Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Hulkeasexo it is the rare 'crazy' movie that actually has something to say.

Tayloriona Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Celia A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

NateWatchesCoolMovies Paparazzi is one of those ones that probably sounded pretty silly on paper, but one of the studio execs had a good sense of humour on a morning after getting laid and said "aw hell, green light this just for kicks." It doesn't hurt to have Mel Gibson as a producer either, who also makes the teensiest cameo. The concept is simple: action film star Bo Laramie (Cole Hauser) is harassed by a sleazy hyena pack of determined celebrity photographers, until they take it one step too far, resulting in tragedy. Bo then plays the art imitating life card, goes all vigilante on them and quite literally hunts each one down and kills them. A synopsis like that has to illicit a dark chuckle from anyone who reads it, and you'd think the resulting film would be oodles of fun, but they've somewhat played it safe. A concept this ridiculous should be over the top, reach for the stars insane, a hard R black comedy Death Wish set in Hollywood, if you will. What we get is something more on the glossy side, the filmmakers dipping their toe into the pond of potential, yet never saying 'fuck it' and diving right in. The paparazzos are played to the heights of hilarity by a solid scumbag troupe: Tom Sizemore is so perfect as their a-hole ringleader, just a dime piece of a casting choice. Daniel Baldwin looks seriously haggard, while Tom Hollander and Kevin 'Wainegro' Gage round out this quartet. Dennis Farina is fun as a sharp, shrewd Detective who gets wise to Bo's act as well. It's all serviceable, and yet I wish it went that extra mile to give us something downright shocking and memorable. Perhaps they should have reworked the script, brought in a wild card director and gone the indie route. Oh well.

Python Hyena Paparazzi (2004): Dir: Paul Abascal / Cast: Cole Hauser, Tom Sizemore, Dennis Farina, Robin Tunney, Daniel Baldwin: Thriller about invasion that might have stated a better argument had it avoided standard revenge clichés that cheapen it. It stars Cole Hauser as a rising action star whose family is threatened by paparazzi photographers when unfavorable photos appear in the tabloids. When they cause his wife and son injuries in a car accident Hauser seeks revenge. Great setup spirals into revenge clichés where Hauser knocks off the guilty photographers and gets away with it. That may be a fitting fantasy for the makers of this film, but it shatters its conviction. Director Paul Abascal displays the lifestyles of celebrities and paparazzi. Hauser does well before the revenge finale as he struggles with the side affects of fame. Robin Tunney plays his fearful wife whose life is put in jeopardy. Dennis Farina plays an investigator who suspects Hauser of foul play but cannot prove it. The role is very one note, as is Tom Sizemore as an aggressive photographer. Sizemore takes the aggressive photographer to new heights but unfortunately that isn't a compliment. He comes off as a thug, which also damages credibility. Daniel Baldwin plays another camera brandishing idiot whose job is invading the privacy of celebrities. Provocative theme about the price of fame. Score: 6 ½ / 10

dwpollar 1st watched 3/5/2009 – 3 out of 10(Dir-Paul Abascal): Confusing revenge-laden film about a rising star being hounded by a group of paparazzi that cause an accident where the star's son is put in a coma. Cole Hauser is the star in the film and he does an OK job, but the movie wavers and appears to be just an opportunity for this actor to be a main star in a movie. Bit parts by "A" actors are thrown in and it just appears to be a chance for them to support the project. This doesn't do anything for the movie, though. One of the paparazzi involved in the accident runs into the star character's car with his motorcycle and as he's hanging off a cliff Houser's character decides to not do his best to save him and lets him fall down the cliff. From this point on, he decides to plot to get the other paparazzi taken care of thru his own methods. Initially his revenge tactics are suttle; like framing the other involved people, but then he starts getting more and more on the offensive. A detective played by Dennis Farina, initially hired to protect Hauser, starts suspecting his involvement and sneakily starts putting together the pieces of the puzzle The problem is he never really follows thru with it and we get a good ending for Hauser's character despite the filmmakers winking that it might go a different direction. Overall this was just a movie without any kind of substance to make it worth much of anything and without any real point for or against the problem initially presented. Just a revenge movie, in the end, and nothing else despite the caliber of those involved in the production.

ElmStreetsLastBrat I just saw this movie Paparazzi for the first time tonight on F/X and I found it to be a very good film. Although I could tell much of it was chopped and edited for cable it was still quite enjoyable. Cole Hauser plays Bo Laramie, an up-and-coming movie star who, along with his wife and young son, are constantly hounded and followed by the paparazzi. One night Bo and his family end up being in a terrible car accident caused by the endless flashing cameras from the paparazzi. And Bo's son Zack ends up in a coma and his wife is seriously injured. I found it a little disturbing to see the paparazzi taking pictures of Bo and his family while they're unconscious in their wrecked car on the side of the road. And on an even more disturbing note: this isn't an exaggeration! That is exactly how the paparazzi really is. They'll do anything to get a picture of a movie star doing no matter what. So when Bo realizes that the paparazzi is still following him after the accident to get pictures, even in the hospital, and they're not being charged with having to do anything with the accident, Bo takes matters into his own hands and the four members of the paparazzi end up dead. And Dennis Farina, who plays the main detective who is trying to work on Bo's case, is trying to set Bo up and isn't really on his side. So once members of the paparazzi end up dead one by one, the police and the detective start chasing after Bo. But all Bo wants is to have a normal life and make the paparazzi go away. This film really makes you feel kind of bad for movie stars and famous people. They cannot go anywhere without a paparazzi lurking in the woods with their cameras. All they want is to have a nice quiet dinner with their family and sometimes they gotta put up with a paparazzi trying to take their picture. This film is a fine example of what the paparazzi are like and I don't think they exaggerated. And the acting was OK. It wasn't Oscar-worthy but it certainly wasn't horrible. This film won't win any awards or make any kind of history but I thought it was a very good movie. It was highly entertaining and should be viewed by anyone who hates the paparazzi! Thanks for reading my review!