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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

Los Angeles Plays Itself

EMAILPRINTThom Andersen Productions

Los Angeles Plays Itself reviews
85
7.8 User Score:

Movie Info

Genre(s): Documentary

Written by: Thom Andersen

Directed by: Thom Andersen

Release Date:
Theatrical: July 28, 2004

Running Time: 169 minutes, Color

Origin: USA

Summary

RATING: Not Rated

Starring Encke King (narrator)

This documentary examines how Los Angeles has been portrayed by Hollywood and the impact of the movie industry on the city.

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

Smart, funny, stimulating.

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100

Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum

Mesmerizing.

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100

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

It is a remarkable work, quite likely the best documentary on the City of Angels ever made.

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100

San Francisco Chronicle John McMurtrie

Ambitious and brilliant.

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91

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Gliding from the physical to the metaphysical, Andersen reveals how films like ''Chinatown'' effectively remade the reality of Los Angeles, replacing history with myth in a way that now anchors the city more than that history itself does.

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90

TV Guide Ken Fox

Thom Andersen's idiosyncratic, three-hour masterpiece is both a dazzling work of film criticism and a fascinating piece of urban anthropology.

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90

Variety Robert Koehler

Los Angeles may be the most photographed city in the world, but it has never have been captured with such complex layers of meaning and fascination as in Thom Andersen's remarkable Los Angeles Plays Itself.

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90

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

Dazzling cinema-essay.

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90

LA Weekly Scott Foundas

Three words of advice to those who haven't yet seen it: Run, don't walk. Composed of excerpts from hundreds of locally shot movies past and present -- from grade-A prestige pictures to unrepentant grade-Z schlock -- Los Angeles Plays Itself serves as Andersen's exhaustive but never exhausting attempt to reconcile the myriad identities of the world's moviemaking capital.

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88

New York Post Lou Lumenick

So terrifically entertaining, it would be a shame if it didn't inspire a companion piece on New York.

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80

Village Voice J. Hoberman

It is an essay in film form with near-universal interest and a remarkable degree of synthesis.

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80

The Hollywood Reporter Frank Scheck

A terrific cinematic essay that will have a very, very long shelf life.

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80

New York Magazine Peter Rainer

What gives Los Angeles Plays Itself its extraordinary density is the way Andersen transforms a cliché into a metaphysical truth that encompasses far more than L.A.

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75

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

The commentary alternates between witty insight and opinionated bunk, but it's always fun -- and a must-see for movie buffs.

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75

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

Gives us a fresh way to think not only about movies but about the town in which so many of them are made, and in that regard it's kind of amazing.

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75

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

What Andersen does best is capture the sense of growing up and living among the landmarks of Hollywood's authentic back lot.

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60

The New York Times Dana Stevens

Los Angeles Plays Itself, in spite of its length, is rarely tedious, an achievement it owes mainly to the movies it prodigiously excerpts.

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40

Empire Nick De Semlyen

Andersen makes a far from inspiring guide, intoning his humourless points in a dry-as-powder monotone.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 7.8 (out of 10) based on 11 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Kelly P. gave it a10:
if you have any interest in film or cities you must see this film.

Len W. gave it a9:
I have to admit this was a bit long, but was amazingly thought-provoking. Fascinating study of the ways Los Angeles is used and protrayed in the films of American and international directors. More information here than many college-level film courses. You'll find yourself thinking about this film for days after you see it.

Mark gave it a3:
The video quality is terrible. It's way too long and toward the end he drones on and on about racism. It's like a bad PBS show, only more liberal. I'm not surprised the critics love it.

Craig J. gave it a9:
Amazing, funny, sad and very moving.

adam g. gave it an8:
Could use a little editing, especially toward the end, but overall lovingly-crafted, insightful and authoritative.

John N. gave it a 6:
Film too long.

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