Based on the highly suspect autobiography of Gong
Show host Chuck Barris, George Clooney’s assured directorial debut explores the dark side of the American dream. Barris (a squirrelly Sam Rockwell) pioneered reality television, was consequently skewered by cultural critics and despised himself for all of it. Clooney’s lively, inventive style makes this feel more fun than “important,” though I can’t think of another movie that has as many important things to say about ambition and failure.
