Maps to the Stars exists in the familiarly twisted, hyper sexual and hyper violent world that spawns many David Cronenberg movies. The film opens with Mia Wasikowska’s Agatha, a wide-eyed Floridian on a bus to the City of Angels, hoping to reconnect with long lost family. With the help of a promise over Twitter from Carrie Fischer, she lands a job as the personal assistant to aging starlet Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore). Havana’s late mother was an iconic actress, and before her death she filmed a classic movie that is set for a new remake. Havana has her eyes set on her late mother’s part; however, she’s is both caught in her mother’s shadow and haunted by hostile visions of her. John Cusack has a role as Havana’s new-age massage therapist who helps Julianne Moore work through childhood trauma in barely clothed sessions. Olivia Williams is his wife, an anxiety-ridden stagemom struggling to come to terms with an incident from her past. Evan Bird is their son, child star Benji, a 13-year old foul-mouthed drug abuser recently out of a stint in rehab.

Navigating taboos like the death of children, as well as Hollywood’s incestual nature provides Maps to the Stars with a majority of its subject matter; however, the film stops short of providing an incisive perspective on these ideas. Once the film has seemingly run the course on its commentary, it devolves into an overly bloody, brutal climax. The shocking content is wickedly entertaining, but it only goes so far before being overcome by self-indulgence. And in a career full of twisted material, Maps to the Stars doesn’t delve into any new territory for a director like Cronenberg.

Welcome to Hollywood, where you steal spotlights at the age four, go into rehab before you hit puberty, hit menopause by the time you’re 23, and become a desensitized pill-popping, therapy-addicted, fame-crazed relic nearing death by the time you’ve reached your 40s. Oh, should we talk about the abuse? Should we touch upon that jaded little thing called incest? Prepare yourself for one ludicrous look through a cracked magnifying glass stained with cum and shit, one of which is a commodity but I won’t spoil and say which one. This is Cronenbergianism at its absurdest best and excessive worst, and it will most likely end up as the most quotable film competing for this year’s Palme D’Or.

Agatha (Mia Wasikowska) is moving to Hollywood from the Tony Montana land of Florida because her Twitter friend Carrie Fisher (yes, Princess Leia) said she might need help with her new book. Her chauffeur (Robert Pattinson) is one of a myriad actor slash writers looking for that big break. Havana Segrand (Julianne Moore) is an aging actress dangerously close to societal extinction, with all her hopes resting on getting a part in a new Hollywood remake, the same part her mother played in the original 70s version. Her massage therapist is kook guru Stafford Weiss (John Cusack) whose son Benjie (Evan Bird) is a thirteen year old box office megastar recently released from rehab, much to the relief of his mother Christina’s (Olivia Williams) bank account. The rub is that Agatha is the disfigured schizophrenic member of the Weiss family, whose real reason for coming to L.A. is to make amends with her family, who want nothing to do with her because, in a psychotic fit of rage, she tried to murder them all by setting their house on fire.

The symbolism in this film ranges from the stars all the sordid way to the gutter, and thanks to an Angelo Badalamenti-esque score (from Howard Shore!) and some hallucinations, the whole affair plays out like Mulholland Drive‘s long-lost, abused, and dirty half-cousin. All performance are overshadowed by Moore, who is essentially playing it easy for her standards but those standards still make her a strong contender for Best Actress. She steals scene after scene until you realized she’s stealing the whole movie. Wasikowska is officially typecast as the “crazy one”, a role she’s essentially been playing since her breakout turn in HBO’s In Treatment. Pattinson is a complete non-entity, which is in itself a great metaphor for the millions of star reaching non-entities driving limos and busing tables in Hollywood. Everyone else is solid, Cusack and Williams playing it perfectly whacky, and perhaps it’s young Bird who stands out slightly. But one gets the feeling it’s because of the exaggerated role and not so much the performance, fine as it is.

As ever with Cronenberg though, the acting is there as moral support to the more crucial element of theme and screenplay. The corruption depicted in this degenerative society is probably as far from the actual truth as the mention of a real-life celebrity is in the film (they’re mentioned a lot.) The razor-sharp screenplay is its biggest weapon, but it tends to cut too deep at times with certain lines bordering on cliche. Fans of the post-Spder Cronenberg will, I believe, devour every surreal and entertaining moment of Maps To The Stars. For my tastes, the dark humor and the intelligent weaving of violence, fame, and star-mania is enough to make me appreciate it and call it the best film Cronenberg has made since Eastern Promises. The themes of incest, and some of the characters’ fates (not Julianne Moore’s though, that was fantastic) went over the top and made the nightmarish atmosphere too lucid for its own good. All in all though, great fun, and an invigorating addition to Cronenberg’s offbeat filmography.

