Python Hyena
The People VS Larry Flynt (1996): Dir: Milos Foreman / Cast: Woody Harrelson, Courtney Love, Edward Norton, James Cromwell, Richard Paul: Rousing film about Larry Flynt and his constant battle with society and what is morally acceptable. He is the creator of Hustler magazine, which rivals Playboy in its pornographic expectations. He argues that the female body should not be disregarded but lands in court on numerous occasions. Eventually he ends up in a wheelchair after an attempt is taken on his life. He lands in court again to answer a lawsuit by a religious leader. Then his wife announces that she has A.I.D.S. Some may see it as a celebration of repulsive behavior yet the film is provocative with director Milos Foreman presents strong arguments. Foreman is at his best with material such as this especially when one looks at Amadeus, arguably his best film. Woody Harrelson delivers a flawless performance displaying Flynt's ego and arrogance. Courtney Love is superb as Flynt's unstable wife whose health suffers. Edward Norton is excellent as Flynt's frustrated lawyer who does much damage control. James Cromwell delivers interesting supporting work as well as Richard Paul who plays off the religious right wing agenda of Jerry Fawell whom Flynt mocks. Portrait of a man with questionable ethics and an argument for free speech. Score: 8 / 10
Blake Peterson
"All I'm guilty of is bad taste," Larry Flynt (Woody Harrelson) shrugs. He has recently founded pornographic magazine Hustler, and after just a few months of success, he finds himself in the middle of a court case – the religious zealots, helicopter parents, and anti-pornography activists of the world are his enemies. They find Flynt's magazine to be even trashier than Playboy. It's understandable: who wants a beloved figure like Santa Claus to be in the center of a severely lewd cartoon?Hugh Hefner's ideals seem saintly in comparison to the more adventurous Flynt. Hefner can get past the censors by squeezing in "articles" in- between the nudes, the nudes themselves being somewhat playful rather than severely hardcore. Flynt, on the other hand, is much less conscientious. He wants high quality pictures, ones that are no-holds barred and as explicit as possible. He doesn't have time for articles nor does he much care about the sensitivity of the public. He wants to give the perverts of the nation what they want.Now in his 70s, Flynt has been sued an obscene amount of times, whether it be regarding the magazine itself, the individuals he lampoons within its pages, or the people he offends. You can tell that The People vs. Larry Flynt is a great movie because, for two hours, we actually see Flynt as a sort of anti-hero, an advocate for free-speech and a man unafraid to push boundaries (even if the boundary line is so far away it looks like a dot). The film spans decades, covering his poverty coated childhood, his early days as a strip-club owner, his bombastic marriage to the unstable Althea Leasure (Courtney Love), the assassination attempt that paralyzed him from the waist down, and his court case filled '80s. He begins as a surprisingly smart businessman but declines after he is nearly killed. The People vs. Larry Flynt is an ingenious comedy for the first hour or so, treating Flynt's down-and-dirty business with a tongue-in-cheek manner that fits like a glove. In his early years, he was eager to please, slightly naïve, and even charming. The transition from black comedy to wearisome drama would normally feel jarring, but Forman's direction is never purposefully funny or purposefully dark; he tells it like it is, and it just so happens that Flynt's life is just as full of laughs as it is of tragedies.The post-assassination life of Flynt is what hits the hardest, considering it follows such a bubbly, ballsy first half. Althea has adopted a severe drug habit and Flynt himself rides around in a gold wheelchair, his speech slurry and out-of-control. Hustler, if possible, has become even more tasteless, and Flynt's once impressive mansion is crumbling with the depressiveness of Norma Desmond's humble abode. As his life spirals out of control, we are reminded that one can hardly handle a great number of court cases, a near-killing, and pills and still be eager to please, slightly naïve, and even charming. But you can hardly be a pornographer and avoid the eventual grease that will consume your every move.Harrelson is like a chameleon, adopting every single one of Flynt's mannerisms and then some. As the film travels through time, the titular figure changes his characteristics at a constant rate, but Harrelson doesn't merely change the way he talks and call it a day. He exudes Flynt's transitions so naturally that it is as if he's captured the man himself. Love is equally as terrific, giving Althea an infectious charisma that makes her final years all the more affecting.The People vs. Larry Flynt may cover too many bases to be consistently enthralling, but rarely has a film made a controversial figure so likable, so compelling on the screen. Larry Flynt is a scumbag, as one character puts it, but never has a scumbag been so multi-faceted, so utterly eccentric. And, kind of brilliant. Read more reviews at petersonreviews.com
