Hollywoodland arrives in theaters with the extra benefit of being on the heels of Superman Returns. After that reminder of the enduring screen presence of the Man of Steel, this film about what’s behind the fantasy is timely.

The true story is that George Reeves, the star of the television series Superman from 1951-1957, died at age forty-two when he proved that he was not bulletproof. It was called a suicide, and the fact that Reeves’ career was on the skids added validity to the conclusion.

Still others thought that he was offed. Some friends and colleagues pointed to his longtime affair with the wife of MGM executive E.J. Mannix as a motive for foul play.

Hollywoodland is that mystery viewed from two completely separate and parallel perspectives, that of Reeves’ (Ben Afleck) and that of Louis Simo (Adrien Brody) a private detective hired by Reeves’ mother to investigate the death.

Reeves’ story is the easiest to understand. Being Superman is as much a career ender as a career booster. Once typecast as the most famous resident of Krypton, he couldn’t get other work. George Reeves, meet Bob Denver.

More opaque is the journey of Simo, the hard-boiled private-eye. The cops figure it to be an open and shut suicide, but Simo sees a possible murder and forces them to re-open their files, and not everyone is happy about that.

As a noir mystery, it’s a good tale. If you’ve seen L.A. Confidential, this will seem like familiar territory. (And watching Bob Hoskins as Eddie Mannix will even remind you of Who Killed Roger Rabbit.) Hollywoodland isn’t new ground, but it treads the turf with style.

One of the possible titles of Hollywoodland was Truth, Justice and the American Way. The studio insisted on a shorter title, and that decision is reflective of the abbreviation of the film’s themes. Reeves we get. Superman's suicide is about as easy a symbol as you’re going to find. But Simo remains as much of a mystery as Superman’s demise.

Brody is an actor gifted with the ability to convey an excess of emotion right below the surface. His Simo carries a weight, but we have a hard time understanding why his character is so driven by this investigation. Still, Simo is real enough that we’re willing to believe that there is something there worth figuring out.

Director Allen Coulter (The Sopranos, Six Feet Under) has created an assured film of craft and character, and Brody could be up for another Best Actor Oscar. Even Afleck holds up his end. Hollywoodland stands a good chance of making all the year-end top-10 lists. And it beats the crap out of Superman Returns.


Starring: Adrien Brody, Diane Lane, Ben Affleck, Bob Hoskins, Kathleen Robertson

Directed by: Allen Coulter

Written by: Paul Bernbaum