User reviews

I still can't point out what it is about "Hail Caesar" that I hated so much. On the surface, it feels like a harmless comedy. Obviously lame but harmless. But it keeps gnawing at you from the insides to the point where you just have difficulty watching it straight-through. I had to watch it in three or four separate viewings. I just couldn't sit through this lamebrain fluff for longer than thirty minutes!

I found this movie in the $4.88 bin, so naturally I wasn't expecting the Best Picture Winner for 1993, but I was curious about "HC" ever since I first heard about it. So I decided "What the heck?" and bought it along with a bunch of other discount videos at my local wholesale market. I'm sure Anthony Michael Hall gets cracked on a lot, and many consider him a "has-been." I still think he's a cool actor. I liked him a lot in "Sixteen Candles" and "The Breakfast Club." And recently, he showed off his talents as an adult actor in "The Caveman's Valentine." He's definitely a man with potential, but as for carrying on a starring role and directing? I don't think so. This directorial debut, and thankfully his only time directing, screams "amateur" from start to finish. Almost like a mediocre student film, meant to be enjoyed strictly by fellow students.

The big stars don't help much either. Sam Jackson is one of my favorite actors, and he appears briefly as a postman constantly getting chased by Julius' (Hall) dog. He's good in this small, supporting role, but he's not on screen enough to save the film. Old brat pack buddy Judd Nelson also has a supporting role and so does Robert Downey Jr. in his most hammy performance as a hyperkinetic wannabe music agent. Jackson, Nelson and Downey all appear very shortly but since marketing always finds ways to capitalize on the success of now-big stars, all three of them appear on the video cover.

The attempts at humor are totally lame, though I have to thank Hall a little bit for not being annoying about it. There's too many overdone, annoying comedies nowadays and that's the only reason why I'm going to thank him--even though the humor is way below par and only intermittently funny. The plot is very disorganized. It keeps on hopping from one subplot to another, and I can never get thoroughly involved. In the beginning, we're psyched up to thinking this is going to be about Julius and his dream to make the perfect band. But that gets pushed off to the side way too often. It mostly composes of an outlandishly predictable pseudo-love story between Julius and his would-be girlfriend (Bobbie Phillips), and her snobby, white-collar father who will do anything to make sure nothing happens between the two of them. The problem is, like all these stories go, the girl he's in love with...is a total bizotch!!!! There's not one appealing quality about her, other than the looks. Throughout the film, they don't do as much as come close to each other. How did the two of them get together in the first place? Yet he's in the band with this beautiful girl (Leslie Danon) who obviously been wanting him since they first met eyes. And here's the bonus: she's not a total bizotch!

Every once in a while, there comes a lost movie that happens to be really good. And you think to yourself, "Why has this movie been hidden for all these years?" This is not one of those movies. It has its (very brief) moments. That's all I have to say. All you Brat Pack fanatics eager to see more of Anthony Michael Hall's work better off buying the original B.P. features or rent them again. I'm hoping he will totally revive his career one of these days, but if this was an attempt for a revival--Sorry, try again.

My score: 3 (out of 10)

With his hair dyed "mellow yellow" and some dark eye make-up, college failure Anthony Michael Hall (as Julius Caesar MacGruder) decides to be a rock star. When not jamming with his "Hail Caesar" band, Mr. Hall tries to make time with standoffish Bobbie Phillips (as Buffer). Her tycoon father, Nicholas Pryor (as Bidwell), doesn't want Hall in the family. He bets Hall cannot make $100,000 in six months, then hires him to work in one of his pink pencil eraser factories, where Kane Picoy (as Larry Remora) is sent to undermine Hall's efforts. At the factory, Hall stumbles discovers a secret project called "Big Pink" which spells trouble.

Keep your expectations low for "Hail Caesar" in spite of the names Mark Twain, Robert Downer Jr. and Samuel L. Jackson in the credits. They have small roles, along with Frank Gorshin and Judd Nelson, and the film is lightweight made-for-cable-TV fare. It's also notable for Mr. Hall's attempt to both star and direct. He sings well, and seems good at getting Hollywood friends together (even to embarrass themselves). Mr. Pryor is good as the father. It's also interesting to watch (from an actor's viewpoint) scenes wherein Mr. Picoy and the less veteran members of the cast gamely share the screen with their simultaneously directing co-star.

**** Hail Caesar (5/11/94) Anthony Michael Hall ~ Anthony Michael Hall, Nicholas Pryor, Bobbie Phillips, Kane Picoy

i don't remember anything about this movie other than it being completely terrible. it should be in the bottom 100, and it will someday as soon as it has enough votes.

1/10

I have seen some bad movies in my life, but this is the worst in years. With the exception of Robert Downey Jr's 6 minutes (at 50 minutes into the movie) or Judd Nelson's 4 minutes (at 80 minutes in), there is nothing redemptive. Samuel L. Jackson must have been paying a bad debt, ant obviously Downey was being generous. Leslie Dannon as the love interest is reasonably hot (especially in the end), but her acting skills run the gamut of a to b. Downey's talent is so clear in the scene and a half that he is in, that he is without equal talent wise in this film.

