Hollywood 90028 is a forgotten gem that deserves a second chance

★★★★★ | Beverly Hills 9021ohno

Hollywood 9028 screens at Night Visions Back to Basics 2024. Check out more details here.

If you look at legendary filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Jonathan Demme, and James Cameron, they all got their start in exploitation cinema. You can see the talent in their first films, even if those films aren’t yet the refined masterpieces their careers would later see. All it took was time, and more opportunities. So when something like Hollywood 90028, directed by Christina Hornisher, is rescued from obscurity by devoted aficionados, one can’t help but lament the unfairness of it all.

Directed with a surprisingly tender and humane touch, Hollywood 90028 is an exploitation film unlike most others. It’s more reminiscent of Terence Malick and Chantal Akerman than it is Last House on the Left. Yes, there’s violence, and its budget and DIY-energy is evident in places. But there’s artistry and vision here that never got to flourish, and that alone is an immense loss for cinema.

Set in the shadow of the decrepit Hollywood sign in the 70s, Hollywood 90028 tells the story of Mike, a mentally unstable and dangerous cameraman, dreaming of stardom he’s doomed to never achieve. Mike shoots sleazy nude videos by day, and by his own admission only does it because it brings him closer to film. He’s tormented by a past we only see hints of, but whatever ails him breaks out in violent outbursts with deadly results. Like Travis Bickle, he’s a loose cannon just waiting for an excuse to go off, even as he tries his best to fit in.

When Mike meets Michelle, an equally lost soul starring in dirty pictures while awaiting stardom, the two reluctantly hit it off. Not necessarily because they’re a good match, but because they share an equal desperation. They wander around town, hanging out at now gentrified landmarks that in the 70s are far less than desirable. Each time, they lament how the city is changing, how there’s no place for their kind anymore, and how things would be different if they just got a chance.

If that sounds like a weird tone for an exploitation film, it’s because I don’t think Hollywood 90028 strictly is one. It’s more of an arthouse film with macabre overtones. A character study of the souls that Los Angeles chews up to keep going.

Initially, the dialog sounds stilted, until you realise this is the language people in these dead ends can afford. Small talk is for those without care, and Mike only turns animated as he rants about the unfair situation everyone in this town has to live with. It doesn’t excuse him, nor does it condone his actions. He is, deep down, a broken monster. But he’s also a victim, too. A different kind of victim than the innocents he hurts, but broken by a callous system nonetheless. That’s what makes Hornisher’s script so surprising and exciting.

The pacing is deliberately slow, but it’s never boring. These are people with nowhere to go at a time when we weren’t constantly connected. As a time capsule, Hollywood 90028 is exquisite as it lovingly captures the grime and seediness of yesteryear Los Angeles. For anyone who believes that Hollywood was always glamorous, here is a film that will wash away those notions for good.

And yet, there’s an undercurrent of empathy coursing through Hornisher’s film. It tricks the audience into believing that maybe, just this once, things can work out. In brief glimpses, we see the kind of people Mike and Michelle could be, and there’s a semblance of normality that is both inviting and oddly disturbing. Like it’s something that doesn’t belong in this city. An abnormality uninvited to the party.

As the film reaches it startling finale, Hornisher pulls out all the stops and delivers one of the most unexpected and dazzling closures you could think of. It’s the kind of bravado that by all rights should have guaranteed her a long career. Instead, Hollywood 90028 remains her only picture. One that was lost for decades, and now rediscovered.

Considering the subject, it’s a heartbreaking case of art imitating life. But, at least now, we can give it the time and appreciation it deserves. This is a masterful first feature. A haunting thriller that stands proudly alongside other depictions of life on the street in Los Angeles.

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