Many of America’s favorite Presidents had what we’d call ‘personality’; those distinctions that established them in the hearts of those they served. Lincoln with his storytelling, Washington and his cherry tree antics, Clinton and his saxophone. The American public likes to see the personal sides of our Presidents; at least once they leave office that is. In Hyde Park on Hudson, however, we’re exposed to the intersection of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s personal and professional lives, in a way that had me longing to theater hop to that little Spielberg film playing next door.

Hyde Park on Hudson is a based-in-reality story told from the perspective of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 5th cousin, Margaret “Daisy” Suckly (played by Laura Linney), and takes place for the most part during the weekend that King George VI (Samuel West), along with his wife Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Coleman) became the first British Monarchs to visit America. The royal couple visit President Roosevelt at his mother’s home in upstate New York, Hyde Park, with the agenda of asking the President for the help of the United States when the inevitable World War breaks out.

Playing out as a confused farce, accidentally veering into melodrama, Hyde Park on Hudson introduces us to the many women in FDR’s life. As Daisy spends more time with her shining star of a cousin, she finds herself wrapped up in a world of romance and adventure she’s never experienced. And when their relationship becomes sexual (which happens so quickly we’ve hardly finished watching the opening credits, and which holds little historical evidence), she seems all too glad to have the attention of this, the most influential man in the world. Her naiveté to his ongoing relationships with his secretary, Missy (Elizabeth Marvel), another unseen woman (his much historically documented mistress, Lucy Mercer), and her dismissal of his friendly if not romantic marriage to Eleanor (played with perfection by Olivia Williams), would all make for interesting dramatic elements if it just wasn’t so obviously ill-suited for Laura Linney. I’d write it off as a casting issue except that she’s forced to narrate the entire film in childish tones, trying to heighten the stories elements with hyperbole and managing only to enhance just how un-impressive it all really is.

As the events of the weekend unfold, from dinner with the King and Queen, where everything seems to go wrong and the full moon garners the blame, to the American-style picnic where hot dogs are served to the horror of Her Majesty, Daisy starts to uncover that to be involved in the President’s life means sharing him with more than just the public. In the most off-putting scene of the film her dramatic reaction to the revelation that an unfaithful husband makes for an unfaithful lover takes such a dramatic turn it’s laughable.

Bill Murray is this film’s guiding light. He plays FDR with perfect execution, nailing his stiff New York drawl and subtle wisdom. As President Roosevelt, he’s warm and likable. As Franklin, the script portrays his personal life as that of a man who craved worship so much he took on mistresses flippantly and apparently with little thought to why these women appealed to him. And because of his age and physical situation, there’s no way not to interpret it as slightly pathetic and icky.

The characters most worth watching are the King and Queen, with all their British propriety and concern for their nation. The most brilliant scene of the film involves a candid conversation between FDR and King George. It seems historically unlikely, but is exactly the sort of anecdote we’d like to hear about a favorite President. How he played father-figure to a King.

Hyde Park on Hudson, while showing some of the affability of FDR, his goofy playful side, dwells more on his philandering ways and doesn’t do much to instill pride in the only President to serve more than two terms. Through Daisy’s narrative lens it’s hard to understand the magnetism he had to accrue the devotion of many, including women. And as a film it flip-flops far too suddenly between comedy, historical drama, and melodrama and therefore is disjointed from one scene to the next. Laura Linney, a proven superb actress, seems to have been suckered into believing that a film that involves both a well-loved President and well-loved King (this being the THIRD film in two years to feature King George alongside The King’s Speech and W.E.) could not fail. But alas, having so many grand elements means the film has only farther to fall on its face and her character is given such little importance to the story no amount of great acting could bring life into it.

It’s a shame that such a crown jewel of a performance from Bill Murray would be wasted on such a poor script. Now can someone please write a better historical drama about FDR for him? Had this one been better, he’d easily have been getting the Best Actor award this winter.

