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PAPARAZZI is the long-forgotten 2004 revenge thriller from hair stylist turned one time film director Paul Abascal. This was sadly Cole Hauser's first & last time starring as the lead in a Hollywood theatrical release. It's unfortunate because this movie doesn't give him much to work with, ironically playing a character who's also an actor getting his big break starring in a new action/thriller. He's fairly wooden in his performance along side blank slate Robin Tunney as his pouty distressed wife. That, mixed with the scenery chewing villains played by over-the-top Tom Sizemore & Daniel Baldwin doing their best mustache twirling adds for some hilarious scale balancing of performances. The real problem with this film lies within its cancerous moral center depicting rich celebrities as preyed upon victims of sleazy paparazzi monsters. It's unfortunate too because you could have had something creative here - showcasing celebrity paranoia feeding into narcissism that inevitably turns violent ala Taxi Driver. Instead you get a revenge movie about an actor who snaps taking the law into his own hands without having the damn self-awareness to know that this comes off as incredibly self-serving and noninclusive to the audience. Weirdly, having said all that I do enjoy this movie for the guilty pleasure it can only be categorized in. There's a workmanlike breezyness to it, Saturday afternoon fare that you won't despise especially once it gets going. Cole Hauser's smirking attitude in the third act actually showcases a glimmer of what was missing through most of this movie: A sense of Fun.

Have you seen this forgotten thriller produced by Mel Gibson? It is currently available to watch for free on Tubi and Sling TV. Available to rent for $0.99 on Amazon Prime Video.

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