Kudos to the Coen brothers for making a hilarious and highly entertaining film.

Rating: 8/10 (5 February 2016)

The Coen brothers don't make bad films,they actually either make classics like Fargo, No Country For Old Men etc or they make near classics like the superbly entertaining film Hail Caesar which I viewed today. I mean these brothers have dabbled in making thrillers, biopics, gory films, comedies, they are masters of all genres. There is a reason why there name is listed with some of the best filmmakers of the world. And with Hail Caesar they strength there status, and make a comedic film on Hollywood and the studio system /rise of communism in Hollywood.While the film was not no extraordinary piece of cinema I would call pathbreaking as maybe you thought was in the offering from the Coen brothers, they actually make there most commercial film till date, and make sure the audience is fully entertained with the extravagant world they create. Hail Cesar is easily the most entertaining film I have seen in this new year of 2016. The film never has a dull moment, here we get see the hilarious insides and outs of Hollywood in the year 1950. The way films are made, how they are casted, all have such a hilarious truthful tone. Even the films main crux a kidnapping is done in a comedic manner. The film has no serious bone, but still Hail Caesar speaks volumes. However what makes Hail Caesar a great film is the casting, and the amazing performances, mainly speaking of Josh Brolin who just lights the screen on fire. Hail Caesar is the most fun I have had in theatres in 2016, however the film has a hangover of Trumbo which released last year, but more on that later.
Story wise Slick Hollywood fixer Eddie Mannix is pressed into action when superstar actor Baird Whitlock is kidnapped and held for ransom by a communist group. Mannix races to quietly collect the ransom money without gossip columnist Thora Thacker catching wind of the scandal.
Acting wise Josh Brolin as Eddie Mannix is the life of the film, he gives one of the best performances of 2016 till now in Hail Ceasar. He shows such variation in his character it's amazing, when he needs to underplay he does it beautiful, at times he is at his comedic best, and at times he is menacing as a Hollywood fixer. The scene when he is slapping George Clooney, and at the end says your a star, that scene was cinema at its best. George Clooney is good as the goof ball actor. Alden Ehrenreich is hilarious as the cowboy actor who can't even say a line proper, at times he steals the show with his comedic act, watch out for his conformation with Ralph Fiennes while shooting a scene in a film. Thora was great in a double role. Ralph Fiennes, Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, and Scarlett Johansson all have cameos but they all add great weight age to the film. Hail Caesar has a beautiful ensemble to say the least.
Hail Caesar gets the whole aura of 1950s Hollywood down to perfection. The type of actors there where back then ( there attitudes, mannerisms)the type of films that were being made, how the politics behind everything worked, etc was very well researched, and presented lavishly. The production values were superb, the sets, the costumes are first rate. An example of this is the introduction to Scarlett Johansson's characters, that scene is lavishly and beautifully done in the water.The Coen brothers make sure they even get the nitty gritty aspects of the film to perfection. The films main crux however is eerily similar to Trumbo were they speak about communism in Hollywood and the rights of writers etc, however while some novelty is lost here, the mood and the presentation of both films is polls apart. While Trumbo is a political film and speaks in favour of writers, Hail Caesar takes no stance at all, and just waves a comedy around the premise. Honestly the film is more of a day in life of a Hollywood fixer, rather than anything else. Hail Caesar is a hilarious entertaining comedy like I mentioned earlier,but the best thing is it's a sensible comedy, it's not your regular no brainer, it respects its audiences intelligence,and the film even has a good twist or turn. Two scenes in particular had me laughing my guts out and are the films highlight.The Laurence and Hobie scene when Fiennes is trying to teach the other to act. The other scene is when Brolin slaps,Coolney multiple times, and his reaction is priceless. Hail Caesar is just a entertaining film all around, it might not be a classic you were hoping from the Coens, it might not even win a Oscar( definitely will get a nomination or two), but in hindsight's does it matter, it's a smart comedy, and just think how many films can you say that about.
Overall Hail Caesar is a highly recommended watch, it's hilarious and highly entertaining, and the films cast puts on a clinic of acting. The Coens brothers must applauded for making Hail Caesar, because like I have stated many times it was just such a fun film. Hail Caesar is the best English language film I have seen so far of 2016.
4/5* or 8/10