The Player
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| The Player | |
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 original film poster |
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| Directed by | Robert Altman |
| Produced by | David Brown Michael Tolkin Nick Wechsler |
| Written by | Michael Tolkin (screenplay and novel) |
| Starring | Tim Robbins Greta Scacchi Fred Ward Whoopi Goldberg Peter Gallagher Brion James Cynthia Stevenson |
| Music by | Thomas Newman |
| Editing by | Geraldine Peroni |
| Distributed by | Fine Line Features |
| Release date(s) |  3 April 1992 (premiere) 10 April 1992 (theatrical release) |
| Running time | 124 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | USD$8,000,000 (estimated) |
| IMDb profile | |
The Player (1992) is a film that tells the story of Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins), a Hollywood studio executive who is being sent death threats. He believes the threats are sent by a screenwriter whose script he once rejected. It was directed by Robert Altman using a screenplay by Michael Tolkin based on his own novel. One of the more notable features of the film is the inclusion of over 60 cameo appearances by major Hollywood actors, producers and directors—all playing themselves—intertwined throughout the story.
The film, loaded with movie references and Hollywood insider jokes, is a critique of the Hollywood movie business, which treats artists poorly and sacrifices quality for commercial success. It might seem surprising that so many big Hollywood names agreed to play themselves in the film, but Altman himself admits that "it is a very mild satire" and it offended no one.[1]
Altman had trouble with the Hollywood studio system in the '70s after a number of studio films lost money or had trouble finding audiences. The Player was his comeback to making films in Hollywood. The film, and its cast and crew, won a number of awards and nominations. A TV spin-off was created and a pilot shot in 1997. However, the pilot was never picked up. It starred Tim Robbins as Griffin Mill.
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[edit] Plot
Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins) is a Hollywood producer whose job is to hear story pitches from screenwriters and help decide what projects are developed versus those that are turned down. His job is suddenly in danger, though, when up-and-comer Larry Levi (Peter Gallagher) begins work at the studio. Rumors swirl that Griffin may be replaced soon by Levi. Further complicating matters for Griffin is that he has continuously been receiving threatening postcards - presumably from a disgruntled writer whose pitch he brushed aside in past months.
Griffin delves through some records and surmises that the disgruntled writer is David Kahane (Vincent D’Onofrio), who had previously pitched a script. Griffin calls Kahane's home and is told by a woman, June (Greta Scacchi), that Kahane is at a movie theatre. Griffin goes to the theatre in Pasadena and offers Kahane a scriptwriting deal. He hopes this will stop the threats. Kahane, however, gets intoxicated and rebuffs Griffin’s offer. He says that he never sent Griffin any postcards. Kahane pushes Griffin in the parking lot and the two men scuffle. In a rage, Griffin accidentally kills Kahane. Thinking fast, Griffin makes the death look like a robbery gone wrong.
The next day at work, he receives another postcard — confirming that his stalking writer is still at large. Griffin attends Kahane’s funeral and connects with Kahane’s girlfriend, June . Studio chief of security Walter Stuckel (Fred Ward) confronts Griffin about the murder and says that Pasadena Police know Griffin was the last one to see Kahane alive. Pasadena detectives Susan Avery (Whoopi Goldberg) and DeLongpre (Lyle Lovett), suspect that Griffin is guilty of murder. They question him and DeLongpre begins to keep an eye on Griffin. The stalking writer leaves a rattlesnake in Griffin’s car — causing a near-death experience that makes Griffin realize how he has sudden and deep feelings for June. With his girlfriend Bonnie out of town, Griffin takes June to a Hollywood awards banquet and their relationship progresses.
Meanwhile, with Levi ever encroaching on his job, Griffin sees an opportunity to save his position. He hears a pitch idea from two writers (about a film called Habeas Corpus) and immediately recognizes huge problems with the downbeat story. However, he manages to convince Levi that the pitch is golden and the movie will be a guaranteed Oscar contender. Griffin’s plan is to let Levi shepherd the film and let it fail miserably, then step in at the last moment and suggest some basic changes that will salvage the film’s box office potential and reclaim his position as an important exec. The Pasadena detectives call Griffin in for a lineup, as a witness to Kahane’s death has come forward. Griffin catches a big break when the witness identifies the wrong man - Detective DeLongpre, who was placed in the lineup with the other suspects.
One year later, studio power players are watching the end to Habeas Corpus when the film shows a tacked-on upbeat ending. Griffin’s plan to "save" the movie worked like a charm and he is now a studio executive. As he’s returning to his home, he gets a pitch over the phone from a man who reveals himself to be the postcard writer from before. The man pitches an idea about a studio executive who kills a writer and gets away with murder - a pitch that Griffin recognizes as blackmail, and immediately agrees to give the writer a deal. The writer’s title for the movie: The Player. The movie ends by showing that June is now his wife and pregnant with his child.
[edit] Production
Altman had had his troubles with the Hollywood studio system in the '70s after a number of studio films (McCabe & Mrs. Miller, The Long Goodbye) lost money or had trouble finding audiences despite the critical praise and cult adulation they received. Altman continued to work outside the studios in the late '70s and throughout the '80s, often doing small-budget projects or filmed plays to keep his hand in. The Player was a comeback to making films in Hollywood, although it was distributed by Fine Line Features rather than a major studio (though FLF in itself was a division of New Line Cinema, Fine Line was reorganized into Picturehouse in 2005). It ushered in a new period of filmmaking for Altman, who continued on to an epic adaptation of Raymond Carver's short stories, Short Cuts (1993).
[edit] Cameos
Few of the cameos were planned for in advance. Since the movie was shot in Hollywood and in so many locations that Hollywood figures frequent, most of the cameos were just coincidences and their lines were improvised. Most of the actors with cameos received no payment.[1]
The DVD edition of the film includes several deleted scenes, with more cameos from people such as Tim Curry. It also includes a director and writer audio commentary where they talk about the production of a television series, based on the film.[1]
This is a list of the Hollywood people who play themselves in the movie:
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[edit] Cultural references
The opening tracking shot lasts 7 minutes and 47 seconds without a single camera break. It took them 15 takes in order to accomplish the task. This pays homage to Orson Welles' Touch of Evil and Alfred Hitchcock's Rope, which are both mentioned during the scene.
[edit] Reception
Altman won a number of European best-director awards (the BAFTA, best director at the Cannes Film Festival) and he was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe as best director (the film won the Golden Globe for best "comedy or musical"). Tolkin was nominated for a Screenwriting Academy Award, and he received an Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. Geraldine Peroni was nominated for the Academy Award for Film Editing. Tim Robbins also won Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- The Player at the Internet Movie Database
- The Player at Rotten Tomatoes
- The Player at Box Office Mojo
- The Player at Allmovie
