Watch Seduced and Abandoned For Free

Redundant and unnecessary.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

The Cannes Film Festival is a yearly celebration of films, from the blockbusters to the lesser known. However in the back drop of this glamour is the back room deals that make movies come to life. Alec Baldwin and director James Toback take you behind the scenes of this circus as they discuss the process and seek funding for their own project. Along the way they cross paths with players of the industry and get the nuts and bolts of what makes the movie business tick. Cannes is a glamorous film festival but it also is a hot bed of action and the nitty gritty of the unglamorous side of movie making. Movie making business is a challenge, as repeated in the film Orsen Welles shared that "I look back on my life and it's 95% running around trying to raise money to make movies and 5% actually making them. It's no way to live".

A ninety minute HBO documentary about two film folk who want to raise finance for their movie, though whether there was a movie or maybe the proposal was created just to make this documentary isn't clear. Toback and Baldwin go to Cannes for advice from stars, directors and the money men. I thought it was mildly interesting but too long, it should all have been wrapped up in sixty minutes.The directors offer some interesting points about the industry and movies they've made, the stars are just the stars: take away a script and they have no more insight into things than you or I. Still, if you like to see your fave folk relaxing round a table in Cannes give it a look. Plenty of short clips are included too but it's essentially a lot of talking heads.

There are times when this "documentary" strayed but at all levels it was quite a thing to see and to learn from. ++SPOILER ALERT HERE+++ Watching billionaires turn down Alec Baldwin's request for money is always good film fodder. Scorcese and Gosling (old and new school, respectively) brought some much needed light to how the industry works and used to work, what's "bankable" and why. The Johnny Depp example is something we're all probably aware of but to have it spelled out like that was an eye-opener. There's a lot to absorb from this little game, and I have to assume it was a game. I mean, Baldwin didn't even bring a script to market so my assumption is that it was all a bit of a hoax. At any rate, it was very educational to see so many players in the biz sit down before a camera and be so candid about what Hollywood was and what Hollywood is now.

-Spoiler alert- Not sure how exactly to feel about this one. There is no script for these investors to read and they expect them to hand over millions of dollars for a remake of a classic movie that I felt doesn't need to be remade. I have to admit I enjoyed Marty and Gosling's look on Hollywood. I felt Coppola had a lot to get off his chest. Felt like he had more movie making in him, but couldn't find the funds. It makes one wonder how the hell Lucas found money to fund Star Wars. The bottom line of the documentary is that the passion of acting and directing are compromised by investors that just want a return for their investment. I would recommend anyone who is a fan of cinema to check this out. Alec Baldwin and James Toback work good together. Great last scene! Cheers!