George Clooney's directorial debut tells the story of Chuck Barris, the well known TV-persona who invented such shows as "The Dating Game", "The Newlywed Game" and "The Gong Show". On an interesting side note; he also claims he killed dozens of people while working as an assassin for the CIA.
Barris (played marvelously by Sam Rockwell) gets into the world of television as an inventor of new show formats and a producer. He rises through the ranks of TV hierarchy and becomes more and more important. At the same time he is recruited by the CIA who train him to be an assassin who takes out targets all over the world. Slowly the two worlds he lives in start to fall apart, as in the world of television his shows get worse ratings and people start to hate him for his unethical show formats and the world of secret killing is stirred by a double agent who slowly starts to pick off his co-workers. He has to do his very best to overcome everything without losing his grip on reality.
The movie contains beautiful acting, especially by Rockwell, but also by other actors such as Julia roberts, George Clooney, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore and Rutger Hauer. The movie is switched up with images from Barris' real life co-workers and friends who comment on his personal life and his claim of being an assassin. Besides the excellent acting line-up the movie also boasts beautiful camerawork and some excellent storytelling by Clooney, who proves he can star as well as direct in this beautiful and gripping movie.
