Full disclosure: I’ve never saw a full episode from Doug Ellin’s Entourage series. If this makes my opinion on the film inferior, then I apologize. But not everyone can see every show.
That said, it's apparent that — down to an opening credits sequence accompanied by the original theme song, “Superhero” by Jane’s Addiction — Ellin transitions the look and feel of his program into a feature-length cinematic episode with Wednesday’s Entourage. Not since Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film For Theaters has the jump from small-to-big screen felt so indicative of its home entertainment origins, and this is respectful certainly. However, there's also many problems here other tube-inspired properties have too.
Immediately picking where things left off, Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier), freshly divorced from his nine-day marriage, believes it's time to do big things. So supported by his buddies, manager/producer Eric “E” Murphy (Kevin Connolly), driver Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) and older brother/fellow actor Johnny “Drama” (Kevin Dillon) he calls his agent-turned-studio head Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) with a tall order. Not only does he accept Gold's offer to frontline his friend's first studio feature, he — like many actors before him — also wants this to be his directorial debut.
Eight months later, Chase's deep into post-production on Hyde, his artistic, futuristic retelling of Jekyll & Hyde. The project’s already past the $100 million mark, and it needs more de niro to finish up. While Gold respects his client’s artistic freedom, not seeing a single frame keeps him unhinged. His anger management techniques also aren't held down by Texas investor Larsen McCredle (Billy Bob Thornton), whose son Travis (Haley Joel Osment) keeps wedging fingers too deep into the property possibly ending Gold, Vince and E Tinsel Town careers forever.
While certainly better than either Sex and the City feature, this HBO feature doesn't balance what worked on the big screen while fitting onto the big one like, say, The Simpsons Movie. Everyone puts their hearts into this entirely, but the shaggy delivery of this longer-than-usual Entourage adventure isn't as fun as what I've caught from the series. At 104 minutes, its somehow too short and long. It’s too short for a ninth season narrative, yet too long capture to enrapture its lovable spirit. It’s a mismatched odyssey of little consequences, where good looking people get what they want, and then some, in under two hours.
When it's fun, though, it's really fun. The gang still have great chemistry and Ellin’s writing — while stiff — knows the characters in-and-out. There’s also enough T&A to keep the bros, and Mr. Skin, happy. However, it's too surface-level. It’s lighthearted to a fault, like night memories faded quicker than the leads’ alcohol/drug-catered evenings. There are more chuckles than wholehearted laughs, and the briefly encountered celebrities leave the better impressions.
Like the show, Entourage has plenty of celebrity cameos, including extended ones from Ronda Rousey and producer Mark Wahlberg. As expected from Hollywood-based comedies, these are the comedic highpoints. Brief interactions with T.I., Kelsey Grammer, and Liam Neeson, among others I won't spoil, earn the heartiest laughs, but, like last year’s Top Five, these fun moments also often take over the story at large. After a while, it's a guessing game for who'll come. Then again, Entourage could care less about conflicts if someone's having fun.
E says everything done is to get laid, and he's not lying. Vincent often brushes off any problems, and it's hard to care what multimillion get thrown in his wake. Unlike the Sex and the City movies, the melodrama doesn’t go beyond what’s expected. Piven and Dillon are the most enjoyable. Even when both try too hard, particularly the latter, admiration for their characters is clear and they remain fun to watch. Like all Ellin's characters, however, their arcs are too rushed. Drama struggles with his identity — even though living in his younger brother’s shadow doesn’t bother him. However, his embarrassing video leaked online hinders him less than five minutes, and his resolution is hastily slapped on at the last moment. Likewise, even Ari’s journey — while actually built up — is summed up with one final monologue that doesn't feel earned, just written.
Also, oddly enough, Vincent is the one least explored. Isn’t he supposed to be the center? If there’s a lead, besides Ari, it’s E. And his main battle is to juggle the women he sleeps with as he supports Sloan (Emmanuelle Chriqui), the woman he knocked up in the show's end. The most interesting character becomes newcomer Travis. His acute Texas perception of Hollywood makes him an outliner and unique perspective. Unfortunately, Osment’s character is often shorthanded to follow the L.A. mutinies of its supporting characters. And as they get their all-too-squeaky clean resolutions, it’s hard to root for their victories.
As a macho-headed Hollywood fantasy lathered in Axe body spray and overstimulated female fantasies, Entourage could certainly be worse. Its fun when it needs to be, and sometimes there's a enjoyable breezy atmosphere. At the same time, though, not a lot here warrants a theatrical tale, particularly as HBO hosts high profile films on the channel, even for original shows —like, for example, Hello Ladies.
Between Ellin's flat camera staging and lumbering plotting, this Entourage contains too many of Ellin's worst traits. Sure, the parties are fun, as are the B/C-list celebrities attending. They come so few-and-far between, though, and aren't worth the effort. This leads to the movie's biggest flaw.
In a blockbuster-filled summer more overblown than Chase’s directorial debut, Ellin's film sometime stimulates with easeful charm between tentpole projects. But without anything particularly interesting to do — and with Magic Mike XXL soon to give the same thematic pleasures and Silicon Valley doing what Entourage did best on HBO, if not better — there’s little need to take your own entourage to this big-screen ensemble.