Call Me – The Rise
& Fall Of Heidi Fleiss
(Telefilm)
Picture: C+
Sound: B- Extras: D Telefilm: B-
Whether Heidi Fleiss is a truly sympathetic person or not,
her story as a Hollywood power broker for private sexcapades put her in a
unique position to expose the rich and the powerful when she was being put in
the unwanted media spotlight. Call
Me – The Rise & Fall Of Heidi Fleiss purposely casts Jamie-Lynn DiScala
from The Sopranos on purpose as if that will carry the sheen of infamy
over from that show to this project.
Instead, it makes her more sympathetic within the
telefilm, which does not judge her outright and is smart enough to just get on
with the story. It also never says she
was singled out for being a woman, though the specter of that aspect of her
case never goes away. Robert Davi and
Brenda Fricker are good as her associates and the way the tales unwinds is
somewhat predictable, yet even Fleiss in her own voice over narration seems to
expect the downfall. Too bad this were
not a darker take on the story, because as watchable as this is, so much is
being unsaid that has noting to do with the big names who used her services.
The telefilm is here in a lame full screen and better
anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 version that looks and plays much better. There is nothing special about the
camerawork, but it is watchable. The
Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is just a step above Pro Logic and nothing special, but
is clear enough to enjoy. There are no
extras. The film is worth a look.
- Nicholas Sheffo
