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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Christopher Guest cowrote and directed this solid spoof about the pitfalls of believing your own hype. Kevin Bacon plays a high-minded would-be filmmaker whose student movie wins a prestigious national award and an invitation to Hollywood. Before he knows it, he is being wined and dined by agents, producers, and studio executives, who treat him like the new Orson Welles--until he starts making his first studio movie. Then he becomes bait for the piranha-like bottom-liners, who teach him the unfortunate lesson that the flavor of the week often gets eaten alive. Watch for Martin Short as a hilariously feckless agent and Jennifer Jason Leigh as a surprisingly chipper film student, given her black-rimmed eyes and all-black wardrobe. --Marshall Fine
Product Description
Savagely funny satire on Hollywood follows the rise and fall of film school graduate Kevin Bacon, who is taken under the wing of studio mogul J.T. Walsh and learns the fine art of selling out. "Spinal Tap" co-creators Christopher Guest and Michael McKean take a bite out of the hand that feeds them; with Emily Longstreth, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Martin Short. 102 min. Standard and Widescreen (Enhanced); Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital stereo; Subtitles: English, French; audio commentary by Guest, Bacon; production notes; filmographies; deleted scenes; theatrical trailers.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
It's very hard to predict what movie a given person will like. Many people find this movie to be ho hum, at best. It's not conventional big release comedy, like The Addams Family, Mrs. Doubtfire, or Look Who's Talking. It's unselfconsciously odd in a very wonderful way. If you like movies such as Rushmore, The Princess Bride, 1000 Clowns, and Groundhog Day, I think I can guarantee that you will absolutely love this movie. It's my favorite comedy of all time.
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
I saw this film a few years after I worked for a very famous film company in Nothern California. This VERY humorous film is right on the mark about what it is like to work in the film industry! I laughed so hard my stomach hurt for hours after after the movie. If you are going to work in the "industry" as they say in the film world, see this humorous film to see what it is really like!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Hollywood make them, then they break them -- stars can fall as fast as they rise. Sometimes they rise again, and sometimes they disappear.
And Christopher Guest casts a jaded eye on the fickle ups and downs of Hollywood in "The Big Picture," a quirky, cynical movie which focuses on what the successful should never let go of. It has a few awkward stretches, but overall it's a darkly witty cult comedy ("You're tracking failure all over my carpet!").
Nick Chapman (Kevin Bacon) is the winner at an arty student movie competition, and instantly agents are chasing him all over L.A. In no time, he's the Rising Young Director, with a movie deal at a major movie corporation. But he's also starting to lose sight of his old life, as he tries to become a major success.
He changes the style, plot and characters of his arty movie for demographics, turning it into a beach bums/naked ghost movie. He dumps his pretty girlfriend (Emily Longstreth) for a bimbo actress (Teri Hatcher). When the studio head gets dropped, Nick falls as quickly as he rose. But a chance encounter with an old pal gives him a second chance -- an arty music video. This time, can he get it right?
Christopher Guest is best known for his brilliant mockumentaries, tackling everything from small-town musicals to folk festivals. His forthcoming one is another one about showbiz. But his talents are just as present in a "typical" movie, and Guest does a smart, quirky job of it.
The lesson: Be true to yourself and your art, don't fall for empty glitz, and don't let success go to your head if you're lucky enough to get it.
The story is a pretty straightforward one -- Nick gets great success, it goes to his head, he falls, and he rises again a wiser man. And the movie falls into straightforward lines, without many unpredictable plot twists. At first glance, it doesn't seem that unusual.
What makes it special? Well, simply put, Guest manages to infuse it with his unique type of wit, like the oddballish Pez music video and the noir fantasies of Nick's life. Not to mention the glorious dialogue. When speaking of Nick's one'n'only music video, a studio woman announces, "It's the best one yet, and I've seen 'em ALL!"
And Guest manages to show us agents, artists, students, directors and actors, but never descended to cliches. They're real people, no matter how nasty. And Bacon does a solid job as a young man who learns how empty glitz is. His best scene is the reunion with his friend Emmet, where he confesses, "I wanna be your friend again." And he's backed by good performances by Longstreth, Michael McKean and a dancing Jennifer Jason Leigh.
"Big Picture" treads where many movies have gone before, but it does so with an approach as fresh as a Pez People music video. A must-see.
And Christopher Guest casts a jaded eye on the fickle ups and downs of Hollywood in "The Big Picture," a quirky, cynical movie which focuses on what the successful should never let go of. It has a few awkward stretches, but overall it's a darkly witty cult comedy ("You're tracking failure all over my carpet!").
