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Delirious

Written by Nobuhiro Hosoki

 

Roundtable interview with director Tom DiCillo, actress Callie Thorne

The film, "Delirious" is a satire that takes a huge bite out of the celebrity-crazed world with its humorous approach. An astute, low- budget filmmaker, Tom Dicillo, spent several years before this project finally got off the ground.This time he skewers the glitziness of show biz through the eyes of an obnoxious and pale-looking freelance photographer--well, actually a paparazzi--named Les (Steve Buscemi) who stalks his prey to get his money shots of celebrity K'Harma (Alison Lohman) while managing to elbow out the other press for the favored spot.

Les hooks up with an unfocused homeless kid, Toby (Micheal Pitt), and his vague aspirations of becoming an  actor lead him to charm Les into crashing his pad. Les tutors Toby by feeding the clueless teen with his knowledge of the finer points of celebrity coverage. Even though the duo possesses nothing in common, they start to form a unlikely relationship.

Though the immature Toby's fixation on the pop starlet, K'Harma gets him in her inner circle, this doesn't sit well with the frustrated Les, and the two end up like a bickering  couple. Despite his hardship Toby maintains his loyalty, and life smiles upon him with good fortune when he lands a soap gig through a sexy casting director (Gina Gershon). For some of the film, their budding relationship goes a little over the top, but Tom DiCillo's well-written comedy is frequently hilarious and totally unpredictable as it simply focuses on the characters' outrageous personalities.

Particularly in the case of Steve, his character could easily be depicted as arrogant or annoying, but he adds a dimension by maintaining his sincerity. Pitt brings this believable character to the screen in a charming puppy-dog way. Celebrities are all human, but it is inhuman to crave to be one!

Written and directed by Tom DiCillo
Director of photography:Frank G. DeMarco
Edited by Paul Zucker
Music by Anton Sanko
Production designer: Teresa Mastropierro
Produced by Robert Salerno
Released by Peace Arch Entertainment.
Running time: 106 minutes.
This film is not rated.

Cast: Steve Buscemi (Les Galantine)
Michael Pitt (Toby Grace)
Alison Lohman (K’Harma Leeds)
Gina Gershon (Dana)
Callie Thorne (Gabi)
Kevin Corrigan (Ricco),
and Elvis Costello (himself).