For a brief time in the mid 80s, i thought that Hall had some talent, but I have been healed of this mistaken belief now. How he got the freedom and financing to direct, produce, and star in a movie, when Judd Nelson's career disappeared, is beyond me. In my humble opinion, Hall is not a pimple on Nelson's hind end (to paraphrase Joe Seneca in Crossroads). Furthermore, it is hard to take anyone seriously who appears to have made a serious effort at looking like Corey Haim.

In addition, the production values suck. The editing sucks. There are noticeable jumps in movement (as if it were stop motion photography) during the Downey Jr scene.

I might add in conclusion that it i would rather pass a kidney stone than listen to another song by Hall.

"Hail Caesar" was actor Anthony Michael Hall's debut as a director. With the exception of an episode of the television show "The Dead Zone", he has not directed anything since. Seeing this movie, the reason for this is pretty obvious. To be fair, he was working with a pretty low budget, which is pretty evident throughout. For example, in several scenes with two people talking, he never shows a shot of the two characters in the same shot - he just shot each actor alone, and edited both sets of footage together. But the problems of "Hail Caesar" go beyond the low budget. All of the characters in the movie are annoying and obnoxious, and the movie doesn't know whether to be a satire of the music business or a goofy comedy about a youth trying to win over the father of his girlfriend. If you are thinking of giving this movie a try because of its cast, a word of warning: Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Downey Jr., and Judd Nelson each just have a few minutes of screen time. Thumbs down for this Roman emperor!

Any member of IMDB that says this movie was good, entertaining, or any other positive note should have their membership instantly revoked!

Don't buy into the well known actors that appear in this movie. It was obviously out of sympathy they appeared for Anthony Michael Hall's movie he directed. I like Anthony, but he sucks as a director and this script is one of the worst written ones out there.

The only good thing I could say about Mr. Hall in this movie is ... he actually sounds pretty good as a singer. I had no idea he that he could sing. He even wrote the lyrics to these songs, which are a far cry better than his ability in directing.

One of the most self-indulgent, badly written and poorly acted movies I have ever seen.

It has the director playing the lead role, and even singing the songs. Yeah, he can sing a little but the music is just drab (I do recognise him now that I looked him up, some good work, but boy, he should have dodged this bullet!).

The storyline is boring. There was no fluency in the story, and so many plot-holes it wasn't funny.

I think I would have preferred to watch a Pauly Shore movie instead of wasting my time on this. It is supposed to be a comedy, and I can only remember one humorous moment - thanks to the dog - in the whole movie. It could have been so much better, but the full potential is just not realised in this movie.

Big name actors, such as Robert Downey Jr, Judd Nelsen, and Samuel L Jackson scattered through the movie with no particular purpose other than to give the movie some big names.

I understand we all have different views on what is funny and what is not. I just felt compelled to write this because I thought it was terrible. Watch it for yourself and see whether you like it or not.

Sometimes a film comes along and watching it, one can only ask, "WHY did someone spend money to produce this pile of garbage!?" I'm sure that I've seen a few films that are worse than this one, but I can only think of one at the moment. When the title menu page came up, I was 99% sure it would be crap. Ten seconds into the first scene, any and all doubt was removed. I think movie studios produce a few pictures like this each so that they can write them off as loss and get a bit of a tax break, or something. What other reason could there possibly be for making this movie? The characters and and plot were very shallow, the acting was bad, and there was not one scene or moment that was funny, humorous, amusing, or even made me smile. The only thing remotely interesting about it was seeing Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Downey, Jr. In early roles that were far beneath their talent.

It has Samual Jackson and Robert Downey Jr and fellow brat pack member Judd Nelson, but bad story and poor acting. This has Anthony Michael Hall staring as lead role Julius and directing.

I've just lost hours of my life I will not get back. You go from Breakfast Club to this jumble of rubbish. All recordings of this movie should be destroyed.

I just caught this on Showtime. I didn't know what it was at first but started watching anyway. I really enjoyed it. It was great to see Anthony Michael Hall again as well as Bobbie Phillips(Murder One,Chameleon). It was also amazing how many stars did cameos. From Samuel L. Jackson,to Robert Downey Jr. If your in the mood for a light,entertaining comedy,I recommend this.

Hail Caesar is a 1994 comedy film directed by Anthony Michael Hall in his directorial debut. It's based on a original story from Mark Twain. Julius Caesar MacGruder (played by: Anthony Michael Hall from Sixteen Candles, Weird Science, The Breakfast Club, Vacation, The Dark Knight, Halloween Kills, Edward Scissorhands, and The Dead Zone), the ambitious lead singer of the rock band b"Hail Caesar" with his friend Annie (played by: Leslie Danon from Beach Balls, Marked for Death, A Million to Juan, and Sometimes They Come Back Again). He wants it all which includes fame, fortune, beautiful girls and a recording contract from Easy Street Records executive Jerry (played by: Robert Downey Jr. From The Avengers franchise, Iron Man franchise, Sherlock Holmes franchise, Oppenheimer, Tropic Thunder, Zodiac, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Less than Zero, and Back to School).

