'Entourage' Review: Ronda Rousey joins the party in her first real acting role
For eight seasons, "Entourage" — HBO's celebration of celebrity opulence — decorated our TV screens on Sunday nights as we witnessed the rise and fall and rise again of New York-born actor Vincent Chase and his childhood friends turned managers and business moguls, along with his hapless C-list star half-brother.
The show was a satire of the Hollywood lifestyle, but for those of us that will never have lunch at Urth Caffe or cruise down the street in a Maserati given to you just for the sake of being seen inside the car, "Entourage" was a frat house fantasy come true.
This week the "Entourage" movie opens and for fans of the series, the film will live up to all your expectations as basically a 94-minute extended episode that once again finds Vince taking a huge risk to make the movie he wants, his superstar agent Ari Gold backing his every move and an over-inflated money man played by "The Sixth Sense" star Haley Joel Osment (yep, he's still alive) trying to tear down the film piece by piece.
And Vince's friend and former driver turned tequila millionaire, Turtle, spends the entire movie chasing UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey.
Rousey, who also appeared in "Expendables 3" and "Furious 7", gets her first real acting part in "Entourage."
In "Expendables 3", Rousey was action star window dressing because her entire part was predicated on doling out a few bumps and bruises while probably cleaning off the bronzer and anti-wrinkle cream being slathered on by her aging co-stars. Rousey's part — and that's the loosest definition of the word — in the billion-dollar "Furious 7" was barely noticeable, and if you got up to refill your popcorn at the wrong moment, you'd never know she was even in the film.
This time around, Rousey actually gets to act a little bit and while she's playing a movie version of herself, she still gets to throw out a few lines and interact with the cast. Rousey is still finding her footing as an actress, but she's on point with her delivery, and her bad language, sweaty fling with Turtle felt natural and never forced.
"Entourage" isn't going to win Rousey an Oscar, but it's also not going to earn her a Razzie and for an athlete turned actress, that's enough of a compliment three films into a career.
The rest of the movie plays out just like you'd expect and if you were a fan of the series, you will adore the film. Jeremy Piven shines brightest as Ari, now a new studio exec, and he's just as brash and unforgiving as he was during his eight years on HBO. The four boys from Queens all partake in smaller stories that all somehow involve the same oversexed tropes that made the show a hit.
If there's one real complaint it's the fact that the cameos by virtually anyone and everyone who ever appeared on the show, along with dozens of new faces joining the party, almost act as a distraction to the good performances.
"Entourage" is everything a fan of the show could want. It's a never-ending party that still isn't over and if anything, the film will only leave you asking for more.
