:: Paparazzi

Although it’s an entertaining B-grade revenge flick, the premise of Paparazzi is more thrilling than its realisation.
Montana-bred family man Bo Laramie (Cole Hauser) discovers the dark side of fame when he hits the A-list after starring in action blockbuster Adrenaline Force. Now the target of unscrupulous paparazzi, he seeks revenge when a Princess Diana-inspired car chase almost kills his wife (Robin Tunney) and son.

Director Paul Abascal begins the film energetically, and in its early stages it’s the very credibility of these awful photographers, who describe themselves as “the last of the great hunters”, that will shock you. It’s unfortunate then that Forrest Smith’s script devolves into the ridiculous. There are loose ends and red herrings aplenty. For example, wouldn’t Laramie have minders? Wouldn’t the public tire of reading about the same actor every week? The paparazzi might occasionally want to stalk someone else, after all. And it’s disappointing to transform the paparazzi into cookie-cutter villains, when the truth of what they are is so rotten.

That said, if you suspend disbelief and prepare for an ending where even the director wasn’t quite sure of his intentions, you’ll enjoy this film. There’s something satisfying about watching bad guys die.