User reviews

Hollywood is another good Ryan Murphy show. It follows the lives of aspiring actors and filmmakers who will pretty much do anything to succeed in their dreams of making it big in Hollywood, it takes place in post-World War II Hollywood. I didn't really know what to expect from this but I gave it a chance because of all the good things I heard and I'm glad I did because it was a very well done series. It seems like anything Ryan Murphy does these days is a huge success! The stories are very diverse and interesting. Most of the bad reviews are because they say it isn't true...who cares? It's a tv show, not a documentary! It admits that it takes places in a revisionist Hollywood that is a pick me up series.

With so many mixed reviews I wasn't sure what to expect from Hollywood. I'm glad I did give it a chance because I really enjoyed it. It's seems like most of the negative reviews are because it changes facts from history and because there are real people being portrayed here they didn't like it. Personally, I couldn't care less as long as it's entertaining. It's not claiming to be a true story. This is another show created by the highly successful Ryan Murphy. While not his best work it's still pretty good and worth watching. It's about aspiring actors, directors, agents, etc in post World War II Hollywood who will do anything to make their dreams come true.

Full of colors, fun, diverse characters and drama, Hollywood is a mini series (I don't get the current possibility for season 2) worth a watch if you're into historical what-ifs, or you just want to watch a fun "period" drama that is not the real Golden Age Hollywood... So don't expect history lessons, and just enjoy 1940s through rose colored glasses. It would've been a better choice to go full-fiction with all fiction characters though, without terrible Rock Hudson portrayal for example. Or to go 100% factual (it's not that hard) and show how things really happened in Hollywood, with real struggles of aspiring writers, directors, actors, poor, non-white, different sexuality (for example, Rock Hudson's real closet case). As for the quality of the series in general, it started excellent and then just lost itself with unbelievable plot and characters acting forced, unnatural and silly. The cinematography is great. Drama is mostly interesting, something that's usual for Ryan Murphy (I love American Horror story and Scream queens, he should stick to horror comedy). All in all, I gave 7/10 for the first few episodes, cinematography, silly drama and feel-good mindless fun. It would have been much lower if I took it seriously... Or if I judge by last few episodes... Or if they decide to make season 2 (oh no)! P. S. The tune at the end of each episode is so annoying and repetitive!

This syrupy effort from Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan is, at best, pretty but hard to watch. I had to force myself through the first four episodes to get to a point where I cared enough to endure the bad writing and uneven direction and finish it. There's way too little plot, character development, or point to carry it. The cast did the best they could with some awful, preachy dialogue, overly sugary and convenient plot 'twists' and the shallowest characterisations.

The cast was a mixed bag of wonderful 'seniors', mid-ground familiar faces and inexperienced young over-actors.Patty Lupone, Holland Taylor and Joe Mantello shone in their roles and carried the show throughout. In the mid field, Queen Latifah, Dylan McDermott, Darren Criss and Jim Parsons did excellent work and obviously enjoyed their roles. Queen Latifah always has screen presence and as such, she was under-utilised. Dylan McDermott revelled in his silver fox rendition and Jim Parsons developed his character, as best as the script would allow, from vile to virtuous (too much so, but anyway). The young ones added the pretty and, possibly accidental, youthful naivete.

As to the point of the show, it was never clear what it was trying to do: just entertain? make a point about gays (as a gay person I am tired of the cliche way this is always depicted, find a new cause or at least a new angle) and coloureds? was it to show the 'true' Hollywood? (hardly). At times I wondered if it was trying to be a 1950's women's melodrama about the making of a 1950's melodrama, but that didn't really play out. The directing was extremely uneven. Though it was very heavily preachy (way too preachy) it didn't give any depth to the topic: it really only exploited the 'issues' to provide the little plot that there was. It even seemed to endorse the violence against the journalist/reporter that was going to expose something that was shown to be true.

