Angelyne injects pure joy into an L.A. legend
Executive producer and star Emmy Rossum dazzles in Peacock's dreamy miniseries about an only-in-California curiosity
TV Reviews Angelyne
At the start of Peacock’s Angelyne, the mononymous celeb informs her audience: “I am not a woman. I’m an icon.” She repeats the words, her voiceover hypnotically hanging above pastel-pink credits. “I am not a woman. I’m an icon.” With a flutter of her fuchsia eyelids, executive producer and star Emmy Rossum suddenly appears as the walking-talking cult classic and self-appointed “Queen Of The Universe.” The actor channels multiple eras of Angelyne for the sparkling five-part miniseries, but plays her older and more vulnerable in the beginning–soft yet fabulous, like glitter mixed with talcum powder. “I am not a woman,” Angelyne says once more, this time steeling herself in a moment of fleeting insecurity. “I’m an icon. Read it.”
But who is she? Based in part on Gary Baum’s 2017 exposé of Angelyne for The Hollywood Reporter–it’s directly quoted by Angelyne Fan Club President Rick Krause (Hamish Linklater) in the remainder of that tense opening scene–Angelyne tells the quintessential SoCal story of a blonde whose mysterious past captured the imagination of a city. For years, Angelenos wondered about this “Rorschach test in pink,” whose face was inexplicably plastered on billboards at major intersections throughout the ’80s and ’90s. Angelyne would—and, to some extent, still does—speed around town in her hot pink Corvette, signing autographs, selling merchandise, posing for photos, dancing on the hood of her car, and occasionally claiming to be an alien. But the model/actor/singer/art-installation refused to talk about her real history as she rose to fame. So rumors swirled about who Angelyne was, where she came from, and, most intriguing, how she paid for all that self-promotion.
Created by Nancy Oliver (Six Feet Under), with executive producer Allison Miller (Brave New World) doubling as showrunner, Angelyne doesn’t debunk every myth about the local legend; no series ever could. But this technicolor portrait of Hollywood’s sweet-yet-spicy hometown hero offers something almost better. It’s a searingly fun chance to decide for yourself what’s real and what’s fiction on the spiritually charged Planet Angelyne. Though the show’s plot is anchored in how the world sees her–dramatizing Baum’s revelatory article and other seemingly true Angelyne accounts from third parties (which, let’s be honest, not all of which the actual Angelyne will love seeing discussed so publicly)–its execution is infused with the titular star’s otherworldly sensibilities and a palpable love for her life’s work. (It’s worth noting here that Angelyne received $1 million and an executive producer credit for this project.)
It’s a searingly fun chance to decide for yourself what’s real and what’s fiction on the spiritually charged Planet Angelyne.
Partly stylized as a mockumentary, Oliver’s stupidly entertaining limited series uses eclectic storytelling techniques to deliver a TV ride best likened to the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster at Disney World, though you’ll hear more Electric Light Orchestra than Aerosmith. It’s packed with time jumps, unreliable narrators, meta moments, and blooming musical celebrations, the sort of slippery stuff other series often screw up.
Directors Matt Spicer (Ingrid Goes West) and Lucy Tcherniak (Station Eleven) deftly navigate the lightning-fast wit of Angelyne’s talented writing team with bold decisiveness, hopping between reality and fantasy sequences at a dizzying speed. That they do so without ever missing a good joke is a testament to their appreciation for the material. (“I thought about writing a screenplay once, about a scientist who creates a giant bra that turns me into a genius who can fight evil…” may be among the funniest lines of the year.)
Danny Glicker’s (Bad Times At The El Royale) costume work is obsession worthy, and the prosthetic-heavy transformation of Rossum, a team up of makeup designer Kate Biscoe (Vice) and prosthetic designer Vincent Van Dyke (Our Flag Means Death), works wonders. If the masterful but undoubtedly heavy creation complicates the acting, Rossum doesn’t let it show. The former Shameless star delivers a fiery performance kindled in camp that’s explosive start to finish, yes, but also nuanced. Rossum’s ’80s and present-day Angelynes feel appropriately similar but also logically evolved.
An unabashed lover of admirers, Angelyne has a story that’s lined with fans-turned-foes-turned-fans: punk rocker Cory Hunt (Philip Ettinger), in-over-his-head printer Harold Wallach (Martin Freeman), aspiring filmmaker Max Allen (Lukas Gage), and gaggles more B-characters baffled by her magic. In the end, scene by scene, tête-à-tête by tête-à-tête, rumor by rumor, the show makes that enigmatic face on billboards about as fully realized as you could hope.
