The People vs. Larry Flynt

Movie Name: The People vs. Larry Flynt

Year of Release: 1996

Director: Milos Forman

Stars: Woody Harrelson, Courtney Love, Edward Norton, Brett Harrelson, James Cromwell, Crispin Glover, Vincent Schiavelli, James Carville, Miles Chapin, Donna Hanover

Genre: Comedy, Sci-Fi

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8

Synopsis:

Academy Award winning director Milos Forman, hasn't had much of a prolific career. The 70s and 80s were his most celebrated decades, where he won his Oscars (for both "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "Amadeus"), but the 90s were less productive for the film maker, following his ambitious but little seen "Valmont' (which suffered the bad timing of coming off the heels of the successful "Dangerous Liaisons" from Stephen Frears). "The People vs. Larry Flynt" is a great example of how the director created engaging, dynamic and well rounded stories focused on people who were quite polarizing (and not your traditional one dimensional heroes). Working from a great screenplay from Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski (who also wrote Tim Burton's "Ed Wood" and "Big Eyes"), the film follows the story of Larry Flynt, from his humble beginnings in Georgia, to his adulthood, where he begins by owning strip clubs and ventures into the publishing of adult magazines. His magazine, "Hustler" eventually attracts the attention of politicians and self righteous religious leaders, and their attempts to silence his voice (and business), lead to a sea change court battle in regards to freedom of speech.
Milos Forman's career, since its inception in the Czech Republic, has been a celebrated one, though as I mentioned above, not particularly prolific (even considering that the director has ventured into acting a few times, namely in Mike Nichols' "Heartburn"). "The People vs. Larry Flynt" is one of his most interesting films - in a way, it's a film very much anchored in the exposes of the 70s, where the hero is battling stronger forces that are trying to castrate his voice. The film benefits from the truthful story of the polarizing personality that is Larry Flynt, and the diverse array of characters and personalities surrounding him (namely his wife Althea, his attorney Alan, his brother Jimmy and many others). Milos Forman successfully captures the life of Larry Flynt in different stages, from his childhood, through his adult years, and finally formative and battling years. The performances in this film are uniformly excellent, from Woody Harrelson (this is the film that effectively made everyone take him seriously as an actor), Courtney Love and Edward Norton. The beautiful cinematography from Philippe Rousselot should be highlighted, as well as Thomas Newman's score. A great film always worth revisiting.