It was mostly predictable, cliched and shallow and, therefore, very disappointing. It's a shame that all the effort put into recreating the era, ultimately amounted to very little: an opportunity missed (as others have said). Somewhat entertainingly disappointing: will just a little more, it could have been so much more.

A thoroughly entertaining reimagining of Hollywood in 1948. Fabulous production values and some terrific performances. Jim Parsons is a particular standout as the notorious Hollywood agent Henry Willson. Ryan Murphy has presented us with a very interesting take on what might have been. Some other reviewers have mentioned the word cringeworthy. Cringeworthy it is at times but it is thoroughly entertaining. The only negative thing about Murphy's latest offering it is that it wasn't true, although the 'Dreamland' premise is loosely based on Scotty Bowers' autobiography 'Full Service.' Ryan Murphy can be hit and miss at times (his last effort for Netflix, 'The Politician' was a bit of a mixed bag) but I'm happy to say that 'Hollywood' is a hit.

Ryan Murphy seems to believe that Darren Criss is a talented actor or maybe he just has a soft spot for him. Personally I think he plays EVERY role the exact same way except for a few tweaks here and there.

I didn't think Jim Parsons had the chops to tackle a role like this but he was amazing as real life agent Henry Wilson. I absolutely love Henry Cavill and he will always be Superman (and Geralt) in my mind but I am a little curious to see what David Corenswet (Jack Costello) will do with the Superman role.

Everyone gave a great performance in Hollywood except for Laura Harriet who played Camille and Maude Apatow who played Henrietta. Maude is a nepo-baby so unfortunately I understand why she keeps getting roles but who is Laura related to ?? I haven't seen acting that bad since Selena Gomez in Only Murders in the Building.

It started out sooo good. The first 3 episodes were great. I thought for sure this would be Oscar worthy...then, it took a hard dip by episode 4, turning into Make-A-Wish foundation, and by episode 5, it was a PSA announcement. We shut it off mid-episode 'cause we were bored, and I was calling out every plot twist before it happened it had become so predictable. It was like Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan wrote the first 3 episodes, got bored, and told their 22-year-old writer's assistants to finish the show.

I feel like Ryan Murphy is at that point in his career where he can get anything greenlit so now he's writing entirely for himself and doesn't care what the audience or his fans want. It's a shame. The writing started out so strong. Imagine the first half of this show like Glee season 1 and the second half like Glee, the final years, and you have an idea of where the writing went on this show. Too bad.

I saw the documentary that they ripped the gas station / Dreamland part of the show, and that was fun, despite they took that guy's life and probably didn't pay him. There's zero tension in the show after episode 3. It's just wish fulfillment, where everyone gets what they want, like a pre-school show for kids, so, despite the strength of the first few episodes you stop caring about the characters because you can predict everything that will happen so what's the point of seeing it? No mystery. No struggle after episode three, they suddenly magically get everything they want. There's no reason to watch until episode 7 because mid-episode 5 it's an easy guess where it's going, which we confirmed by reading reviews.

I just don't know how Murphy went from America Crime Story: Versace, to this. Such a great idea, and so magical, and it just fell apart, as if they stopped caring halfway through.

Rock Hudson was great. That was one bright spot in the show, aside from the initial writing and the production value. He was endearing and vulnerable. You really root for him, despite the show falling apart around him. And was interesting to see Jim Parsons as a villain after 12 seasons of him playing Sheldon. I'm sure he loved playing that. The entire cast is likable, it just would have been nice for them to be consistent as opposed to shifting their characters completely and unrealistically halfway though. Again, bad writing.

What happens if you take Hollywood in the 40's, bend a few trajectories ever so slightly and let the story run. What if the people who had to hide who they were, compromise their morals, miss out because of their skin colour, what if these people got the chance to shine? If you have a think against diversity you are not going to like this one, but if you enjoy feeling really good about humanity, this is one for you. The ensemble cast is wonderful, the story shifts and changes, moving in all sorts of directions at once without every 'losing the plot'. There's a subtlety to the way each character is revealed with more authenticity and then is free to live from that rather than the masked version of themselves. I loved it to bits.

