolin, who is quickly becoming a Coen favorite, plays Eddie Mannix, the Head of Production at an increasingly insignificant movie studio, Capital Pictures.  While fighting off the rise of television, the advances of the corporate world attempting to lure him away from Hollywood as well as maintain a family life all the while keeping his stars in order; Mannix is challenged with the kidnapping of his biggest star, Baird Whitlock - played with hilarious aplomb by George Clooney.

Mannix is thrust into crisis mode, managing multiple pictures, looking for Whitlock all the while experiencing personal crisis that seem to commit him to confession every 24 hours.  Some of the big Hollywood numbers were incredible. Channing Tatum as the song & dance man Burt Gurney completely entertained and reminded of the days of Gene Kelly, Tatum even looked quite a bit like a young Kelly. However, those moments were scarce and instead we were treated to a Coen picture made almost entirely TO the Coen brothers.  It's almost as if we were invited into a very private joke that we can't seem to find funny.

If you are looking for another 'No Country for Old Men', 'True Grit' or even 'Fargo', you won't find it here. Instead, 'Hail Caeser!' is closer to other Coen brothers egoistical films "Barton Fink' or 'Inside Llewyn Davis'; made purely for their own enjoyment and a wink & a nod to themselves at how cool they are.  The trailer by far promises a slapstick comedy about a Hollywood era gone by and instead delivers a mash-up of storytelling that only quite hits the mark in moments.

You may want to save this 2 1/2 star effort for Redbox, Netflix or even a discount show (the dance numbers may make it worth that!).