Paparazzi

• Directed by Paul Abascal
• September 3, 2004 (US)

After a car crash caused by tabloid photographers a rising action star seeks revenge on them for almost killing him and his family.

The character of an up-and-coming action star dishing out violent revenge to evil paparazzi? Sounds like a plan to me. Though honestly as Paparazzi goes on the line between hero and villain gets really blurry.

I went into this thinking our main character would be this unbelievably grounded nice guy forced to protect his family against some ridiculously sadistic photographers. This movie was clearly born from the feelings over Princess Diana and producer Mel Gibson’s feelings over hounding picture takers. I give them credit for changing things up but was the goal really to have no good guys?

Cole Hauser stars as the aforementioned up-and-coming action hero Bo Laramie who is the latest “it” guy in Hollywood. Because of that enviable status he is hounded by callous and downright manipulative paparazzi headed up by Rex Harper (Tom Sizemore). The problems start when Bo clocks Harper causing both to have a grudge against the other.

In that moment Harper is clearly the villain with Bo the sympathetic hero just trying to protect the privacy of his wife and absurdly cute and precocious kid. But as the movie goes along Paparazzi really does fuzzy the lines between hero and villain with both having plenty of negative strikes against them. While Harper and his friends do an assortment of scummy things, after Bo lets one fall to his death he sets out on a campaign to ruin their lives if not outright kill them.

Dennis Farina shows up as Detective Burton who has the in story purpose to look at all the incidents that occur to the people that caused Laramie’s accident but whose actual in film purpose is to give Bo info that helps him to go after his victims. He really kinda sucks as a detective. Frank Drebin was more observant.

There are some really random cameos in this. Not sure if they are aimed at creating authenticity or being some type of meta commentary. Producer Mel Gibson shows up as an anger management patient that Bo passes by after he is ordered to take classes following the initial incident. Vince Vaughn appears as Bo’s co-star in the fictional Adrenaline Force films. Matthew McConaughey appears as himself at the premiere of the first film. Chris Rock is a pizza delivery driver in a moment that feels like a reference to his viral cop bit.

I have trouble understanding how Bo ends the story consequence free. Given that events were caught on video due to hidden cameras he should have had some cuffs on before credits and not Harper given there were no witnesses to what Harper did. Not only that but this video streamed by the secret cameras was viewed by a house full of cops who were investigating the death of Harper cohort Wendell Stokes (Daniel Baldwin) who had it on multiple monitors. Did they all suffer a bout of hysterical blindness? What am I missing in that moment?

Characterization is weak. Bo’s wife Abby (Robin Tunney) is there to support her husband and gets little beyond being a teacher and an awesome mom. She never suspects her husband might be doing something extremely violent to these people that went after them. Their son Zach (Blake Michael Bryan) exists to be insufferably cute and loved by Bo. That is on top of Bo plotting murder and simply not defending himself.

But is Paparazzi any good on even the most basic level? Yes. Not great, but good. There is plenty of action and violence and honestly Bo’s plan when executed is strangely satisfying. And he’s not too dumb about it. Not a genius either but it comes off as somebody with a brain even though there are several moments when Burton if he were a better detective should have picked up on something or just simply checked a piece of evidence.

Paparazzi is an entertaining action thriller. Not great, but good enough that you won’t feel like you wasted your time and may even re-visit again. Not highly recommended but recommended.