Overnight [Import]

Troy Duffy was on the fast-track to become a Hollywood legend-while working as a bartender, he sold a screenplay to Miramax head Harvey Weinstein, got permission to direct it, and secured a recording deal for his band. Unfortunately for himself, Duffy was an egotistical control freak who insisted on claiming all the glory and credit for the good things that happened to him and assigning blame for all of the bad. This documentary chronicles his downfall as he disrespects and mistreats nearly everyone he encounters, ultimately losing all of his great opportunities.

When I first heard about this film, I wondered if anyone whose actions don't affect the public really deserves this kind of treatment. I was also leery about the honesty of the filmmakers; after all, you could probably make anybody look bad with selective editing. I still have some reservations, but after having seen the film, it's kind of hard to see how they could have edited it to make him look good. He makes some stunningly unkind statements to people to whom he claims to be loyal and seems to revel in the chance to put others down and force them to acknowledge his "superiority."

This film serves as a cautionary tale about how not to treat people. I imagine that Duffy will see this film someday if he hasn't already. I wonder if being an observer will allow him to see his responsibility for his own downfall, or if he continues to see himself as the genius auteur who was brought down by foolish hangers-on and duplicitous studio people.

The documentary Overnight chronicles the manner in which Troy Duffy, hyped-up screenwriter of The Boondock Saints, behaves like a malignant bully toward his buddies, his agents, and his producers. Duffy sees himself as a working-class hero whose genius was discovered by the right people. But what we see, contrary to Duffy, is an overgrown shrieking infant seething with megalomaniacal tantrums, self-aggrandizing fantasies, and paranoid delusions who, alienating everyone, sees himself as an innocent victim. One is tempted to think that the promise of wealth turned him into such a bilious, obnoxious lout, like those characters turned rotten in The Treasure of Sierra Madre. But at the end of the documentary we are given a deliciously insightful quote from Albert Goldman, which sets the record straight:

"No man is really changed by success. What happens is that success works on the man's personality like a truth drug, bringing him out of the closet and revealing...what was always inside his head."

This documentary is about so much more than a character study of one big jerk. It's also about an unspoken exchange by those so impressed with celebrity that they put up with that jerk's abhorrent behavior. Troy keeps his abusive hold on his cohorts, so long as they perceive that they are also on their way to "the big time". You see a look on their faces resembling hapless puppies ...too intimidated to speak up to Troy Duffy, the incipient Director maverick --that is, until his house of cards completely folds. Then normal human boundaries resume and grievances are tabled. That's the other side of the story. That's the sickness of the whole system.

Within a cultural vacuum of values, a guy like Troy really COULD and usually does go far. His only mistake was that he revealed his ego-maniacal behavior too fast to the power-brokers that "made" him.

Again, Hubris like Troy's is alive and well in Hollywood. His is a familiar personality-type that does set things in motion and gets things done. As much as I hate to say it, it's true. Had his gestation into the entertainment world included a modicum of tact, we'd all be celebrating Mr. Duffy today as some sort of American treasure. His story is much closer to the norm, vs. being an anomaly in terms of type.

Interestingly, even after experiencing a promising directorial career turned to shambles, the mechanisms of denial only enlarge. Troy, brimming with resentment for "the system" (a result of his self-inflicted travails), is invited to speak to a group of university film school students. There he presses his advantage and systematically degrades the aspiring filmmakers in the most predatory question-and-answer session this side of the Jerry Springer Show. The result could be comedic, except that you see each innocent soul being laid open like raw meat, as Troy gladly applies the salt. This spectacle includes shots of the bow-tie-wearing, shrinking and silent professor. Once again, all is tolerated because Troy's "been to Hollywood" and that's what's honored.

There's a lot to recommend here as an instructive example of the seedy edge of Filmland's deal-making (and breaking), as well as operant illustrations of sycophantic behavior. It's a cautionary tale.. An old cliche is given new life: Be careful of what you want.