As its title might suggest, this movie based on Carrie Fisher's Hollywood struggle works better as a snapshot than as a complete film. Meryl Streep plays Suzanne Vale, a successful actress who is lost in her addictions. Her episodes are never as bombastic as Clean and Sober or other antidrug movies of the 1990s, however. Vale's a more lovable person, and as with all lovable people in Hollywood, other Hollywood people care for her: an understanding director (Gene Hackman), a philandering boyfriend (Dennis Quaid), and a bemused doctor (Richard Dreyfuss). But if you are going to talk about Fisher, you are going to mention her mom, Debbie Reynolds. And here Vale's mom is the die-hard Doris Mann, played with appropriate virtuosity by Shirley MacLaine. The love-hate mother-daughter relationship takes over the film in an entertaining way, with Fisher's sharp comic writing coming into play. You nearly forgive Vale's troubles for having to live under a hurricane like Mann (who goes into her nightclub act at the drop of a hat). The film's sweetest pleasure is seeing Streep loose and modern, nary a drab outfit or an accent in sight. Streep and director Mike Nichols make a risky--and rewarding--finale (fueled by the Oscar-nominated "I'm Checking Out" by Shel Silverstein) work effortlessly. --Doug Thomas
2.
In this adaptation of Carrie Fisher's semiautobiographical novel, an actress struggles to kick her drug addiction while coming to terms with her domineering mother. Suzanne Vale (Meryl Streep) has grown up as the spoiled daughter of famous Hollywood star Doris Mann (Shirley MacLaine). Although she has talent, Suzanne can't seem to get out from under her mother's shadow. The two women have grown apart, but they're forced back together again after Suzanne has a near-fatal overdose. Because of Suzanne's drug problem, the insurers of the film she's working on make her stay with someone who can keep an eye on her during production. As a result, Suzanne winds up moving back home with her mother--which might not be ideal, considering Doris's addiction to booze. Director Mike Nichols guides an all-star cast (that also includes Gene Hackman, Richard Dreyfuss, Rob Reiner, and Annette Bening) through this entertaining look at the dark side of showbiz.
3.
Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine star as daughter and mother in this wickedly witty exposé of life in the Hollywood fast lane.
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