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Entourage
is a continuation in film of a hit TV show with the same title that ran for
eight seasons from 2004-2011, both of which are loosely based on Mark
Wahlburg’s (one of the producers) experiences in moving from the east to
Hollywood with three of his long-time friends to begin his acting career. Intended to be a comedy as well as
drama, the film’s dialog runs at a fast-clipped pace with sometimes hard to
catch comical and sarcastic one-liners laced with expletives hurtling
past. The audience in the
screening I attended clear loved it, chuckling throughout and responding
audibly to the more dramatic scenes.
As typical for the television show, guest cameos are sprinkled
throughout (e.g., Armie Hammer, Piers Morgan, Emily Ratajkowski, Pharrell
Williams, and Liam Neeson, to name a few).
In the story, talent agent Ari (Piven) has
landed a directorial and starring role for Vincent Chase (Granier) in a
blockbuster film, despite the doubts of many about his capabilities. They’re now over budget, and even
though Vince swears the film is almost done and he is pleased with it, many
have their doubts, and Ari must plead with the studio and with the financier
(Thornton) and his son Travis (Osment) to support it to completion.
That is the “spine” of the story, but much of
the film focuses on Vince and his friends’, Eric (Connolly), “Drama” (Dillon),
and “Turtle” (Ferrara), personal lives, carousing and getting in trouble with
women. One of the funniest scenes to me took place at an outdoor
café when Eric is confronted by two women, both of whom he slept with the day
before. He gets a good scare, then
is bewildered while they walk off triumphantly. Turtle’s “love” life is also entertaining when he takes up
with mixed martial artist Ronda Rousey (herself). Other funny scenes involve a former assistant of Ari’s (Rex
Lee) dogging him in the pursuit of having Ari give him away at his upcoming
wedding. It’s both funny and sad,
because his own father won’t have anything to do with him after he came out,
and this will be a gay marriage.
Doug Ellin, the writer/director for this
production and writer and director of six episodes of the TV series, has done a
fine job in converting the television version to film. The material flows into a film that can
stand alone. It’s very fortunate
that most of the main cast of TV also appear in the film. Piven, Grenier, Connolly, Dillon, and
Ferrera give us a vivid picture of what the lifestyle of an up and coming actor
is when he brings along his friends from home.
This film will be much more enjoyable and
entertaining to those who have followed the Entourage
TV series. Even though I am not
one of those, I did get a kick out of it, and didn’t feel that I needed any
back-story. Viewers should be
aware that derogatory references to women and the f-word are used in almost
every sentence.
Male bonding and their antics entertain.
Grade: B By
Donna R. Copeland
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