Special shout out to Jim Parsons, who is brilliant as the evil agent with the potty mouth.

The creators of a mini-series have made a significant effort to demonstrate that hardly any straight men existed in Hollywood during the 1940s. While this might be true, there is an ethical dilemma. Using rumors and facts to fill the script with events that happened and using the names of real people while mixing them with wishful fantasies and lies is a lame move. It destroys the tone of the series. For instance, showing Rock Hudson coming out as gay in public in 1946 with a black boyfriend or Ernest Borgnine presenting an Oscar to a non-existent movie with a non-existent cast is unrealistic. Moreover, the series contains extended love scenes that lack gusto, eroticism, or reason, making them redundant. Despite this, six out of seven episodes are watchable. However, the last episode is full of cheesiness and lacks surprise and intensity, making it forgettable.

The beginning of this series didn't capture me and I considered turning it off; but then, something happened. I began to figure it out and when they introduced "Rock," I perked up. Frankly, I wasn't sure how or why the screenplay was constructed the way it was (how much is truth? How much is embellished? Did Rock have a secret boyfriend?) ... as each episode loaded, I got more and more intrigued because there was an underdog factor and I wanted righteousness to prevail. I didn't care about the details that bother so many. I just wanted a good story. This delivers. I love Rob Reiner in this and was amazed by Jim Parsons' performance.

This is the best serie i have seen this year. It has humour. Great story. Great cast. I love this show , it touched my heart. Bring season 2 Watch this show

Netflix limited series premiering May 1, 2020 Greetings again from the darkness. "I want to go to Dreamland." One might assume that phrase is related to Hollywood being the place where dreams can come true, but co-creators Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan take us down a much different path. The two have collaborated on the TV series "Glee", "Scream Queens", and "The Politician", and here they offer up a revisionist history on the post- WWII Golden Age of Hollywood, in the vein of what Quentin Tarantino did in INGLORIOUS BASTERDS and ONCE UPON A TIME ... IN HOLLYWOOD. Mr. Murphy and Mr. Brennan seemingly focused on idealistically imagining a film industry where one's race, ethnicity, or sexual preference made little difference. In doing so, they devote significant time to racism and homophobia.

While the series mixes fact and fiction in such a way that the lines are often blurred, there are two main storylines that provide the backbone of the series: the actual suicide of 24 year old actress Peg Entwistle, which occurred in 1932 when she jumped from atop the Hollywoodland sign; and the mostly fictional crossing paths of a handful of aspiring actors, writers and filmmakers as they navigate the treacherous film industry waters. We see the new generation clashing with the establishment - a tale as old as time.

The 7 episodes cover approximately 7 hours, but it was somewhat challenging to make it through the first three. However, I'm so glad I stuck with it. The series starts off with what seems like a concerted effort to push every boundary possible in regards to sex and racism, with an emphasis on the proliferation of homosexuality within the industry. The characters that are new to town are trying desperately to survive as cling to the dream of their big break.

The series elevates significantly in Episode 4 when the attention turns to filmmaking and acting and running a studio. There is a terrific sequence where we bounce back and forth between two pairs of actors rehearsing for their auditions. We feel the pressure that actors endure during the audition process, and note the fine line ... almost an indiscernible line ... between success and failure. In addition to the newcomers trying to secure roles, we follow a gay, black first time screenwriter and a half-Filipino first time director. As a bonus, Eleanor Roosevelt is portrayed as preaching the social importance of a studio breaking from the industry norm.

"What if you could re-write the story?" is the tagline, and it applies not only to the screenplay of "Peg" (the movie within the movie), but also to Murphy and Brennan as they show how the industry should be, well except for the illicit sex, marital affairs, and mob interventions. Hypocrisy and double-standards are part of the fabric of the movie industry, but what if that gay, black screenwriter didn't have his work defined by those labels, or the half-Filipino director wasn't selected because he could pass as white, or if the talented black actress wasn't relegated to playing domestic help? Those are the core issues at play here, and each of the characters has hopes of changing things in Hollywood.

