What Just Happened (2008 film)
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''What Just Happened'' is a 2008 American
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...
comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...
directed by Barry Levinson and starring
Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...
. The supporting cast includes Catherine Keener,
Robin Wright Penn Robin Gayle Wright (born April 8, 1966) is an American actress. She has won a Golden Globe Award and a Satellite Award, and has received eleven Emmy Award nominations for her work in television. Wright first gained attention for her role in t ...
, Stanley Tucci,
Moon Bloodgood Korinna Moon Bloodgood (born September 20, 1975) is an American actress and model, known for her role as Lt. Blair Williams in the 2009 film ''Terminator Salvation'' and as Anne Glass in the TNT television series '' Falling Skies''. Early life ...
, John Turturro, Sean Penn, and Bruce Willis. It is an independent film, produced by
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, Art Linson Productions and Tribeca Productions, and it was released on October 17, 2008. The film is based on the 2002 book ''What Just Happened? Bitter Hollywood Tales from the Front Line'' by Art Linson, about his experiences as a
producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...
in Hollywood. This film was shown at the Cannes Film Festival on May 25, 2008.


Plot

Ben, a veteran
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
producer, is suffering a number of professional and personal problems. His latest film, ''Fiercely'', has a disastrous test screening, mostly because of its ending which features the murder of its main character (played by Sean Penn, who plays himself elsewhere in the film) along with his pet dog. Ben and his maverick British director, Jeremy Brunell, plead their case to studio executive Lou Tarnow. She accuses Ben of filming the dog's killing only so he could use it as a "bargaining chip" - to make it easier to negotiate against cutting other problematic scenes. Lou threatens to pull Ben's movie from Cannes and take over editing unless at least the dog's death is removed. Jeremy adamantly refuses, throwing a tantrum. Adding to Ben's problems, he is having trouble making a clean break from Kelly, his second wife. Ben later discovers his wife is having an affair with Scott Solomon, a married screenwriter whom Ben has previously worked with. Scott has a screenplay that he's trying to get off the ground, to which
Brad Pitt William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. ...
later becomes attached. Lastly the studio is threatening to cancel a planned Bruce Willis movie because of the star's unwillingness to shave the large, thick beard that he has grown. Ben's career hinges on the fate of the film, but any attempt to reason with Willis inevitably meets a violent, foul-mouthed response. Ultimately Jeremy relents and re-edits the ending of ''Fiercely'' to have the dog survive. Ben tries to get Willis's agent, Dick Bell, to reason with him and get the beard removed, but his efforts only get Dick fired. Nonetheless, Willis does eventually shave his beard off, and the film goes ahead. A week later, Ben, Lou and Jeremy attend Cannes, hopeful that they might take a Palme d'Or award. Unfortunately, and without telling Ben or Lou, Jeremy has re-edited ''Fiercely'' again, not only killing the dog, but adding nearly a full minute of bullets being shot into their bodies. While the new ending destroys the film's chances of a Palme d'Or and angers many in the audience, others eagerly applaud the final version of the film, including Penn. Lou is not impressed, and immediately flies out of Cannes on the studio's private jet, leaving Ben stranded in France. Ben eventually does make it back home, in time for a photo-shoot of Hollywood's top thirty producers with '' Vanity Fair'', although after the magazine's publishers hear about the debacle in Cannes, Ben is relegated to the far edge of the photo, meaning he will be barely noticeable.


Cast

*
Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...
as Ben * Kristen Stewart as Zoe * Sean Penn as Himself * Catherine Keener as Lou Tarnow * Bruce Willis as Himself * John Turturro as Dick Bell * Michael Wincott as Jeremy Brunell *
Moon Bloodgood Korinna Moon Bloodgood (born September 20, 1975) is an American actress and model, known for her role as Lt. Blair Williams in the 2009 film ''Terminator Salvation'' and as Anne Glass in the TNT television series '' Falling Skies''. Early life ...
as Laura * Robin Wright as Kelly * Stanley Tucci as Scott Solomon * Christopher Evan Welch as Studio Marketing Guy * Lily Rabe as Dawn * Peter Jacobson as Cal * Paul Herman as Jerry


Critical reception

Based on 141 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, the film has received an overall "Rotten" rating of 50%, with a weighted average score of 5.74/10. The sites consensus states: "''What Just Happened'' has some inspired comic moments, but this inside-baseball take on Hollywood lacks
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...
bite."


References


External links

* * * * {{Barry Levinson 2008 films 2008 comedy-drama films 2000s satirical films American comedy-drama films American satirical films 2000s English-language films Cultural depictions of American men Films about film directors and producers Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles Films based on non-fiction books Films directed by Barry Levinson Films produced by Robert De Niro Films produced by Art Linson Films scored by Marcelo Zarvos Films shot in Connecticut 2000s American films