Hollywood Homicide Movie Review:

Hollywood Homicide is a very busy cop-buddy satire that is filled with an ample amount of action. The story's duo is veteran Los Angeles police detective Joe Gavilan (Harrison Ford) and his young partner K.C. Calden (Josh Hartnett). Outside of their jobs as detectives, Gavilan is also a real estate broker and Calden is a yoga instructor. The two have the additional jobs to try and make ends meet. Both are good cops, but are not wholeheartedly dedicated, with Gavilan constantly trying to rid an estate that is sucking up all of his finances and Calden wanting to become the next Marlon Brando. The two get caught up in a homicide investigation involving the murder of a promising rap group, but the two must also find time to balance their other aspiring values and professions.

This film has so many things going on in it that it will make your head spin. There are at least half a dozen subplots that somewhat come to a closure, but problematically weigh and drag the film down.

Director/writer Ron Shelton is an established filmmaker that has made some respectable films like Bull Durham (1988) and White Men Can't Jump (1992). Most recently Shelton delivered the gritty cop drama Dark Blue (2003), he is also a co-writer on next month's Bad Boys II (2003). What works in this film is the humor with the detectives having to maintain another profession to make ends meet. Shelton co-wrote the script with Robert Souza, who served 22 years with the LAPD and also had side jobs including writing. The other life of the characters that is explored by Shelton and Souza is clever and original. The film is also action-packed and some of the comedy will have you laughing. The downfall is that both the action and the comedy go overboard along with the dangling subplots. An example is after Ford's character delivers one of the best Viagra jokes ever in a movie, the joke becomes all but forgotten when he has a cheesy moment with a donut and some shades. (Don't ask) The climatic action sequence also seems to last for an eternity, even though it is well orchestrated. The subplots become the real problem for the film, from the investigation, to the estate selling, to the love interests, the internal affairs, the allegations; they all seemed to just get out of hand quickly.

Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett seem like an unlikely duo, but their performances reflect that they had fun making this film. Joe Gavilan is not a typical Harrison Ford role, but the superstar still has his moments. The expressed notions and frustrations expressed from Ford deliver some of the film's best moments. Hartnett is a young one-dimensional actor, but he seems to be on track to being a star. As Calden, Hartnett's aspiring actor scenes become tired and his overall performance is modest at best. Pushing 50 years old, the talented Lean Olin proves that she is still beautiful and sexy as Gavilan's love interest Ruby. Bruce Greenwood shows up in a role he is a lot better than as an Internal Affairs investigator. Isaiah Washington is once again type-cast as the bad guy record producer Sartain. Oscar winner Martin Landau arises as a washed up movie producer as well as Shelton veteran actress Lolita Davidovich, who plays the madam Cleo. There are also many musicians in distinct roles in the film which include Master P, Dwight Yoakam, Smokey Robinson, and Gladys Knight.

Hollywood Homicide is a watchable movie that's strength is the concept of Hollywood detectives having to maintain additional jobs to make ends meet. The entourage of subplots and over the top moments brings down the film and continues to snowball into the film's lengthy climatic ending. After the credits roll, some of the subplots are resolved, while others are not.

Grade: C

06/13/03
By Joseph Tucker

Harrison Ford used to be one of the iconic and reliable working actors in Hollywood. The steadfast and rugged actor could always bring his unique intensity and American hero attitude to a project and save the day. In recent years, Mr. Ford seems to have lost his edge. Hollywood Homicide becomes Ford's second film in a row that I had a extreme amount of difficult sitting through.
Ford plays Hollywood homicide detective Joe Gavilan, a rugged, stiff career policeman who moonlights as a real-estate salesman. Gavilan has just acquired a new partner, K. C.Calden (Josh Hartnett) who is an aspiring actor and yoga instructor as well as a cop.
These micromanaging cops are called out to a nightclub where a rising rap group has been killed. Who had it in for the group? Can these cops keep their private lives at bay long enough to unravel the case?

Director Ron Shelton and star Harrison Ford seemed to have pulled every Los Angeles, Hollywood and cop cliché in tinseltown history for this film. You have the fighting traffic helicopters, the studly-squeaky-clean rookie cop, the seasoned grumpy veteran, freeway chases, star cameos, and even a crooked record exec. If that wasn't bad enough the film also decides to use the stereo-typical world of rap artists. You have one cliché investigating one stereo-type. Give me a break!!

To say that I was disappointed with Hollywood Homicide is a great understatement. The film was more awful than I imagined. About 20 minutes in I was bored out of my skull. I just couldn't believe the filmmakers thought this was worth anyone's time. The theatre was silent through most of film which is never a good sign.

I found it extremely hard to feel anything for these characters since they seemed more interested in their lives away from the case. I found myself being a lot more interested what I was going to do after the film.

The only surprising thing I liked about the film was Lena Olin. I am not a huge fan of Ms. Olin but here she seemed to be the only character who seemed centered and not caught up in micromanagement. She felt the most real in this cliché-ridden quagmire. I have to admire an actress who can overcome these odds to stick out.

I am not sure if this film was equal to its competition in "Dumb & Dumberer" but at least with that film you know what you are getting in the title. A retitle to "Hollywood Suicide" or "Hollywood Dumbest" would have at least clarified somethings for this viewer. I expected so much more from Ford & Company.

(1 out of 5)

So Says the Soothsayer.

Dean Kish

Hollywood detectives Joe Gavilan (Ford) and K.C. Calden (Hartnett) had other activities outside of their police work. Gavilan was an unsuccessful real-estate broker and K.C. was a wannabe actor. When an up-and-coming rap group is murdered on their beat, the two have to try and put their distractions behind them and solve the case before more rappers are killed.

Trying to make fun of the mismatched buddy-cop movie by trying to inject some comedy elements into it, Hollywood Homicide fails to do this big time.

An incomprehensible plot, uninteresting characters and a complete lack of direction, make the movie a complete mess from start to finish. Questions are posed and never answered, subplot are introduced and never completed, reasons and motivations are never truly explained and worst of all you just don’t care about the characters or their situation.

What is Harrison Ford doing with his career? With the exception of What Lies Beneath, Ford hasn’t made a decent movie since Air Force One in 1997. A string of duds and failures have littered his career with the exception of the Robert Zemekis directed frightener and you have to ask about the motivations behind his movie choices. He really needs to have a rethink or get himself a new agent. He does add a little credibility to the movie, as he is still a good action character actor but he alone can’t save this mess.

The presence of Hollywood heartthrob Josh Hartnett can’t even add any appeal to what is an extremely average buddy-movie. The supporting cast isn’t much better. The talented Lena Olin is only really given a bit part, Isaiah Washington is almost a cameo villain and Bruce Greenwood is a shadow of his normal commanding self.

Director Ron Sheldon should stick to what he does best, Sports movies. White Men can’t Jump, Tin Cup and Bull Durham are good movies but whenever his strays from his specialist genre it seems like he is out of his depth.

Hollywood Homicide is a complete mess of a movie. A good cast has been wasted on an extremely average film that has only one action scene and nothing of any interest to say.

Star Rating = * *

Jamie Kelwick

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