72 Comments
I really hope this lands big. Emmy Rossum is one of those actors who absolutely should be a star, but just hasn’t quite landed that project that matches her skills. Phantom of the Opera *should* have made her, but it was badly done, and the Phantom miscast. Shameless was career best work for her, but it was hampered by too many storylines, and too much emphasis upon William H. Macy’s character, and with diminishing returns. She deserves a really big hit.
A Peacock biopic, no matter how great, is never going to do what you want for Rossum. I like her a lot too btw.
It’s a fair point. Peacock is no Apple or Hulu, but it’s a start. It wasn’t long ago that everyone was making fun of AMC for trying to get their foot in the door with a show called Mad Men. Matt Weiner even said how all his colleagues thought he was committing career suicide by making a show for them. I get the impression that this is a real passion project for Rossum, that she’s invested in personally and professionally, and I think regardless of the platform, that that passion will show. At least I hope so. Because we both are in agreement, that she’s a terrific actor.
She’s great and this project sounds interesting but I don’t know that a miniseries about a niche L.A. enigma has much crossover appeal. I lived in L.A. for five years and could *barely* give a shit.
Absolutely! She is incredibly talented and friggin’ gorgeous. I hope this show helps her build to the status you’re talking about.
Yeah, she was about to be The Next Big Thing after her role in Mystic River, which she was following up with 3 would-be blockbusters (Phantom of the Opera, Poseidon, and The Day After Tomorrow). Of course, all of those underperformed. So her next credit was Dragonball Evolution, which….uh….exists.
DB: Evolution was a killer for both Emmy Rossum and Justin Chatwin. They were both in some blockbusters of the mid-2000s and then not a ton else besides Shameless.
Its always interesting to hear people’s different takes on the terrible Phantom movie! I always thought she was the better parts of Phantom and could have done a good job with a better co-star, better set design, better director, maybe minor changes to the music for movie audiences, etc.
It was a mistake to have Joel Schumacher direct, who was a hack that coasted on a couple of memorable films, and an utterly forgettable actor playing the phantom. Considering that he wears a mask most of the time, I think they could’ve gotten away with Michael Crawford in the lead. They could’ve made the age difference work. I mean, isn’t the Phantom supposed to be older anyways, given how long he’s supposedly haunted the opera house? And as for the director, Baz Luhrman would’ve been perfect.
Crawford would’ve been in his early 60s at the time. It’d be a stretch even for that film. Plus, by that point, the Phantom had become what he was never supposed to be— the sexy, misunderstood star.I never saw the original run, but I’ve heard the cast recording a few thousand times, and Crawford comes off as very dangerous in it. He’s supposed to be. The Phantom is supposed to be scary— he’s a crazy murderer, after all.
(Full disclosure, a remake of that film is kind of a dream job for me, so I have strong opinions on it)
I feel like they could have gotten Hugh Jackman in that time period and with Baz Luhrman directing and doing interesting visuals it could have been something.
Oh how could I forget Jackman. Of course! This would’ve been perfect! He has the musical theater background, the screen presence. I’m totally with you here, if they had gotten Jackman, and with Luhrman on board, it would’ve been a totally different, and far better fim.
They could probably still make that film today with both those people. Perhaps we could start a petition to get it done! Though with humanity’s luck we will get Tom Hooper and James Corden.
Part of me is clearly still 11 years old, because “the titular star” made me giggle.
All I am certain of is that during the making of this, Sam Esmail was the happiest husband in Hollywood.
Damn, this review has done something that hasn’t been done in a long time, make me want to watch a show. I’m sold! Can’t wait.
It seems like she should team up with Elvira
not before elvira teams up with dolly parton.
Well let’s face it Elvira would be slumming if she teamed up with Angelyne
Elvira is at least played by someone with comedy chops.
A show featuring Elvira, Dolly Parton and Angelyne would certainly have a stacked cast.
But Russ Meyer’s dead, who the Hell’s gonna film it
As long as the finale is the same as the one in the Elvira movie (and if you’ve seen it you know what I mean) with all three women, does it matter who the hell films it?And the correct answer would be James Gunn.
*rimshot*
It would be the breast show ever.
Elvira has talent
For what, exactly?
