Satire strikes Hollywood with deadpan approach

By Kevin Thomas
Los Angeles Times

Jordan Bridges stars as Kevin Taylor, whose dreams of becoming a screenwriter are swept up in the deal-making delirium of Hollywood. Inventing a fictional writer, he is horrified when people around him begin claiming connections to the latest hot property. Trillion Entertainment 'New Suit' R, for vile language, sexuality and drug abuse 94 minutes

This breezy, polished production serves in turn to showcase the promising talents of Jordan Bridges (son of Beau) and Marisa Coughlan, as sharp here as she was as the nasty sorority girl opposite Christina Ricci in "Pumpkin." Heather Donahue and Mark Setlock head a lively supporting cast.

Bridges' 24-year-old Kevin Taylor has arrived in Los Angeles to pursue his dream of becoming a screenwriter, and discovers that his neighbor Marianne Roxbury (Coughlan), who likes to present herself as a producer, has just landed a job as a junior agent. It is his first lesson on how Hollywood types cannot resist inflating their actual status.

Kevin latches on to a job reading scripts and working as a flunky for a crass producer, Munster Hansau (Dan Hedaya), whose last hit was some time ago. Hansau's key associates are his ambitious secretary (Donahue) and his harried V.P. (Setlock), whose intelligence only adds to his frustration in working for such a creep.

Despite early indications to the contrary, Marianne has no interest in a relationship with Kevin, and is only concerned with furthering her career. And Kevin's lunch mates at the studio so appall him with raves over terrible scripts they are intent on promoting that on the spur of the moment he announces he's come across a terrific writer, Jordan Strawberry, and his script "New Suit."

Suddenly, Kevin has lighted a wildfire that he can't put out. He's surrounded by liars: people who insist they know Strawberry personally and even a self-described model-actress-whatever who insists she's bedded him. Marianne asserts that she represents Strawberry, explaining he's off mountain climbing in the Himalayas. Everybody wants a slice of the Strawberry pie.

Nobody has bothered to ask Kevin what "New Suit" is about, and one person describes it as a combination of "The Full Monty" and "Star Wars." Another describes it as featuring a liquefied, shape-changing creature that will be a sure-fire hit with kids. Yet another declares that "Will Smith and J.Lo are ready to start shooting tomorrow."

A dizzying display of the art of cutthroat deal-making swiftly escalates. In not taking itself too seriously, "New Suit" actually scores more points than some pictures that take a scathing approach.