Rules Don't Apply (2016)

A lot of fun.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

Marla Mabrey is a naive but beautiful virgin, one of many ingénues kept on the payroll by Howard Hughes in the hope of Hollywood stardom. There is mutual attraction between her and driver Frank - he is also hopeful of using the Hughes connection as a step up - but they are both scared of the warning that moving that attraction forward is grounds for dismissal.This set-up is made clear in the trailer. What happens from here onwards is that the film - written and directed by Warren Beatty - concentrates on Howard Hughes as he gets deeper and deeper into his squirrelly period, spending much of this 127 minute film in deep shadow or behind curtains. Since Beatty also plays Hughes, one comes to the conclusion that this is essentially a vanity project. It is also pretty dull.The trailer also leads you to believe it is a comedy. Despite some amusing moments, it isn't. So, it's neither a romance nor a comedy. In fact, it's far from clear exactly what sort of film it is other than a long and not-very-interesting one.There is a phenomenal cast, but most of them are given very little to do. Lily Collins and Alden Ehrenreich as the ostensible romantic leads are pleasing, but somewhat betrayed in that the movie isn't actually about them at all.The period production values are heavily in evidence, and Caleb Deschanel's cinematography is gorgeous.And you leave the cinema two hours later going "What was that all about, then?"

In my view, Rules Don't Apply is pretty much the perfect example of a movie that should have been incredible but settles for pretty good. There's a lot to like here. The film is well acted, decently paced, flush with aesthetically pleasing period detail and is bolstered by the real-life intrigue of the enigmatic Howard Hughes persona. However, despite these strengths, the film is held back from greatness by a clunky, unfocused narrative and a lack of resolve.Let's start with the good. Really my main takeaway from this movie is that the beautiful Lily Collins needs much more work, particularly in lead roles. She was subtly brilliant in her performance, always drawing your attention on screen and causing the viewer to wonder what is going through her head as her character tries to adjust to a new Hollywood life and deal with both the eccentricities of her mysterious employer and the nuanced chemistry between herself and her platonic as necessary driver. Alden Ehrenreich, who first drew my eye years ago in Francis Ford Coppola's underrated gem Tetro, was typically solid and relatable in his role of an intensely quiet and somewhat solitude hard-working young everyman who overachieves into an important behind-the-scenes position, and Warren Beatty placed an interesting and satisfyingly alien spin on his portrayal of Hughes.The film was also a joy aesthetically. We get everything from multiple decades of period detail to classic Hollywood to filming locations all over the world, early era plane rides, etc. There were a couple excellent and memorable camera pan reveal shots and the film overall felt well directed and well paced. The presence of a very nostalgic, romantic and lovely tune performed by Lily's character Marla really also goes a long way to bolster the period feeling. The movie also offers an immediately interesting premise, combining a Hughes biopic of sorts and giving us a fairly unique spin on the old romance story love triangle cliche.Despite all of this, one can easily be left feeling like the film doesn't know where it wants to go throughout the movie. Once all of the main characters are initially fully thrown out there and the metaphorical curtain is lifted on the mystery of Hughes, the film struggles to draw a clear narrative. Is this Howard's story? Is this Marla's story? Is this Frank's story? Each main player doesn't have enough time devoted to their part of the story for the audience to really connect with the characters, despite very solid performances. Entire important subplots, especially around Frank's character early on, arise and are dropped almost out of thin air. The film starts strongly, focused on Frank and Marla, and unfortunately blossoms into a sweeping and unfocused mélange of the some of the later business controversies and events of Hughes' life, practically brushing aside Frank and Marla's more relatable characters for most of the second act of the movie. Anyone who has seen Scorsese's incredible Howard Hughes epic biopic "The Aviator" would be disappointed by the skimming and vague approach taken here to the Hughes story, which almost feels like it was plopped right into the middle of the film in an attempt to beef up the narrative. Basically, this movie either needed to either be another hour longer and more developed regarding Hughes' exploits and reasons for how he ended up to be so enigmatic or it needed to retain this length and pacing but to spend more of the meat of the movie focusing on its younger stars. Without giving away any details, the ending of the film left me feeling a bit cold and disinterested, which seems to clash a bit with the actual message of the resolution. This is one of many tonally jumbled moments throughout a film that does mix some comedic moments and upsetting dramatic realizations together well, but also never goes the extra mile towards being hilarious or devastating.Rules Don't Apply was still an enjoyable watch for me overall. If you are a fan of any of the three leads or just generally like retro Hollywood period films, it's worth a look. I give the film a lot of credit for trying something completely different with the narrative and tone and recognize the winking connection to the film's title. At the end of the day, it just felt like it needed another gear and a more focused narrative to me, but it had its charms. Your mileage may vary. 6.5/10.

Do you remember that old friend or relation who said just the right things and You didn't know it 'til years later? They never won an Oscar nor even appeared on screen, but their influence helped You. I suspect this Motion Picture was a gift of that type. It's the little keepsake, like a windup music box or whatever would be new and exotic today, and they've left it behind for you to keep. And some day, some of us would treasure it. The intricate design will catch your eye -- one day or night, after a lot more of the river has flowed by. The great sweep of time will echo in the piano-box of the heart . . . and will anyone remember to hear it? For some persons who love the music, this film would be a catalyst, a prompt, for that reverie. The subtle feelings of life will now be more understandable. You'll know you were in the presence of God's love -- a true God who shines through time and fiction as well as through science and contracts. It's profound and it's pretty easy to watch, or vice versa. Is it historically? Sorry, I don't know. I could look it up. That doesn't change anything about this review. The formula for a big hit in the movies is elusive or is it? Maybe they were trying for a hit, and maybe they were trying for something else

I kind of felt deja vu. I don't remember the title, but it was similar to this from the recent time, where it revolves around a taxi driver and a woman who wanted to be an actress. In this the distinct feature was the Beatty's role. After returning from the retirement, he's in business now. Directing it, as well as in one of the prominent characters. An 80 years old and still has left lots of spark in him. It was really a great comeback, yet the film is not fully convincing. Even though an enjoyable one, particularly for the awesome performances by all.The film was about Howard Hughes, but I don't know whether it is a biopic or just inspired by. Anyway, it was in the backdrop of Hollywood film industry. The story takes place between three characters, including a driver, film director and a wanted to be an actress. Triangular romance, but not exactly a romance film. Everything was drama, on the struggles between their professions. Often the narration jumps off to Hughes other business affairs. Overall, it comes back to the original path and takes us to the conclusion.A very slow screenplay. I'm used to such kind of narration, so I did not find any hard to finish it off. But it won't be same for others, especially if you are not interested in what the film plot deals with. And it is over two hours long. It covered everything it wanted to tell us. They should have avoided them, to make the film a bit quick which would have worked in its favour. Beatty is a very conscious man. Look at the Oscars, he knew the error, but while having a doubt, his partner hurried and announced the winner. I hope he makes another film very soon and stun everybody who criticised this one.5/10