Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure (2005) (TV)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Matthew Miller

Writer (WGA):

Matthew Miller (written by)

Release Date:

2 January 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

A rags to b*tches tale.

Plot Keywords:

Based On TV Show | Fight | Argument | Scandal | Diva

Cast

Pamela Reed	...	Esther Shapiro
John Terry	...	Vince Peterson
Melora Hardin	...	Linda Evans
Ritchie Singer	...	Richard Shapiro
Nicholas Hammond	...	Aaron Spelling
John Atkinson	...	Les Markowitz
Bartholomew John	...	John Forsythe
Alice Krige	...	Joan Collins
Rel Hunt	...	Al Corley
Tim Draxl	...	Joe
Julian Garner	...	Peter Holm
Holly Brisley	...	Heather Locklear
Rory Williamson	...	Michael Nader
Rachael Taylor	...	Catherine Oxenberg
Phillip Hinton	...	Leonard Goldenson

Runtime:

Brazil:90 min

Country:

Australia | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Australia

Company:

Nitelite Entertainment

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Just before the taping of the Moldavian massacre scene, the crew member with the sticks says "Moravian" massacre, not Moldavian.

Movie Connections:

References "The Fall Guy" (1981)

A basic tvm for die-hard Dynasty fans but probably nobody else

With Dallas riding high in the ratings, abc decided to make Forth Worth – a show about a rich family in Texas. Producer Aaron Spelling rejects this project for what it is. Meanwhile husband and wife writing team Esther and Richard Shapiro are trying to their project off the ground; a series about the newly rich and privileged in Regan's America. The two projects get run together and Dynasty is created. Te first season does so-so in the ratings but it is not long before the producers and writers find themselves aiming lower for a bigger audience.

As the title suggests, this is a celebration of the ludicrous television series Dynasty and as such will be of interest to those of us that remember it. This is not to suggest that the film is any good though, because it has tvm writ large across every single scene. A potted history, this film allegedly avoids anything that would see the makers sued (eg the truth) and instead just flows through the making of the series with its various ridiculous twists and turns. The film matches the tone of the series and is all a bit silly and exaggerated. It is all a bit too affectionate though and doesn't have any teeth – seeing the rather insulting methods of winning ratings as daft fun rather than something detrimental to mass media etc. This will probably appeal to fans of the series though and, to be honest, who else will be watching this? The cast are very average. Reed and Singer are both good fun but the majority of the cast are overshadowed by the real people they are portraying. Everyone tries hard but Hardin, Hammond, Krige and John all just mug along with the easy caricatures given to them to work with. Overall then a trashy TVM very loosely based on the broad sweep of a decade of one television show. It entertains in a very basic way but one can't help wonder how it would have been if it tried to do more.