Bob Bowfinger (Steve Martin) is an aging Hollywood
producer wannabe who, in desperation, makes a cheesy
alien movie that he believes is the next
"Independence Day." Action mega-star Kit Ramsey
(Eddie Murphy) is cast to play the hero; however,
since Ramsey won't even glance at the script,
Bowfinger has to film him a la paparazzi (hence the
word desperation). Director Bowfinger cons the rest
of his cast into believing that Ramsey prefers to be
filmed this way, "It's an action piece! We just need
shots of him running away from the Aliens!"
Murphy's second role in the picture is that of a
nerd whose two great talents are running errands and
looking like Kit Ramsey. Murphy's portrayal of this
character is both charming and funny.
The script (also written by Steve Martin) is
pretty funny, but it's not especially funny. Although
it does sport two especially riotous moments. The
first hilarious bit pits Murphy (as the nerd) against
highway traffic (as in, he's got to run across eight
lanes of speeding vehicles). Bowfinger assures him
that the drivers are all stunt men. The second moment
is the last scene of the film -- sort of tacked on
after the climax and resolution (a bonus second
ending); wherein, Martin and Murphy play geriatric
ninja and ninja dork respectively in Taiwan. Save for
the highway scene, this ninja sequence packs nearly
the same yuck value as the rest of the film.
The picture could have benefited by characters
that weren't just ridiculous, but also endearing.
Further, though the ending technically works, other
more interesting conclusions could have been
employed. (Click here for
Ross Anthony revision notes.)
Silly and fun, but short on heart; "Bowfinger," a
film about a film entitled "Chubby Rain," proves
slightly above average.
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