“Though the show’s plot is anchored in how the world sees her–dramatizing Baum’s revelatory article and other seemingly true Angelyne accounts from third parties (which, let’s be honest, not all of which the actual Angelyne will love seeing discussed so publicly)”She got paid a million and an executive producer credit – I’m pretty sure she’s signed off with what they put in the series or it wouldn’t be in the series
Even despite the effusive review here, I’m still raising a doubtful eyebrow at this. When I lived in LA, Angelyne (imo) represented the worst side of the entertainment industry, and in a city of dream-it-be-it status chasers and image worshippers, she was *the* golden calf. It just seems so fucking weird to celebrate that, especially when we characterize modern-day influencers (a phenomenon of which I’d say Angelyne was a progenitor) as shameless grifters.
she is the proto paris hilton/kardashian type; famous for being famous
I thought we all agreed a long time ago that making moral tv shows about good people is kind of boring? Plus CBS has that covered.
I’ve been around LA my whole life and I never heard about her.
Her heyday was the 80s and some of the 90s, so if you’re under a certain age you may not have heard of her.
Probably depends where in town you live? I see the corvette a few times a year (less so since Covid.) It always makes me smile.
I envy you then.
It’s funny, because Foreman was also the reviewer of Candy, and slammed it for a negative portrayal of women…even though it was, like this film, based on real people.
Is that funny? Please explain.On second thought, don’t. I don’t need to hear from someone with a weird review grudge.
When I lived in LA, Angelyne (imo) represented the worst side of the entertainment industry, and in a city of dream-it-be-it status chasers and image worshippers, she was *the* golden calf.
I saw her billboard in L.A. in the 1980s/ 90s and had no idea who she is. The magazines didn’t write anything about her, she wasn’t on late night shows. I actually believed Angelyne isn’t a real person but a product that wasn’t specified and would be “soon” targeted to women (hygienic, never happened of course). Because of the imagined PR angle I would’ve agreed on the “worst side of the entertainment industry” for a different reason.
That’s totally part of why I find this so weird; her actual pr approach was so opaque most people didn’t know who she was or what she was advertising. It was the “wtf is this even about?” that made her an “icon.” It’s weird to be characterizing that as something to celebrate.
You are absolutely correct in your observations but that does preclude it making an interesting story. She pretty much invented the Famous For Being Famous concept. She is definitely a grifter, as well as completely delusional, and as John Waters said about her, she has no sense of humor about any of it. But I’m curious how they’ll get five hours of material out of it.
She very well could have seen what happened with Pam and Tommy and decided that she was better off at least making some money from the whole thing. “Signed off on” isn’t the same as “Will be happy with”.
Yes, basically the same Monica Lewinsky did with Ryan Murphy’s series.
Retirement money! She’s looking haggard…..
Should do a re-watch of ‘It Should Happen to You’, the Judy Holliday and Jack Lemon movie about a woman who pulls an Angelyne with a nothing-advertising (or self-advertising) billboard in Times Square. From the 1950s. Wonder if it impacted Angelyne.
It’s much more charming than this nonsense, that’s for sure
Where is it streaming outside of Peacock? We don’t have Peacock here.
Esmail Corp can really do very little wrong. They are consistently turning out great shows, even when Sam Esmail himself isn’t involved (where is battlestar btw). They are becoming the best TV production company in the biz, Sam Esmail is like Norman Lear but for smart elevated true story focused style stuff. Would love to see more from them, I just have to remember I actually have a peacock sub.
Pffft. It’s nonsense fanfic about a terrible person
Says who?
About a year ago I was seeing her around pretty often – because I was working in Ventura and it is hard to miss a BARBIE DOLL PINK corvette – and the plate and blonde driver are always a giveaway. She is 100% in character all the time. I have to respect that.
Incidentally, the also-a-Corvette-lover car lady I was working for was not a fan- woman knows all kinds of whos-who’s -but feigned ignorance about Angelyne.
being an older lady… I think she knows exactly who she is and doesn’t like her.
I’m like… ‘cmon you were around at the time and you are both in ventura. not many other blonde senior women cruising around in C7 Vettes, you totally have run across her’
would be hilarious if they had beef
also: I remember seeing Angelyne billboards. enigmatic as ever. Miley Cyrus also repeated this strategy with baffling “SHE IS MC” billboards with only an enigmatic phone number.