Movie_Muse_Reviews
The life of Hustler publisher Larry Flynt has almost too much good material. It's one thing to grow up selling moonshine, buy up some strip clubs and launch one of the most explicit pornography magazines ever created. It's another to also be a one-time born-again Christian, bipolar painkiller addict and the unsuspecting bastion of First Amendment liberties. As such, watching "The People vs. Larry Flynt" is like watching at least three different movies: You have the rise of the boundary-pushing magazine editor, the drug-addled romance and the courtroom drama. So many events in Flynt's life and facets to his personality warrant a deeper look, yet there's just no time. Writers Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewksi and of course two-time Oscar-winning director Milos Foreman make the most of each part, but the whole product lacks the unity of a masterful biography.At the time, Woody Harrelson proved a curious choice to play Flynt, but he nails the bipolar aspects of the master pornographer. We have so much trouble determining his motives, digging for some sign of logical thought. In most cases, this makes for a frustrating case study, for which you might normally blame the actor for not taking us deep enough. Considering how the film jumps from one aspect of Flynt's life to the next in addition to how completely unpredictable of a character he is, Harrelson deserves praise. He keeps you on your toes like the crazy uncle who jokes so much you can't tell when he's really serious.Then there's Courtney Love. Playing Flynt's stripper girlfriend-turned-wife, Althea, Love gives Foreman more than he bargained for. Hiring a drug addict to play a drug addict is a dangerous game, and not when it comes to working with that person. It's tough to divorce love from Althea, such a controversial public figure at the time and even to some extent to this day. She's frighteningly real as Althea at some points, especially once she starts mooching off Flynt's painkillers after the assassination attempt.Some of the most compelling drama in the film comes in the courtroom scenes. Those fascinated to any extent with free speech law and censorship will crave more from "The People vs. Larry Flynt," especially when the title seems to promise it in higher doses. Edward Norton nabbed a career-making role as Flynt's attorney, Alan Isaacman. Getting noticed by Milos Foreman and Woody Allen ("Everyone Says I Love You") at the same time is pretty impressive. He delivers an expert closing argument in the film's first trial that will have you convinced he wins the case, as well as a powerful yet light-hearted opening speech in the Supreme Court's hearing of the infamous Flynt vs. Falwell case, a landmark win for First Amendment rights."The People vs. Larry Flynt" touches on so many fascinating aspects of this enigmatic figure, but it sacrifices some depth and consequently the emotional pull. Flynt's life blurs by, and though the writing compensates with some nice transitions, there's no substitute for getting Q.T. with Flynt. The Hustler empire appears to be built in a day a scene in which Flynt tells a photographer that "a woman's vagina has as much personality as her face" is the most insight we get into his mind as editor. Good writing there, but a fleeting moment in the bigger picture.The second half of the film, essentially Larry's life after becoming a paraplegic, feels so radically different. Larry's stroke garbles his speech and Althea's addiction has her looking like a flying monkey in the "Wizard of Oz." Two people who once seemed to have their wits about them become such filthy and disturbed characters. At that point you start to identify with Norton's character instead, as he's the only one who understands the balance between defending free speech and making a complete mockery of the judicial system.You'll want this film to be more of everything, particularly of Flynt as the unorthodox crusader for free speech and the magazine publisher who works the line between genius and insanity. The individual moments or scenes of such captivate, but get lost on the whole. The challenge of boiling a fascinating man's life down to a series of striking moments can sometimes be too immense for even the best of filmmakers.~Steven CThanks for reading! Check out more of my reviews at moviemusereviews.com
