On the subject of failure, no person does it higher than Hollywood.
Greater! Bolder! Cringeworthy on steroids! We will’t look away at turkeys like “Physician Doolittle” (1967), “Rollerball” (2002) and “Catwoman” (2004), three duds dissected in Tim Robey’s “Field Workplace Poison.”
The e book begins close to the daybreak of cinema and takes us all the way in which as much as the gold customary of recent misfires, 2019’s “Cats.”
Robey spares no particulars in his exhaustive work, one which avoids apparent misfires as “Battlefield Earth,” “Waterworld,” “The Bonfire of the Vanities” and “Heaven’s Gate.”
(“The Satan’s Sweet” shared the whole lot we wanted to know concerning the “Vanities” debacle.)
As a substitute, we take deep dives in duds like “Nothing However Hassle,” the 1991 disaster starring a few of Hollywood’s greatest comedian abilities. “Poison” covers greater than a century of movie, however some issues by no means change.
Ego. Denial. Overcompensation. Greed. Typically even the perfect of intentions lead filmmakers astray.
It’s a pleasant tour by Hollywood extra, and Robey’s puckish pose retains us engaged at the same time as he pours on the small print. Studio executives may wince with every new chapter, however readers will relish the flop-sweat closeups.
Some villains emerge from the wreckage. Actor Oliver Reed hardly comes off nicely. Nor does Rex Harrison of “Physician Doolittle” fame. How a younger Sarah Polley survived her first brush with fame by way of “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen” is anybody’s guess.
As A Youngster, Sarah Polley Feared For Her Life On Terry Gilliam’s Chaotic Movie Set:https://t.co/yN1Cmk3Zb6 #arts #artsnews
On The Adventures of Baron Munchausen set, “Blasts of particles exploded on the bottom round me, accompanied by deafening booms that made me really feel as if … pic.twitter.com/QBsa1JV5cS
— ArtsJournal (@ArtsJournalNews) June 14, 2022
Different stars are victims of circumstance. The kaleidoscope of errors behind 1991’s “Nothing However Hassle” rushes to thoughts.
The e book additionally notes the cruelty that accompanies failure. Just a few identify administrators noticed their careers evaporate after one flop too many. Others loyally went down with the ship, unwilling to launch their grasp on initiatives that appeared doomed from the leap.
Robey blends movie criticism with a reporter’s eye for the tiniest grain of gossip. He’s additionally susceptible to a couple woke asides. Why summon the spectre of white main males whereas X-raying the failure that was “Catwoman?”
It’s an pointless tic however hardly a distraction.
RELATED: WHY ‘KING ARTHUR’ DIDN’T DESERVE TO FLOP SO HARD
“Poison” finds loads of scrumptious morsels for film followers to savor. The writer rummages by previous interviews, dog-eared press kits and extra to craft three-dimensional portraits of productions gone wild.
He’s by no means merciless, simply surgical in his assessments. He’s oddly enamored of a few of these stiffs, placing apart his admiration to indicate why they bled pink ink for his or her studios.
Sturdy themes can’t assist however emerge from the wreckage. Casting issues, at all times. Egos sink various initiatives. Cussed artists get loads of blame, however one may argue that perspective additionally helped form various movie classics.
Think about if James Cameron threw up his arms slightly than end “Titanic,” awash in dangerous buzz for a lot of its artistic life.
Some anecdotes will linger, like Andrew Lloyd Webber buying an emotional help canine following the “Cats” debacle. That story’s punchline received’t be spoiled right here, but it surely’s so good it’s price choosing up the e book all by itself.
The e book ends, appropriately sufficient, with “Cats.” Robey notes the flop enterprise received extra sophisticated lately. Hollywood stays absurdly danger averse, clinging to IPs and protected bets at almost each flip.
The Hollywood flop won’t ever die. Simply ask the oldsters behind 2024’s “Higher Man,” the monkey musical primarily based on Robbie Williams’ profession.
After the huge flop of #BetterMan, the query was much less: Why didn’t audiences prove to see a $110 million R-rated pop biopic plotted round a cocaine-snorting CGI chimp? Extra: Who would even assume they *may* make $$ with that? My autopsy: https://t.co/imOfFJKfIz
— Chris Lee (@__ChrisLee) January 16, 2025