Review #956: 'Entourage' (2015)

For eight seasons, HBO's portrayal of movie star Vinnie Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his three loyal buddies from Queens frequently introduced hints of game-changing plots - busted for drugs, dealing with a huge financial flop, being screwed out of work by a disgruntled movie producer - that would gradually fizzle out and get wrapped out in one inconsequential scene. Entourage the movie, an event that surely only die-hard fans were asking for, does very much the same. Like the majority of TV-to-movie adaptations, it does little more than whittle its characters down to their primary personality traits, but with better cinematography than its small-screen predecessor.

Anyone who watched the show (as I did), will be all too familiar with the romantic adventures of manager 'E' (Kevin Connolly) and the glamorous Sloane (Emmanuelle Chriqui), a tedious sub-plot that somehow evolved into the main focus. Here, they have broken up for the umpteenth time but Sloane is pregnant, and E (for Eric) is torn between the love of his life and casual sex with the sexy strangers his best friend, client, and superstar Vinnie Chase attracts. That the film climaxes with the birth of the tiny sprog speaks volumes about the kind of ambition creator and director Doug Ellin has. This is a world of fast cars, pool parties and celebrity cameos, and bromances that play as a metaphor to some insincere themes of family, so there is no danger of having the fun spoilt by anything happening of any real consequence.

The twist here is that Vinnie now wants to direct his next feature, and super-agent and newly appointed studio head Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) has enough faith in his old friend to put up the cash for his first venture. When the budget inevitably spirals out of control and Vinnie asks for more money to finish the special effects, Ari must convince one of his primary financiers, Larsen McCredle (Billy Bob Thornton), that Hyde, Vinnie's (ridiculous) sci-fi spin on the Jekyll and Hyde story, is worth more investment. Curious at just what his money is paying for, Larsen sends his skirt-chasing son Travis (a barely recognisable Haley Joel Osment - possibly the best thing in the film) to see the movie. But with Vinnie refusing to give a viewing and Travis's unpredictable behaviour, the film is in danger of total collapse.

There are story-lines for driver Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) and half-brother Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon) too, with the former doting on Ronda Rousey and the latter still being laughed out of auditions. For fans of the show, there are returns for the likes of David Arquette, Gary Busey, Bob Saget and Andrew Dice Clay, and for newcomers the entire eight seasons are summarised in minutes by Piers Morgan, playing himself. But whether you've seen the show or not, it still builds up to a familiar anti-climax that fails to justify having to spend 90 minutes with these four douchebags. Even Ari's rants and homophobic abuse of his assistant Lloyd (Rex Lee), always the highlights of the show, have grown stale. The film also fails to answer the biggest question of all - just how is Vince a superstar when he possesses the charisma of a paper bag?


Directed by: Doug Ellin
Starring: Adrian Grenier, Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara, Jeremy Piven, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Haley Joel Osment, Perrey Reeves, Ronda Rousey, Billy Bob Thornton
Country: USA

Rating: **

Tom Gillespie