Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)
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A game show host's life unravels as he navigates a bizarre double life as a CIA assassin.
The story
Tired of being rejected by women, Chuck Barris moves to Manhattan to become an NBC page but is eventually fired. He moves to Philadelphia and becomes Dick Clark's personal assistant on American Bandstand in 1961. After writing a successful song and becoming romantically involved with Penny Pacino, he is given the chance to pitch The Dating Game at ABC. However, the idea is initially abandoned. One night, after a bar fight, Barris is approached by CIA agent Jim Byrd, who recruits him as an assassin. By 1967, The Dating Game becomes a phenomenon, and Byrd suggests using it as a cover for further assassination missions.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Chuck Barris, a failed television page, becomes Dick Clark's assistant in 1961 and eventually pitches The Dating Game. After being recruited by CIA agent Jim Byrd as an assassin, Barris uses his role as a chaperone for the show's winners to carry out missions in places like Helsinki and West Berlin. While the show becomes a phenomenon, Barris navigates a complex personal life with Penny Pacino and a secret life of espionage. He eventually discovers a mole in the agency and faces a mental breakdown after Byrd reveals he was chosen for the role because he was the son of a serial killer raised as a girl. Barris spirals out of control, eventually meeting Patricia Watson in Boston. After a confrontation where he tricks Patricia into drinking poison, he returns home to write his autobiography. At his wedding to Penny, he sees the people he killed in the crowd and confesses his double life to her, who laughs it off as a joke.
- First release year
- 2002
- Runtime (minutes)
- 113
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- George Clooney
- Writers
- Charlie Kaufman · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Sam Rockwell · Chuck Barris; Drew Barrymore · Penny Pacino; George Clooney · supporting role; Julia Roberts · Patricia Watson; Rutger Hauer · supporting role
- Genres
- biographical; spy; mystery; comedy; drama
- Themes
- paranoia; fame; identity; espionage
- Tone and mood
- absurdist; dark humor; psychological drama
- Premise and plot tags
- biographical; spy; game show; assassin
- Source material / true-story basis
- Chuck Barris' 1984 "unauthorized autobiography" of the same name
- Reception
- The film received favorable reviews from critics, who praised the performances, particularly Sam Rockwell's, despite performing poorly at the box office.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 80% · review count: 163; Metacritic · score: 67 · scale: 100 · review count: 33; CinemaScore · score: C · scale: A+ to F
- Production trivia
- The film was originally planned for production in the late 1980s.; George Clooney's father had a game show called The Money Maze.; The film was shot primarily in Montreal and British Columbia, Canada.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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