Hollywood-Story (1955)

Hollywood-Story: Directed by Robert Aldrich. With Jack Palance, Ida Lupino, Wendell Corey, Jean Hagen. Hollywood actor Charles Castle is pressured by his studio boss into a criminal cover-up to protect his valuable career.

“A charged, stage-bound melodrama, with Palance as a movie star in servitude to the studio boss (Steiger) whou0026#39;s blackmailing him. His wife (Lupino) wonu0026#39;t agree to live with him until heu0026#39;s his own man again, which means not renewing his 7 year contract. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ePalance does his best, but heu0026#39;s not the kind of actor who can show a character going through real transitions and hold the audienceu0026#39;s attention for an entire film. Steiger is allowed to go over the top a few too many times, but Corey provides some of the filmu0026#39;s best moments as his more ruthless, and at the same time gentlemanly, henchman. Sloane provides an unusual characterization as a somewhat sissified agent. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003enUltimately, too cramped in its one room location (which may have been done deliberately to show the characteru0026#39;s isolation from the world, but still produced a stagey effect that bind the film too tightly).”