I have posted elsewhere rather extensively about Star 80, but after I posted, I realized I had more to write -- Star 80 could be dissected scene by scene, and I would not grow bored.
There are folks who appreciate this film. Richard Schickel of Time gave it a rave review. A lot of critics hated it, but they are often philistines. The reviewer for USA Today said that after seeing the film, he wanted to take a bath. Love this film or hate it, it certainly leaves a residue on your brain.
I think Warner Home Video should release a better DVD, letterboxed at the very least.
It is absurd that this film wasn't nominated for even one Oscar, in a weak year like 1983 no less.
Star 80 is probably my favorite Fosse film, and that is saying something, consdering he also directed All That Jazz, Cabaret and Lenny.
Fosse might be the greatest genius of all, because nobody, and I mean not even Orson Welles, mastered the separate arts of filmmaking, stage direction and choreography. Think of it. Few people master even one of these arts. Fosse was also a great screenwriter on top of it. Among his many, many accomplishments, is that rare, unprecendented, never-to-be-topped trifecta -- winning the Oscar, The Tony and The Emmy in the same year. Mel Brooks has won an Oscar, Tony and Emmy, but it took him 30 years.
Now, on to Star 80.
First, in response to a previous post -- Snider was hung out a hotel window because of gambling debts. OK, let's analyze this scene. First, Paul takes great pride in his personal appearance and bearing. He is meticulous about his appearance, which in psychology circles is called "impression management." So what is the worst thing, the most upsetting thing that can happen to Paul Snider? He gets vomit all over his nice new shirt. This scene also tells a lot of important things about Paul -- what kind of people he hangs out with, what sort of dubious entertprises he's involved in. Most importantly, we see how headstrong and obstinate Paul is, no matter how hopeless the situation. Arguing with a bookie over the point spread is a hopeless task, as point spreads are basically a bookie's lifeblood. Even when he's beaten, Paul tries to get what he can. This is evident in a scene in the Playboy Mansion, where he is playing a pinball machine with Bobo Weller. We see Paul try to "English" the machine into giving him another ball -- the perfect metaphor for Paul's character, as he tries to hustle and talk people into doing things they don't really want to do (recall the first time he takes Dorothy home, first seducing her, then getting her to pose naked for the camera). Most people would be put off by rejection, but Paul seems inspired by it. He simply doesn't take no for an answer, either from a pinball machine or a woman. When his will is truly thwarted (by someone even more powerful, such as Heffner), Snider goes ballistic (literally).
The use of music -- Billy Joel's Big Shot is used at least twice. This has multiple meanings. Paul is truly a big shot, in terms of his swaggering arrogance, but the "Big Shot" can also refer to the bullet he puts in his brain (and in another ballistic metaphor, he takes his "big shot" and blows it).
Billy Joel's Just The Way You Are has a title that says it all. Paul wants to keep Dorothy just as he found her, a pliable bimbo who will do his bidding and serve as his meal ticket to the big time. When she decides to change, Paul goes off the deep end. Suitably enough, this song is played at the senior prom, which represents the immaturity and innocence of Dorothy (and also underscores Paul's lack of maturity -- everyone else on the dancefloor is a teenager, Paul's in his late 20's -- to me, this is the perfect way to show that Paul has progressed beyond the adolescent phase).
Also, during the prom, Paul overhears the jock say "hi" to Dorothy, and he realizes this is the guy who took her virginity. So Paul sticks the jock with a nail file. This scene is absolutely brilliant, because it accomplishes numerous purposes -- first, we see that Paul indeed has a unique ability to "read" other people instantly. Also, when he contemptuously refers to the guy as a "jock," we get the idea that Paul had a terrible time in high school, was in fact a "nerd," and he has spent the subsequent time building himself up into becoming a "real man," or at least his version of manhood, which is influenced by Playboy (recall all the tear-sheets from Playboy on the wall as Paul pumps iron). Also, the nail file stabbing shows that Paul is not merely vindictive, but also sneaky. He has no qualms about jabbing someone when his guard is down. In addition, a nail file seems like a rather pathetic, unmasculine weapon, but it can indeed be painful (and then we see him use the very same nail file during the flashforward murder/suicide scene, as he scratches away Dorothy's face from a photo on the wall).
Another interesting motif in this film involves what I call "imagery of falling." There are repeated shots of people falling, top to bottom of frame, most dramatically during the final rape/murder/suicide scene. The final shot of the film shows Dorothy and Paul from a high angle, as if they have both fallen from grace, and reached the bottom of Hell. Another metaphor is Humpty-Dumpty -- in Aram's office, we see a doll perched precariously on a bookshelf when he first meets Dorothy. Also, Paul is held by his feet from the hotel room by the goons -- the perfect image of a man on the edge, about to fall to his doom -- in fact, when he is tossed out the window, the camera pans and sweeps quickly toward the ground, giving us a sense of vertiginous imminent collapse (the same sort of foreboding is presented in the carnival sequence, with its up-sideways-and-down rides which serve as suitable symbols to Paul's crazy trajectory).
One of the key scenes in the film has Paul commisserating with Geb in the bathroom. Geb hits the bullseye, seeing through all of Paul's surface charm when he says, "In this town, there's always going to be someone with more money than you, there's always going to be someone with a longer penis than you." That last one really gets to Paul. It is significant that Paul's de-facto shrink is not a mere doctor, but a plastic surgeon.
Geb's character deserves commentary -- he is a nice enough guy, but he is just as shallow as everyone else on the westside. He drives a Rolls, which he absurdly claims is an investment (quite often rich people are embarrassed about conspicious consumption, and try to ascribe other motives to their greedy behavior), and he moves from less affluent Orange County to ply his trade as a plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills. What lofty ambitions these people have!
In sum, there's a lot to discuss and analzye in this film. More to come...
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