I don’t know who this is *for*. Will anyone outside of L.A. find the subject interesting? This feels like one of those projects that the industry thinks is fascinating because it’s about them but everyone else is primed to shrug at. I like the talent involved, I just… Really? Angelyne? As I mention elsewhere in the comments, I lived in L.A. for five years and only found her story vaguely interesting at best.
I’m vaguely interested ‘cause I’m a GenXer (yay! the 80s!) and because I accidentally bought an Angelyne t-shirt back in the day from a record shop having no idea what it was. My hipster boss at the high school radio station had heard of her so I found out after the fact. All I knew was his vague explanation though so I’m sort of interested in the whole story. That guy also told me Malcom X was a Blank Panther so…grain of salt and all that.
The Blank Panthers — angry people in search of a cause to fill in the blank!
Same as Fever-Dog below: Gen X guy who kind of wants to see this…?
As a thirty-year-old who’s never been to L.A., this is definitely in the category of ‘weird enough that I’d probably watch it if it was on’. Which makes its position as a streaming title a bit weird; I don’t really find there’s a place in steaming for shows that I’d watch if I found them while idly channel-surfing but not go out of my way for.That said… hey, it’s on a streaming service, and streaming services aren’t a bad place for weird niches. Peacock doesn’t exist outside the U.S., so if you’re making a show for Peacock, do you really have to worry that people outside the U.S. won’t be interested?
Peacock doesn’t exist outside the U.S., so if you’re making a show for
Peacock, do you really have to worry that people outside the U.S. won’t
be interested?
Peacock is expanding. In the UK, Ireland, Italy since last year available via Sky (in corporation with Comcast), and this year in Switzerland (Sky Show), Austria (Sky X) and Germany (Sky Ticket). Before some of the Peacock shows were available per Universal TV in Europe (which is part of NBCUniversal).
Will anyone outside of L.A. find the subject interesting?I mean, yeah? I will once it’s available somewhere. As someone from Poland I have absolutely 0 relationship with the story of, say, OJ Simpson – for most of my life I didn’t even know he’s a football player, I only knew him from Naked Gun – but I still devoured the two shows about him because it’s a fascinating story.
True, but the OJ thing was a nationwide (and apparently worldwide?) thing. Have a lot of people ever heard of Angelyne? This show is the first I’ve heard the name. Not saying that just because I haven’t heard of it no one has, but I think it’s fair to say that OJ was far bigger between the murders, the slow car chase, the trial, and the book. Seems to be apples and oranges. There was no escaping OJ news. I feel like a lot of people escaped Angelyne news.
OJ also murdered. AFAIK Angelyne didn’t.
Yeah, I have to hit the googles. I read this review hoping it would tell me who this Angelyne is or was, but nope. Still no clue, and still no interest in seeing this show, though I’m sure it’s as good as the review says it is.
Click on the link for the Gary Baum article. It is a good piece of writing. Other than that, she is just annoying. She is always demanding people buy her merch – for interviews, for pictures, etc. She has been known to accost people for money who snap a picture of her in public.
Nah, I’m not gonna click on that link. I quickly googled her and nothing about her seemed interesting enough to warrant using up additional brain cells. She seems like some nonsense but good for her that she was successful (I guess) at it.
Arent you doing the same thing? Assuming because you’re not interested no one can be? Most of my friends in the queer community are watching and none of them live in LA.
I have already seen this story – I could swear a documentary. I live very far from L.A. and, no, I wouldn’t probably go out of my way to know Angelyn. But the way the show was advertised caught my intention and I was fascinated and I remember being disappointed when it was over. I think people might be curious. And it is about sexy stuff after all.
Yes I am interested in this because it seems like a great story. I’m a gay man so all of the camp and glam definitely appeal a lot to me and have always had a fondness for LA (probably because I have never lived there). It just looks fun and interesting. I was a 90’s kid and grew up browsing tabloids and this has that feel albeit the 80’s setting. Why am I still telling you all the reasons I might watch this omg
The first LA woman famous for being famous with big tits? A classic American junk food story…..
Ugh, when did they stop calling them actresses?
I’m a fan of Emmy Rossum because I saw her in Songcatcher years ago. I haven’t really seen much else that she’s been in, but Angelyne looks like it could be a ton of fun. Glad she finally got this done, she’s been working on it for years.
The “oh-mage” to Repo Man in the second episode (illustrated above) cracked me up.