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Auto Focus
2002
AUTO FOCUS is the story of Bob Crane (Greg Kinnear), who was the star of the American television series Hogan's Heroes in the 1960s. Before he achieved that particular fame, Crane was a popular radio talk show host in Hollywood. His television work brought him a level of visibility and notoriety that he turned directly into .. Read more
| Starring | Greg Kinnear, Willem Dafoe, Kurt Fuller, Ron Leibman |
|---|---|
| Director | Paul Schrader |
| Genres | Drama |
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Auto Focus
AUTO FOCUS is the story of Bob Crane (Greg Kinnear), who was the star of the American television series Hogan's Heroes in the 1960s. Before he achieved that particular fame, Crane was a popular radio talk show host in Hollywood. His television work brought him a level of visibility and notoriety that he turned directly into sexual opportunity. Gallivanting with sleazy audiovisual salesman John Carpenter (Willem Dafoe), Crane built a life as a desperately addicted sex maniac. As the first home video cameras were invented, Carpenter and Crane began a prolific hobby of coercing girls to appear on tape while engaging in lewd sexual acts. The more intensely obsessed Crane became with his habit, the less his acting career mattered. He divorced his wife, allowing her custody of their two children, and remarried, having another son, only to divorce again. Meanwhile, his relentless sexual exploits became increasingly impersonal and mean-spirited. His public image suffered as he shamelessly made tasteless, sexualized remarks and got a reputation for openly displaying photographs of himself receiving oral sex. Paul Schrader's powerful, deeply effective, and darkly disturbing film makes a 180-degree transition as its story rolls out. What begins as a happy, colorful, naive portrayal of the entertainment industry becomes the nightmare of one man's disintegration in the face of temptation, money, and power.
| Starring | Greg Kinnear, Willem Dafoe, Kurt Fuller, Ron Leibman, Rita Wilson, Maria Bello, Michael Rodgers |
|---|---|
| Director | Paul Schrader |
| Studio | SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 41 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Drama |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Hearing-impaired | English |
| Released | DVD: 29 Sep 2003 Production year: 2002 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (3)
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As the writer of Taxi Driver and writer/director of American Gigolo, Paul Schrader has always been drawn to the dark side of sexuality — mostly in order to chart its corrosive effects on character — and this is his most sustained and successful treatment of the subject so far. Based on the experiences of actor Bob Crane (star of the 1960s US sitcom Hogan's Heroes), it charts his descent into a libidinous hell as he becomes addicted to casual sex, videotaping an endless succession of meaningless encounters (aided by Willem Dafoe's noxious video technician). Greg Kinnear is excellent as the vacuous hedonist who can't see his repellent behaviour as anything but “healthy”, and there's also a standout performance from Ron Leibman as the tender-hearted agent who watches with horror as his client's life implodes. The subject matter may be too raw for some — Schrader doesn't spare us the numerous, often depressing sex acts — but in the end Auto Focus is an intensely moral and often unexpectedly funny tour de force.
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Based on the life and murder of Bob Crane, star of Hogan's Heroes, this cautionary tale of sleazy, voyeuristic masculinity lacks resonance outside the US, where Crane was unknown, and never quite manages to convey a wider significance.
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Most helpful member's review
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5 out of 6 people found this review helpful
Not exactly heroic
If you haven't seen Bob Crane in 'Hogan's Heroes', this film might seem a bit remote. On the other hand, if you've seen any movies directed by Paul Schrader or based on his scripts, you don't need to, because you'll recognise it as one of his habitual low-life studies. More or less a true story, this shows the gradual slide into degradation of Crane, an effortlessly nice TV star obsessed both with having sex, and with filming himself having sex.
As played by Greg Kinnear, Crane is a colourless, hopelessly bland charmer with almost no redeeming features, overwhelmed by the opportunities that fame offers him. There are some very funny sequences, and Schrader handles it with uncharacteristic lightness. It's odd to find a film about such a sordid subject which is so genial and unsensational. Kinnear and Willem Dafoe also give excellent performances. Nevertheless, it's not exactly cheerful watching a man throw his life away, so you should only watch this one if you're in a very good mood. -
Most recent members' review
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
Auto Focus
Ignored on its release this is a terrific piece of entertainment. Greg Kinnear plays Bob Crane, one of America's most well known TV stars of the sixties, thanks to his leading role in 'Hogan's Heroes', a foreunner to our 'Allo 'Allo. The film charts his life from 1964 to 1978, from his innocence at the start of his career to his downfall and ultimate mysterious murder. Based on the book 'Who Murdered Bob Crane', it leaves the viewer to make up their own mind.
Great support from Rita Wilson as Crane's first wife and Willem Dafoe as John Carpenter, his friend and ultimately instigator of his fall from grace. -
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AUTO FOCUS is the story of Bob Crane (Greg Kinnear), who was the star of the American television series Hogan's Heroes in the 1960s. Before he achieved that particular fame, Crane was a popular radio ... -