As you would imagine, the cast here is deep and crucial to whether the project works or not. There are some acting veterans mixed with some regulars from Murphy's previous projects. The newcomers in town are actor Jack Castello (David Corenswet), actor Rock Hudson (Jake Picking), actress Camille Washington (Laura Harrier), director Raymond Ainsley (Darren Criss), and screenwriter Archie Coleman (Jeremy Pope). These newcomers intermingle with industry types such as super-agent Harry Wilson (Jim Parsons), Ace Studios owner Ace Amberg (Rob Reiner), his wife Avis Amberg (Patti Lupone), their daughter wannabe actress Claire (Samara Weaving), Ace's mistress actress Jeanne Crandall (Mira Sorvino), Ace casting director Ellen Kinkaid (Holland Taylor), studio producer Dick (Joe Mantello), and Eleanor Roosevelt (Harriet Sansom Harris). Dylan McDermott shines as Ernie, the owner of Gold Tip Service Station, where customers come for the special service offered with the code word 'dreamland'.

There is an underlying theme where most everyone here is acting - pretending to be something they aren't. It begs the question, how much of yourself would you surrender for fame or money, or simply to avoid discrimination and hardship? There seems to a lust for fame, and a lust for just about everything except dignity. Three real life actors are noted for how they were marginalized as people and/or professionals based on either their race or sexual preference. The stories of Rock Hudson, Anna May Wong (Michelle Krusiec), and Hattie McDaniel offer up real life proof of the injustice that was prevalent during this era.

Movie history buffs will enjoy the name dropping, such as George Cukor's party, and Noel Coward, Tallulah Bankhead, and Vivian Leigh. There is also fun to be had with industry terminology, but the purpose of the project has higher meaning. The dreams of those who arrive versus the power of those already there is on full display. The internal struggles and fallout that occurs when folks are trying to fit an image rather than stay true to themselves - that message is delivered. Dylan McDermott's Ernie is meant to represent the reality of broken dreams that happen right down the street from where dreams come true.

Stylistically, the series is beautiful to look at. Even the opening credits have a surreal quality. The set/production design is top notch, from the studio lot to the sound stages to the small apartments decorated to the era ... and the cars are spectacular. Black and White images are used sparingly, but effectively to stay true to his period in cinema, and the music/soundtrack is perfectly used and could be a top seller as a standalone. Watching the great Patti Lupone is reward enough, but seeing Dylan McDermott and Jim Parsons deliver their best ever work is really something to behold. The debate of Money versus Art versus Social Responsibility could fill many textbooks, and Murphy and Brennan succeed in getting us to think. For those that can fight through the first three episodes, the payoff is there (OK, the ending is a bit hokey), and as Hattie McDaniel tells us, "the most important thing is being in the room."

When this series started, I was absolutely captivated. Hollywood was just as difficult a nut to crack as I had imagined, and it grabbed my interest. But then it started going wrong, and by the time we got to the end and the story of Meg was grabbing all the Oscars, I was gagging with disbelief. I felt let down and disappointed. If there had been some let downs, some false starts, it would have felt more like real life, but this was like watching Cinderella with a grown up audience. Disappointing, even Jim Parsons who was so good at beginning, seemed to lose interest by the end. I can't say I blamed him.

... this had been true?! I don't understand how so many reviewers can have missed the whole point of this series. I cringed alarmingly during the first couple of episodes, but, I was intrigued and kept watching. I am so glad that I did. I just love this! Great acting, beautiful settings and a wonderful "what if" story, very much needed in this intolerant world.

And then it becomes bitter sweet. Haven't we come further? Why? We, as humans and society has a long, long way to go which is truly worth fighting for. So, in short, this series is all about equality, love and that colour, gender or sexual orientation shouldn't matter.

