A Glimpse Inside The Mind Of Charles Swan III

Charlie Sheen plays a sleazy cad named "Charles" whose selfish, sex-obsessed behavior makes him reprehensible, yet irresistible to the ladies. Now that director Roman Coppola has 2011's attention, his A Glimpse Inside The Mind Of Charles Swan III works overtime to interest everyone else—a process that mostly involves surrounding Sheen with likable supporting players and tons of stylization. In only his second directorial effort, Coppola seems to have taken cues from his Darjeeling Limited and Moonrise Kingdom collaborator Wes Anderson, cramming his garishly '70s-set toy box with Bill Murray, cousin Jason Schwartzman, and lots of kitschy accoutrements (a bacon 'n' eggs VW Bug, a hot dog sofa, Schwartzman's hair), then adding a heavy smear of Michel Gondry-esque surrealism involving cowboys and something called the "Secret Society Of Ball Busters." It's unclear from the scattered trailer whether all of this—combined with Aubrey Plaza, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and Patricia Arquette—is worth furthering the tired metafiction of Charlie Sheen, but you can’t say Coppola didn't give it everything he's got.