Julia Stiles (left) and Rebecca
Pidgeon play locals affected by filming in their small
town.
By Sandy Yang
Daily Bruin Contributor
In the tradition of Hollywood satires like “The
Player” and “Bowfinger,” “State and
Main” exposes Tinsel Town’s sometimes shady and
unintentionally hilarious, inner workings.
In Pulitzer-prize winning screenwriter/director David
Mamet’s reflection on Hollywood, the characters behind the
movies are much more interesting than the characters in the movies.
In “State and Main,” the melange of characters,
including the maniacally determined directors, abused writers,
conscience-lacking producers and big stars who are partial to
underaged girls, makes Hollywood look like a less-than-heavenly
experience.
Doubling as a screwball comedy, Mamet’s take on Hollywood
could even border on the absurdly implausible. But according to
William H. Macy, who plays the director in the film, the depiction
is pretty accurate.
Mamet’s playful stab at Hollywood takes place in the
picturesque town of Waterford, VA, which is invaded by movie makers
who destroy the town in the process of filming.
In “State and Main,” megastar Bob Barrenger (Alec
Baldwin) can drive drunk, knock over the town’s only
stoplight and take advantage of a local underage girl (played by
Julia Stiles) in one night, while letting his dashing smile
exonerate his wrongdoings.
It is a world where the film’s producer (played by David
Paymer) threatens actress Claire Wellesley (Sarah Jessica Parker),
to take her top off or face a lawsuit, and where screenwriter
Joseph Turner White (Philip Seymour Hoffman) gets a gross encounter
with the life of a Hollywood scribe when the film’s director
asks him to get rid of the old mill in his script entitled
“The Old Mill.”
Meanwhile, the townspeople are more than happy to gush over the
celebrities who can’t help but wreak havoc.
 "State and Main" features a story that satires big studio
filmmaking. Though Hollywood gets a healthy bashing and portrays a
community where many of its players need a sound lesson in ethics,
Macy defends Hollywood by comparing the task of making a movie to
getting sucked into an enormous pressure cooker.
“With these $100 million movies, the pressure is
unbelievable,” said Macy, who is currently working on the
third “Jurassic Park” movie. “I’m not
exaggerating when I say that a day after you wrap one of these big
movies, many directors go to the hospital.”
“(Directing) is the worst job in the world,” Macy
continued. “Directors are barraged with questions 13 hours a
day, six days a week and you get a question every minute and 25
percent of them are nonsense.”
In the movie, while the director is barraged with questions and
comments, taking responsibility for every minutia of the movie, the
screenwriter is a virtually useless vestige once the script is
turned in.
In Mamet’s semi-autobiographical portrayal of a
screenwriter, White faces one problem after another ““ he must
return to square one of his script every time money runs out, the
location isn’t ideal and the stars won’t comply with
the dialogue or directions.
“(A movie is) all on the page,” Macy said.
“It’s the script. There’s no other way around it.
If you have a great script, no matter what you do, chances are good
you’re going to have an OK movie.”
For Macy, who will be directing a movie for TNT, as long as the
script is great, audiences will be captivated.
Though Hollywood satire is not a new concept, “State and
Main” marks the first film in this category for the new
millennium, proving that Hollywood will always be fascinated with
and criticize itself
“Hollywood is corrupt, there’s no question about it,
but once in a while, it turns out these movies that are just pure
joy,” Macy said. “Every year, one or two movies comes
through this system (like that).”
According to Macy, because Mamet seems to know exactly what
makes Hollywood a sometimes frustrating working environment, the
director took every pain to welcome the cast and crew.
“You’ve never seen a fellow happier than if he knows
that Dave Mamet is directing a movie ““ he cackles with
glee,” Macy said. “I’ve seen that guy say hello
to a dozen extras at 7 a.m. and shake everybody’s hand (and
say), “˜Hi, I’m Dave Mamet. Thanks for being in my
movie.’ And 13 hours later, he will say good-bye to them by
name. “
FILM: “State and Main” is now playing in theaters
nationwide.