I did ‘trust’ actor turned writer/director Clark Gregg that after watching the trailer that this, his sophomore feature, was a comedy. Far from it, even though it has some comic moments this dark story of a Hollywood Agent whose career is sinking below rock bottom, is quite a depressing affair. Gregg stars as Howard Holloway who represents some un-appealing child actors and as a consequence has to deal with obnoxious pushy mothers and also hard-nosed power-hungry Casting Agents. When Howard loses his last Client he has one stroke of good luck meeting Lydia an extremely talented and precocious teenager who is about to possibly hit the big time.
The concept of Howard being given this one last chance to redeem himself is very plausible and quite compelling but then suddenly the story line does some very unexplainable twists that are hard to swallow and turn the mood from entertaining to just downright confusing very quickly. The redeeming feature of this drama that one wants to like, is in the acting. Gregg assembled a wonderful array of talent in supporting roles who still managed to shine through even given their less-than-perfect material. Allison Janney and Felicity Huffman were superb as the Casting Agents who would stop at nothing to seal the deal on their terms, Sam Rockwell was great as slimy Aldo, Molly Shannon on our screens far too briefly as a pushy mother, Amanda Peet as Howard’s neighbor and unlikely love-interest, and in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance, William H Macy played her boss.
Young Saxon Sharbino who played the precocious Lydia was scarily wonderful and an extremely talented actress …. let’s hope she has such a good Agent like Howard in real life too.
Mr Gregg is indisputabely a very talented and likable man and I simply loved his 2008 debut behind the camera with ‘Choke’ the totally bizarre comedy about a sex-addicted con-man pays for his mother’s hospital bills by playing on the sympathies of those who rescue him from choking to death. This new movie is not one of his career highlights but I will still look forward with whatever he follows it with.