There's a slight problem with this day dream, Julius isn't exactly a rock star at the moment. He's just a worker at a pencil eraser factory run by the notorious Mr. Bidwell (played by: Nicholas Pryor from Risky Business, The Chamber, Murder at 1600, Executive Decision, and Sliver ). His dreams seemingly out of his grasp he falls in love with the boss's daughter Buffer (played by: Bobbie Phillips from The Bold and the Beautiful, Showgirls, Carnival of Souls, Chameleon franchise, Body of Influence, and TC 2000) against her father's wishes. In order to get in favor with him Julius makes a risky bet with the old man. If he comes up with $100,000 in six months, Mr. Bidwell must let them be together. Can Julius make the money, make it big AND get the girl????

Teen star Anthony Michael Hall stars and directs this 90's screwball comedy. Hail Caesar definitely has an interesting concept and it's highly entertaining. The script is all over the place and it has some really random characters in this one. I'm assuming that Hall was trying to create roles for his friends here but most of them don't really go with the main plot in this. Anthony Michael Hall put together an all star cast for Hail Caesar, this comedy is loaded with cameos from all kinds of familiar faces.

It has actors like Robert Downey Jr, Samuel L Jackson, Judd Nelson, Nicholas Pryor, Frank Gorshin, Grant Cramer, and Robert Downey Sr in it. That's honestly the best thing about this production. Bobbie Phillips and Leslie Danon provide some eye candy here. Hail Caesar just does whatever it wants and there's no traditional narrative for the feature. It's just a fun movie that never has a steady storyline. Turn off your brain and enjoy the entertainment. I can see why Hail Caesar is kinda forgotten when it comes to comedies in the 90's but I still think it's worth checking out at least once especially if you are a fan of Anthony Michael Hall.

i loved everything about this movie. i picked it up because of AM Hall and loved the light hearted wackiness and play on words and I LOVED THE SOUNDTRACK. as a matter of fact, i have been looking to see if the soundtrack is available anywhere. i still can't find it. so i just keep watching the movie over and over. my 12 year old daughter has seen it a few time and likes it also, she tried to get her friends to watch it, but they didn't get it. it was a good lighthearted comedy, with interesting characters.anyway, we are happy to have our own DVD and hope to get the soundtrack someday! i can't think of anything else to say. if you like AM Hall this movie will entertain you.

This is my first comment, so bare with me. Before it was the WB channel 11 was the best place to see 80s movies. Some I couldn't sit thru and don't even know the name of but many of them became guilty pleasures. I'm not sure if I saw "Hail Caesar!" on channel 11 but its somewhere between "Breakfast Club" and "Ode to Billy Jean" on my 80s favorites.

I loved this movie. It ain't The Godfather but it is great for what it is. If you want to laugh and sign along with a movie, this one is perfect. AM Hall is a great comedic actor and an excellent singer. I haven't seen it in years but I still find myself singing "What you feel" from time to time. If you can tolerate 80s movies (which some people can't), this is a gem if you can find it.

I am seldomly impressed by people but Anthony Michael Hall IS one of the most impressive male actors I have seen. He seems to have an understanding of comedy and his audience way beyond most other actors. His music is equally impressive. I was extremely impressed by the song in the end credits of this movie and it has been several years since I saw it last. It is a shame that truely talented people are held back in hollywood. Others who are also impressive minded people include Jeremy Piven, Robert Downey Jr, Tom Green, Harland Williams and Trey Parker. Bring on more people like these!

I saw this today for the first time on tv. I thought it was funny. Anthony Michael Hall is entertaining on screen. Also, Bobbi Phillips is beautiful and a really good actress. I saw her in an action movie and WOW she was completey different. There were alot of stars that popped up in this film. I think if you watch it without trying to be too deep about it you'll have fun!

Man i just saw this movie and all i can say is what a waste. The script in this movie is horrible. Which is a shame because so many great actors are in this movie (even Samuel Jackson!) But the story goes no where and the jokes go from being cute and funny, to annoying and iratating. Avoid this movie like the plague.

Saw this gem in the dollar store on vacation and realized I had never seen or heard of it before. Being a fan of several of the actors I decided to pick it up, besides it was only a dollar. Another movie that was available was Samarai Jack. Hooray for Samarai Jack and a resounding "What were they thinking" for "Hail Caesar".

They should have included a shower and some toilet paper with this movie.

The only entertainment value we had while viewing this piece was guessing what cliché would be exploited next.

I do plan however to loan this movie to anyone who annoys me... and they said "Ishtar" was a bad movie.

An interesting movie could be made of the "thinking" that guided the financing of such a bad movie.

You people are failing to see what this film really is! How do you expect all the sundry pay channels that gobble your hard earned money to possibly operate on a 24/7 schedule without airing movies like this once or twice or maybe even all day? Think people! It's We who bankrolled this little gem. Time was, an embarrassment such as this piece of utter garbage would be shipped to the guitar pick factory. Now, its called premium television.