Nick Chapman (Kevin Bacon) is the winner at an arty student movie competition, and instantly agents are chasing him all over L.A. In no time, he's the Rising Young Director, with a movie deal at a major movie corporation. But he's also starting to lose sight of his old life, as he tries to become a major success.
He changes the style, plot and characters of his arty movie for demographics, turning it into a beach bums/naked ghost movie. He dumps his pretty girlfriend (Emily Longstreth) for a bimbo actress (Teri Hatcher). When the studio head gets dropped, Nick falls as quickly as he rose. But a chance encounter with an old pal gives him a second chance -- an arty music video. This time, can he get it right?
Christopher Guest is best known for his brilliant mockumentaries, tackling everything from small-town musicals to folk festivals. His forthcoming one is another one about showbiz. But his talents are just as present in a "typical" movie, and Guest does a smart, quirky job of it.
The lesson: Be true to yourself and your art, don't fall for empty glitz, and don't let success go to your head if you're lucky enough to get it.
The story is a pretty straightforward one -- Nick gets great success, it goes to his head, he falls, and he rises again a wiser man. And the movie falls into straightforward lines, without many unpredictable plot twists. At first glance, it doesn't seem that unusual.
What makes it special? Well, simply put, Guest manages to infuse it with his unique type of wit, like the oddballish Pez music video and the noir fantasies of Nick's life. Not to mention the glorious dialogue. When speaking of Nick's one'n'only music video, a studio woman announces, "It's the best one yet, and I've seen 'em ALL!"
And Guest manages to show us agents, artists, students, directors and actors, but never descended to cliches. They're real people, no matter how nasty. And Bacon does a solid job as a young man who learns how empty glitz is. His best scene is the reunion with his friend Emmet, where he confesses, "I wanna be your friend again." And he's backed by good performances by Longstreth, Michael McKean and a dancing Jennifer Jason Leigh.
"Big Picture" treads where many movies have gone before, but it does so with an approach as fresh as a Pez People music video. A must-see.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Big Fun
I agree with one reviewer- people are unpredictable when agreeing on films. Although I own the BIG PICTURE on dvd I was very lucky to get to see it on the big screen when it first... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Segue
where is Emily longstreth
I dont understand why hollywood didnt like this film,this is a very good movie,by the way,where is Emily longstreth,she dissapear,where is she. Read more
Published on February 15, 2008 by Cesar J. vazquez
A very small picture from a big talent
Following "Spinal Tap" but before striking comedic gold with his own successful series of "mockumentaries," Christopher Guest directed and co-wrote this awful lampoon of the... Read more
Published on July 15, 2007 by David Bonesteel
GREAT MOVIE
ANOTHER QUIET, CLEVER, WONDERFUL MOVIE THAT GETS NO PUBLICITY. MAYBE THEY SHOULD HAVE HAD VIOLENCE.....................
ANYWAY, GREAT MOVIE. Read more
ANYWAY, GREAT MOVIE. Read more
Published on May 12, 2007 by FAB
I'd Like to Thank My Grilled Cheese Sandwich.
For anyone that hasn't seen this movie, I highly recommend it. "The Big Picture" is simultaneously a parody of the movie business and the real story of how much luck and chance are... Read more
Published on May 2, 2007 by Kevin T. McGuinness
Gets better everytime I watch
I just love this movie, but it may not be for all, since it is a very specific type of humor. Don't expect "Best in Show" or "Waiting for Gufman," because this is not a... Read more
Published on September 20, 2006 by Spider
Worth seeing, but...
A long, long time ago I caught the second half of Kevin Bacon's "She's Having A Baby" on TV and was intrigued. Read more
Published on January 20, 2006 by C. Faraone
My first wife is from Illinois
The story of a young award winner of a filmmaker's competition going through the trials and tribulations of trying to get "his" first feature film made is given a wonderful... Read more
Published on December 24, 2004 by bob lundy
One of the best films of the 80's!
I don't know why this film didn't win any academy awards for that year. I love movies and this was one of the best I've seen next to "American Beauty" and "Fast Times at Ridgemont... Read more
Published on September 27, 2004 by Colin Kau
Quirky, satiric, but, ultimately, thin
This oddball send-up of Hollywood begins when Nick (Kevin Bacon) wins a prestigious award for his expressionist student film. Read more
Published on February 18, 2004 by Debbie Lee Wesselmann
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