Movie No. 75 (2014): MAPS TO THE STARS

Maps To The Stars (2014)
Director: David Cronenberg
Cast: Julianne Moore, Mia Wasikowska, John Cusack, Robert Pattinson

Every character in this Hollywood satire is dysfunctional. Dr Weiss is a psychotherapist. His wife manages the acting career of their teenaged son who has a history of drug abuse. They have en estranged daughter who's just been released from a Florida sanatorium, now trying to reconnect with them (as family). Shunned by her family, the daughter seeks employment, instead, from a once-famous but now fading actress, who is Dr. Weiss's patient. The fading actress, a former child star, has her won issues with her dead mother, a famous actress of the 1960s. 

Everyone is sick. Everyone has motive. This contrasts the seemingly gleeful cinematography. Maybe this is Cronenberg's version of Hollywood. With all the characterization and conflicts shown earlier in the movie, it's not actually unexpected the movie will end in the way it does. But it still gives aftershocks.

By the way, Julianne Moore is superb.

Rating: 3.5/4.0

Date seen: October 19, 2014

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