We have got two Blu-ray copies of Wes Anderson’s quirky indie hit Moonrise Kingdom to give away to a couple of our Facebook and Twitter followers. As a bonus, one of those winners will receive a special “Survival Package” to go along with the Blu-ray.

We are giving away one (1) Moonrise Kingdom on Blu-ray and one (1) Moonrise Kingdom Survival Package” which includes:

How do you enter the giveaway?

Step 1: LIKE Way Too Indie on Facebook

Step 2: Leave a comment on this page telling us who your favorite Wes Anderson character is.

* Additional chance to win: Follow @WayTooIndie on Twitter. Then tweet: @WayTooIndie (your favorite Wes Anderson character) http://tooin.de/moonrise, to enter.

Details on the giveaway
Winners will be selected at random. One (1) winner will win a Blu-ray and one (1) winner will a “Survival Package” (which includes a Blu-ray and more). If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of being contacted. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. Must be in the United States to win. Entries can be submitted until October 11th, 2012 at 11:59PM CT. This Sweepstakes is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook or Twitter. Good luck!

AVAILABLE OCTOBER 16, 2012 ON BLU-RAY COMBO PACK WITH ULTRAVIOLET, ON DVD AND ON DEMAND FROM UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOME ENTERTAINMENT

Set on an island off the coast of New England in the summer of 1965, two twelve-year-olds fall in love, make a secret pact, and run away together into the wilderness. As various authorities try to hunt them down, a violent storm is brewing offshore — and the peaceful island community is turned upside down in more ways than anyone can handle.

Moonrise Kingdom director Wes Anderson is a master at poignantly depicting those who are a bit different from most of the other characters in the world around them. Regardless of gender, era, and even species, Anderson manages to perfectly represent characters that we can all relate to in one way or another. Here, we’ve highlighted our top 5 most beloved “outsider” characters created by this Academy Award nominated director.

Rushmore – Max Fischer

1998’s Rushmore focuses on the life of Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman), a 15 year old with high ambitions and a low grade point average. He is ridiculed and rejected by most of his fellow classmates of Rushmore Academy and his closest confidante is Dirk, a much younger attendee of the school. Desperation for companionship, Max attempts to befriend both a young teacher (Olivia Williams), as well as the father of his classmates (Bill Murray). The two adults soon become involved in a love affair, leaving Max upset and jealous; however, he soon finds himself bonding with someone more his age – the equally ambitious Margaret Yang – and is able to find a place for himself at school.

The Royal Tenenbaums – Margot Tenenbaum

It’s true that every member in the Tenenbaum family could be marked as an outsider:
Overprotective parent Chas (Ben Stiller), Riche (Luke Wilson), the anxiety-ridden tennis prodigy, insensitive patriarch Royal (Gene Hackman). But arguably the character who dons the biggest outsider status is none other than Margot, the notoriously secretive adopted daughter who mysteriously lost half of a finger during a two-week period when she ran away from home as a child. Utterly depressed and unsatisfied with her life, Margot ends up being the object of not one, but two men’s affection – both her brother Richie, and his best friend – self declared “honorary Tenenbaum”, Eli Cash.

Fantastic Mr. Fox – Ash

Awkward little Ash Fox has a lot to live up to, as his father, the “Fantastic” Mr. Fox, is quick, cunning, and essentially, everything their species should be. And to make matters worse, his soft-spoken and athletically gifted cousin, Kristofferson, comes to live with him in his family’s tree while his father recovers from double pneumonia. The two boys are barely on speaking terms, but begin to start their friendship anew once Kristofferson comes to Ash’s rescue when he is being bullied at school. Later on as the cousins aid Mr. Fox’ in his plan to rob three infamously nasty farmers, Ash must brave many obstacles to rescue his cousin from captivity. The young fox quickly matures and realizes that he has strengths of his own – his quirkiness being one of them!>

Moonrise Kingdom– Sam Shakusky

Khaki Troop 55’s most eccentric member is without a doubt 12-year-old Sam Shakusky, played by newcomer Jared Gillman. Although Sam is extremely smart and resourceful in his outdoor survival skills, this misunderstood character just doesn’t quite fit in with his fellow scouts was abandoned by both his real parents and his foster family. Luckily, Sam finds a refuge in Suzy, his one true love, and the two are able to help each other feel like less of outsiders, and more like a part of their own little community.