I'm curious what the most ego stroking vanity project in filmdom is. Films where star/creator wanted to come off awesome/sexy/revered/righteous and made sure they did in completely obvious ways. Although my initial reaction is that of a 50's aging diva who signs up for a role where everyone wants them and remarks how gorgeous they are, this film is actually inspired by Steven Seagal. I am currently watching Under Siege 2: Dark Territory where he returns to the role of Casey Rybeck, but leaves the nautical setting for DIE HARD on a train. Casey is so awesome that the henchmen say his name with Jesus type reverence and "he's the best there is." His calm high & mighty demeanor is set up to be tested by a prickly relationship with his niece Katherine Heigel before she very quickly does a 180, letting possible drama fall weirdly flat. But Steven truly set himself beyond your average flexing action star by making sure he never for a second loses during a fight, nor doing anything too active like a kick. The big showdown in the film with Everett McGill that is continually built up ends up being a completely one-sided whooping, it is borderline hilarious. You can just hear Steven saying, "I'm Casey F#$@ing Rybeck, no one gets the best of me." Despite Steven's sanctimonious approach to his character we get this from behind the scenes: Seagal was later criticized for his behavior during the film. Jenny McCarthy unsuccessfully auditioned for a role in the film. She said Seagal auditioned her and asked her to take off her clothes.[18] Katherine Heigl, who was sixteen at the time the film was made, said that on the last day of filming Seagal told her, "'You know Katie, I got girlfriends your age.' And I said, 'Isn't that illegal?' And he said, 'They don't seem to mind'." BTW, I love this film despite (or because) of this actor primping, and the Matt Reeves script is endlessly quotable. When someone brags about something I often use the quote "that is what I hear. Usually from you, but that is what I hear." I've also used a variation of the quote: "Guangzhou is a chemical weapons plant masquerading as a fertilizer plant. We know this. The Chinese know that we know. But we make-believe that we don't know and the Chinese make-believe that they believe that we don't know, but know that we know. Everybody knows.” Having talked about Under Siege 2, I wonder if the Seagal directed On Deadly Ground beats it in pure "I'm better than you" fashion, complete with a long voice over speech on environmentalism and this scene ending in a truly hilarious question/answer:
That Seagal flick looks tough to beat as it would appear that his vanity and lack of self-awareness has no bounds.
Aw shucks, didn't mean to end the thread with the first movie mentioned, so I'll move on to a more typical example: These are just some of the reviews of The Mirror Has Two Faces, which a 54 year old Barbra Streisand directed and starred in. "a silly affirmation fantasy . . . that Streisand . . . uses to prove she's really beautiful, funny and worthy of being loved, gosh darn it . . . hasn't she returned to the theme of Homely Girl Redeemed, and crowned herself the victor, countless times? In its first half The Mirror is a romantic-comic delight: nicely directed . . . well-acted by a terrific cast and peppered with great one-liners . . . by the second half . . . the movie has disintegrated into a humorless, drawn-out plea for reassurance" "Although meant to be a bubbly romantic comedy, the movie is actually a very public tragedy for Streisand, who still can't quite believe that she's not Michelle Pfeiffer . . . at 54, it's time to get over girlish hang-ups, forget the noble schnoz and thank God that unlike Cher, you're still recognizable" "a vanity production of the first order. A staggeringly obsessive expression of the importance of appearances, good looks and being adored, Barbra Streisand's third directorial outing is also, incidentally, a very old-fashioned wish-fulfillment romantic comedy that has been directed and performed in the broadest possible manner . Lit and posed in an old-time movie star way you rarely see anymore, she plays out her career-long is-she-or-isn't-she-beautiful comic psychodrama one more time, with the girlish uncertainties wiped out with the speed of a costume change. If one were to take it all seriously, one would have to point out that there just isn't that much difference in Rose Before and After, that Streisand hasn't allowed herself to look unappealing enough to justify the big change. No matter. The narcissism on display is astonishing to behold, and veteran Barbra worshipers will have a field day." C'mon folks, there are so many options in this thread, we haven't even touched on Woody Allen yet....
'Yentl' is 100% Streisand, 100% of it's running time. Maybe not necessarily a vanity project but close to it surely.
Reminds me of Kevin Costner's noble decision to direct himself in every single scene of Dances With Wolves. But does The Postman beat it?
Tom Cruise’s various action movies qualify. Especially the ones where we get the shots of him running in slow motion. Mission Impossible was conceived as an ensemble, but Cruise’s version has been a star vehicle.
A year or two ago I saw a horror comedy from 1979 called "Nocturna" that I think qualifies. Apparently the film was a total vanity project for a French/Vietnamese belly dancer named Nai Bonet, who'd been a regular fixture in films, TV shows, and commercials during the '60s (she also recorded a novelty single in 1966 called "Jelly Belly"). She came up with the project as a star vehicle for herself, hoping to kick start an acting career. She played Dracula's granddaughter Nocturna, who becomes bored with life in Transylvania so she heads off to New York City and becomes a disco queen. Let's just say it was a good thing that Ms. Bonet was somewhat attractive and spent much of the movie in various states of undress, because she certainly couldn't act worth a damn. Nocturna flopped, and after starring in an additional movie bomb the following year (Hoodlums), she saw the writing on the wall and retired from acting.