TV miniseries about post-war Hollywood is a fictional look at a group of young talents who come to tinseltown and take various paths to reach their dreams. It's an odd and off-putting mix of fictional characters and real personalities with smidges of Hollywood history tossed in here and there when the histories fit the preachy plot.

Much of the early plot revolves around the making of a film centered on Peg Entwistle, the tragic actress who died in 1932 by jumping off the Hollywoodland sign. But about halfway through, it changes from a movie about Peg to a movie about Meg, a young Black woman who comes to Hollywood and battles prejudice etc. We also get a major rehash of the story about the gas station that served as a trysting spot for sex. I forget the guy's name but he wrote a book about it. Among the real-life characters in the series are the vicious talent agent Henry Willson and a very dumb Rock Hudson. We also get glimpses of Vivien Leigh, Tallulah Bankhead, Hattie McDaniel, Anna May Wong, George Cukor, Noel Coward, and even Eleanor Roosevelt. There's also a ton of name dropping and an homage to William Haines for standing up to Hollywood (by quitting MGM).

Anyway, the plot fits today's mania for moralizing about casting couches, ageism, glass ceilings, and the place of non-Whites in movies ad nauseum. The climax is the Oscars and the plot goes poof in a bizarre awards year where the heroes and heroines sweep the Oscars (pretty much) and even beat the REAL Oscar winners of that year. Talk about revisionism.

I wasn't familiar with any of the "young" actors in this saga, but a few old pros turn in tremendous performances and give this puff piece some ballast. Patti LuPone was the wife of a studio head (Rob Reiner) who takes over after he's debilitated. Joe Mantello plays a closeted producer who keeps the studio running. Holland Taylor is a talent scout/acting coach. Dylan McDermott plays the guy who runs the gas station. Mira Sorvino plays an aging B star, and Jim Parsons (from some TV show I never watched) plays the notorious agent Henry Willson.

From hearing about this months ago, seeing what cast was involved and then seeing the trailer, my anticipation for this was always going to be high.

The one thing that got me most is reading the bad reviews this show has received. Because this is far from bad.

The cast is phenomenal. Huge praise as always goes to Darren Criss who is always terrific and Jim Parsons portrays a far distant performance from how you've seen him as Sheldon from Big Bang!

An inspiring and moving story post WWII. A look behind the 'scenes' of Hollywood in that era.

Do yourself a favour, the best way to watch these is to binge them, keep with the story, stay invested with it. Don't read the negative reviews, come up with your own opinion.

I enjoyed it, and I think you will too!

Wanted to love this. Love period pieces, but it was the usual Hollywood tripe. They just beat a dead horse on the homosexuality and race. That's all the movie is about. Started interesting then just kept jumping the shark into fantasyland.

This series is such a treat - visually appealing with meaningful storylines and witty dialogue. The actors and actresses in it are stunning and it feels both classic and fresh at the same time.

If you're a fan of Ryan Murphy's other works, then I think you should almost 100% definitely be a fan of this too. Even if you're not already familiar with Ryan's other series though... Honestly, Hollywood is just such an all-round good show that I'd recommend it to everyone.

I think the music and the way it weaves serious moments and upbeat moments throughout each episode makes it an enjoyable thrilling watch.

Hollywood whisks us away to post-war Tinseltown. Several different characters give us a behind-the-scenes look at the Golden Age of Hollywood. Through their stories, we learn more about a corrupt and unfair system full of prejudices about gender, origin and sexuality that persist to this day.

Several young artists gather as part of a film project to be realized by the Hollywood studio Ace Pictures. It is based on the tragic story of actress Peg Entwistle, who fell from the letter H of the iconic Hollywood sign in 1931. Whether actor, author or director: each of them has to pay a high price in order to be able to achieve their own goals in Hollywoodland.

I really liked "Hollywood".

A slightly different series, but for those who are interested in films and want to see how the film business worked back then, you should take a look here

The whole thing is accompanied by an interesting story and strong characters.