Some stars get plenty of work but still fly under the radar. Like Rosalind Eleazar.
She’s best known stateside for Apple TV’s “Slow Horses, but Chris Rock realized she could do so much more.
Enter “Misty Green.”
Eleazar plays a fading star struggling to get back on top. It won’t be easy, what with a bipolar brother and a knack for self-sabotage. Writer/director Rock has given us a sublime satire of modern Hollywood. He also wrote Eleazar the role of a lifetime.
Now, about that ending …
Eleazar is Misty Green, an Emmy-winning actress struggling to start her career’s second act. She’s sexually aggressive, prone to emotional outbursts and unwilling to play by any of Hollywood’s rules.
But boy, can she sing and act. Will that be enough? So far? Not so much.
She’s out of cash and homeless as the movie opens, but when she hears about a “Dreamgirls” reboot she’s one audition away from the comeback she craves.
Her personal demons may not let that happen. The project’s director, Jordan Green (Rock), knows she’s perfect for the role but recalls how her anger crushed their previous collaboration.
Not much has changed. She’d rather party all night than prepare for a big audition.
And then there’s her brother, Jay (Daniel Kaluuya). He’s out of prison and in a new relationship, but he’s volatile on a good day and needs chronic support.
Hollywood, Inc. offers more detours to derail Misty’s comeback. That’s personified by Zach (Adam Driver), a filmmaker and friend with benefits who knows how Misty could make a serious payday overnight.
Yes, it’s as vile as one can imagine.
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Rock’s take on modern Hollywood is bitter, not bittersweet. Everyone is out for themselves. Sex is part of the negotiating process. Even Misty’s agent (Topher Grace), arguably the most “normal” character in the film, is far from idealized.
The City of Angels also gets a brutal closeup. Homeless tents abound. Locals bob and weave around beggars and addicts. It’s the polar opposite of Steve Martin’s sunny “L.A. Story” (1991).
It’s all fresh, vital and hugely entertaining. And Rock isn’t afraid to make Misty a three-dimensional soul. She’s gorgeous and gifted, but her moral compass appears broken beyond repair. Or is it?
The best actors make us root for characters who don’t deserve our grace. Eleazar’s portrait of a struggling actress should immediately push us away. She’s needy and selfish, someone who refuses to take blame for her misfortunes.
Yet we’re on her side through every bumpy step.
Secondary characters fuel Rock’s L.A. dystopia. Anna Kendrick plays a social climber willing to marry a rich dud to keep the money flowing. It’s not hard to imagine Kendrick’s character stabbing Misty in the back if the opportunity presented itself.
“Misty Green” also weighs in on Hollywood sexism and racism, but it’s mostly performative and never distracting. Rock’s “Top Five” (2014) got over-praised by critics.
“Misty Green” is the real deal. Until the third act, that is.
One of the film’s critical subplots involves the murder of a young woman, presumably by a 30-something black man. You can sense that Rock, who clings to fading racial politics in his comedy, is building up to something.
The payoff is disconnected from modern life, a clunky denouement that dings the larger story but nothing more. There’s also a blatant appeal to the country’s mental health crisis, with Rock using literal on-screen text to send home his message.
Even a film school student wouldn’t attempt such a stunt.
The bigger issue is Misty’s arc. It feels contrived in a way that doesn’t do Eleazar or her character justice. “Misty Green” ultimately doesn’t know what to say or share about this actress’ struggle.
What a shame.
Up until then, “Misty Green” is one of the year’s best films, and proof that the 61-year-old Rock may be a late-blooming auteur after all. And give Eleazar all the roles moving forward.
HiT or Miss: 4 out of 5 stars
Genre: Drama/satire
Runtime: 103 minutes
Where to Watch: In theaters Oct. 9
Family Friendly? Not even close. Sexual situations. Adult language. Sudden violence. R
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