Luc Besson’s The Fifth Element comes to mind. It was a story he made up when he was a kid and did it when he finally had money. Also, Cloud Atlas by the Wachowskis. Coming off of The Matrix and how convoluted the plot is it sure “feels” like a vanity project to me. And now that I think about it, everything by Clint Eastwood he has made when he should have been retired for at least 10-15 years now.
Woody Allen's Whatever Works rubbed me the wrong way. Of course, that is Woody's intent, to upset the supposed prudes in full Ernst Lubitsch fashion. However, with Woody's personal life in mind this film is very preachy and is something of a self-fulfilling dream where young girls never regret anything, especially if they came from the streets. Add in the subplots about liberating the in-laws too and you have a daydream of the highest order. But you could add in a number of Allen films, Vicky Cristina Barcelona's "all women just want to be liberated by artists and prudes will be the ones who suffer" daydream, Midnight in Paris's utter worship of his idols, Scoop's perfectly sexually impervious female reporter tossing off being used, Mighty Aphrodite portraying adult porn stars as vapidly happy....at the heart of it Woody's films are always about how sexually liberated people have no faults because seduction never hurts anyone, unless someone dies by getting too greedy (Crimes, Match Point.) Life in a Woody film is jazz, art, looking down on lesser art, getting BJs (there are many references in his films), age is just a (usually low for the ladies) number and the existential crisis that really seems less crisis and more "you won't have to pay for anything in this lifetime so have fun." I'm not religious myself, but in Woody's case, his psychology seems to be very self-serving as are so many films.
Theatrical release poster Directed by Klaus Kinski Written by Klaus Kinski Produced by Augusto Caminito Starring Klaus Kinski Debora Caprioglio Nikolai Kinski Cinematography Pier Luigi Santi Edited by Klaus Kinski Music by Niccolò Paganini Salvatore Accardo Production companies Scena Film Production Reteitalia Président Films Distributed by Medusa Distribuzione Release date 7 October 1989 (Germany) Running time 81 minutes Director's Cut: 95 minutes Countries Italy France Language Italian
Love how according to some Joe offered himself the lead role in the latter movie when Al Pacino turned it down. Interesting how the more despicable of Hollywood men often make their own vanity projects. Smokescreen? For obvious reasons I'm thinking of Leonard Part 6, $24 million thrown at a spy spoof which Bill Cosby starred, produced and came up with the story. I suppose any movie where you make yourself a superhero of sorts can be seen as a vanity project, but I also remember awkward creepy scenes with his on-screen daughter and the poster quotes seem weirdly preoccupied too: His daughter is engaged to a man old enough to be his father. His estranged wife behaves like she is younger than their daughter. And now his government has asked him to save the world. Again. Asked years later about his work on the film, director Paul Weiland recalled: It was a terrible mistake. ... When anyone gets into that position (Bill Cosby's position of power in the 1980s), they are surrounded by sycophants and no one tells them the truth. But Cosby just wasn't funny. I couldn't tell him directly. I'd say it feels slow, and he'd say, "You worry about construction, let me worry about funny."
You might also add Tropic Thunder as an ensemble movie—but I don't think you could call Magnolia or Tropic Thunder as "Tom Cruise" movies.
Any number of Streisand moves act as Odes to Her Greatness. From my review of the 1976 "A Star Is Born": "If you look through Streisand’s films, one recurring thread appears: many of them seem to exist largely for the Glorification of All That Is Babs. In the case of Star, this means the film holds her up as a paragon of everything right and beautiful in the world. Love her or hate her, Streisand’s basic talent can’t be denied. However, one can deny that she deserves the God-like status she tries to confer on herself. At best, she seems self-involved, and at worst, she comes across as a raging narcissist. That side of things makes Star damned tough to watch. For one, it never makes much sense that John falls so hard for her. Her bar band doesn’t highlight her skills well, so it doesn’t appear clear that he’d take to her as a stellar talent. If the flick gave us a better indication of what she can do, we might buy the prospect that John would become smitten by her abilities, but it doesn’t communicate those elements at all. This means that we have to accept Esther as a world-class beauty, and that’s absolutely impossible to do. John ladles praise on Esther for her looks, all in what appears to be an attempt to hoodwink the audience and make us agree with him. That never happens. Though her silly Seventies perm doesn’t suit her well, Streisand wasn’t an unattractive woman. However, she’s not nearly hot enough to dazzle anyone, especially a rock star like John who’s certainly conquered many much sexier women."
I suppose Under the Cherry Moon and Give My Regards to Broad Street count. By the way, is it me or is Prince's acting better in Cherry Moon than in Purple Rain?
