Movies are full of weird, wacky and colorful characters. The people who create those characters; screen and story writers, producers, and directors for example, often draw inspiration from real people, and sometimes, those real people are from within their own industry. An industry that can be ruthless and cutthroat when big money and even bigger egos are involved.
Despite the brutal nature of the business, anyone with a camera can shoot a movie, and anyone with a pen and pad can write a screenplay, the simplicity of which is an inherently beautiful thing. Below is a list of movies that cover the various facets of the industry, from filmmakers making movies without a clue to actors that have reached the upper echelon of the industry and are now living the Hollywood dream.
Entourage (2015)
The hit TV series HBO. In it, fictional superstar actor Vincent Chase and his group of best friends continue to navigate the movie business, wheeling and dealing and mingling with the Hollywood elite. This time around, Chase seeks to try his hand at directing for the first time.
No other movie has offered a glimpse into the Hollywood lifestyle quite like Entourage has. The film retains the same sense of humor that fans loved from the series while revealing the highly coveted life of the Hollywood elite. It isn’t all glitz and glamor, however, as Chase and his crew face many setbacks trying to further cement their place at the top of the movie industry.
Hitchcock (2012)
Alfred Hitchcock is the subject of the 2012 biography film Psycho. It was a rocky period for the couple, with surmounting pressure in both their professional and personal lives.
The film gives audiences an insight into the life of one of the greatest film directors of all time. A ionate yet flawed individual, Hitchcock reveals a side to the director that not many people know about, brought to life with an impeccable performance by Hopkins.
Bowfinger (1999)
Bowfinger tells the story of a down on his luck film producer who attempts to make a movie with virtually no money and no industry . He conjures up a plan to shoot a movie around a famous actor who doesn’t know he’s even in the film.
Bowfinger takes the concept of guerilla filmmaking to the next level with hilarious results. It stars two of the world’s most adored comedians in Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy in what is a pairing for the ages. The film offers an outlandish perspective on what can be achieved in the film industry by thinking outside the box.
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)
Broadway production. The actor, who at one point was known around the world for playing a superhero, is now trying to shape his legacy in a different direction.
This multiple Oscar award-winning film takes audiences into the mind of an actor who once had it all following the role of a lifetime, playing a character that he will always be ed for. The film shows just how emotionally exhausting it can be climbing back up the ranks of the industry.
Trumbo (2015)
Based on actual events, Trumbo follows the story of Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, who in 1947, along with his colleagues were blacklisted and jailed due to their political beliefs. Trumbo would write some of his best work during this tumultuous period.
Trumbo covers a lesser-known piece of movie business history, set during a period that feels so very foreign by today’s standards. Bryan Cranston turns in a stellar performance as the titular character in a film that outlines the absurdity of the system’s attempts to silence its artists.
Barton Fink (1991)
A playwright from New York arrives in Hollywood to begin a new job writing screenplays for movies. He struggles with writer’s block after being tasked to write a wrestling picture, and from there becomes entwined in the dark and dangerous underbelly of Hollywood following a strange turn of events.
Barton Fink is one of the Coen brothers’ more underrated pieces of work, in part due to the ambiguous way in which its story is told. Nevertheless, the film remains a thought-provoking look at the dark side of the industry, told in a classic film-noir style.
Silent Movie (1976)
Silent Movie follows a director out to make the first major silent movie in over forty years. He approaches a struggling studio for and after his idea is initially rejected, promises to help save them from acquisition by securing top actors to perform in his new picture.
The film is a clever and hilarious satire of silent films as well as the industry as a whole from the mind of comedy genius Mel Brooks. Brooks pokes fun at the slapstick humor featured in films of the past from artists like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, in his own particular style.
Dolemite is my Name (2019)
The career of Blaxploitation cinema’s most popular figure, Rudy Ray Moore, is the focus of the biographical dramedy Dolemite Is My Name. Moore would have to face many setbacks before being able to get his name out in the world, but always stuck true to his self-belief.
Dolemite Is My Name features a career-best performance from comedian Eddie Murphy after being relatively quiet in the 2010s. The film highlights the effort it took Moore to make his first film, from dealing with a rag-tag, inexperienced crew to gaining distribution. An arduous process that eventually paid off.
The Disaster Artist (2017)
The Room, with this retelling giving audiences an insight into the mysterious character.
Almost 20 years on and it’s still unknown whether Wiseau’s cult-classic film was intended to be a drama or a comedy. The Room is the best example of a film so bad that it’s good, and The Disaster Artist is a great example of what not to do when attempting to make your first film.
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)
Tarantino’s love letter to the movie industry, late ’60s Hollywood. The actor’s journey sees him head down a path of self-doubt while dealing with the various egos the industry is known to produce.
The film is a slow-burning reflection of a bygone era in the movie industry, filled with quirky characters that only Tarantino can conjure up. It highlights the state of mind of the people in and around the industry of the time, and what lengths they will go to under extreme duress in the film’s explosive finale.
