Lot's of Goofy Ideas, but Still a Serious Enough Tone

Rating: 7/10 (16 February 2016)

I was excited to see this movie. I haven't seen too many Coen Brothers movies, but I've liked the ones I've seen. Nevertheless, I was curious as to how well a Coen comedy would turn out. I'm happy to say that it was a lot of fun.
Hail, Caesar! is a very different movie. It's not at all what you'd expect, but despite this it turned out very well. The ideas are all very funny, and while it's more fun to think about how goofy it is than actually watch it, it's still presented well enough that it stands as a great movie even without the comedy. I was happy to see that a lot of clichés in kidnapping movies like this weren't indulged in, and it really was a very unpredictable movie.
The characters are quite good too, surprisingly. The humor helped to show what each of them is like, and although Josh Brolin easily received the most screen time of them all, it was clear what kind of person each character was from the handful of scenes they were in, which I thought was very impressive.
Overall Hail, Caesar! is a great movie. While it's better remembered than watched, it stands as a great movie even while watching it. The plot is unique and well-presented, the characters are good, and the ideas are, while over the top and goofy, very well suited to the whole film. Most of them are subtle enough not to be annoying, nor are they ever overused. The movie still maintains a relatively serious tone throughout, but the subtle ideas thrown in here and there are fun, and somehow manage to actually suit the movie very well. In the end I'd certainly recommend Hail, Caesar! to pretty much anyone. It's not for everyone, so you'll just have to see it to know.