Sallywood
Written and directed by Xaque Gruber
Starring Sally Kirkland, Tyler Steelman, and Jennifer Tilly
Unrated
Runtime: 89 minutes
Limited engagement in LA November 8

by Kate Beach, Staff Writer

I love movies about show business. Give me a backlot screwball comedy or a depressing documentary about the perils of fame and I’m happy. Sallywood, the feature debut of writer-director Xaque Gruber, falls closer to the former than the latter. It’s a mostly silly comedy packed with Hollywood cliches, though it still manages to find some sweet and truthful moments.

At age nine, Zack (Tyler Steelman) fell in love with Sally Kirkland (herself) after watching a VHS copy of her Oscar-nominated performance in 1987 indie Anna. With that tape, a showbiz kid is born, and Zack devotes his life to not only making it in Hollywood as a writer, but to meeting Sally Kirkland. As an adult, he sets off from small town Maine amid concerns from his parents (Jennifer Tilly and Lenny Van Dohlen) to make his dreams come true. Upon Zack’s arrival in LA, he’s met with a host of seedy LA tropes: a sleazy wannabe filmmaker roommate, the realization that everyone around you is also trying to make it, and Eric Roberts. And not long after his arrival, he tracks down Sally Kirkland herself. Zack needs a foot in the door and Sally needs a friend, so he agrees to be her assistant.

As Zack and Sally grow closer, they each grapple with the pursuit of fame, Zack for the first time and Sally seeking to regain what she’s lost. Sallywood lightly engages with the sexism and ageism Sally faces, but it’s surface level. A deeper dive might have uncovered a more compelling look at Hollywood also-rans, actors who secured a nomination and had a brief moment in the sun before fading to relative obscurity. Sally Kirkland is an incredibly accomplished actor who has been in the business for over sixty years, winning a Golden Globe and Independent Spirit Award in addition to that Oscar nomination. She’s worked steadily. But she’s not exactly a household name in the way she was during that awards season sprint.

There’s no shortage of famous faces in Sallywood beyond Kirkland herself. Maria Conchita Alonso portrays a literary agent Zack hopes will represent him. Keith Carradine and Kay Lenz play George and Kathryn Corrigan, respectively, a divorced pair of filmmakers clearly inspired by James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow. Michael Lerner pops up as a TV producer who hires Zack away from Sally. It all feels very inside baseball, which is always fun in movies about movies, and it’s clear these actors all had a blast gently satirizing agents and managers and producers.

Sallywood is at its best when it lets Sally be herself, and when it allows the sweetness of her friendship with Zack to take center stage. Steelman and Kirkland are charming together, whether they’re crashing a party to get to a well-regarded director or celebrating Christmas in Maine. The supporting cast, while impressive, doesn’t have a lot to do. Jennifer Tilly commits as Zack’s overwrought, worried mother, and Keith Carradine stands out in his brief bit of screen time. But the screenplay is clunky, and even the seasoned cast can only lift it up so much. There are a number of talking head interview scenes, but nothing else to suggest Sallywood is a mockumentary-style film. These unpredictable cuts to talking heads make the film feel disjointed, and makes it harder for it to find a rhythm to carry it through its runtime.

This is clearly a deeply personal film for both Gruber and Kirkland, who served as executive producer. Based on their real friendship and Gruber’s time as Kirkland’s personal assistant in the early 2000s, it’s a lovely testament to their relationship. Kirkland’s eccentricities and insecurities are on full display, but she’s never the butt of the joke. When it leaves the cliches behind and focuses on the lovely intergenerational friendship at its core, Sallywood shines.