"Misty Green" Review: Chris Rock's Film Is A Expose On The Ugly Side of Hollywood And Star Actress Rosalind Eleazar Shines Becoming A Favorite for the 2027 Best Actress Oscars Race

 by Evan L. Jackson 

      The Chris Rock written and directed film "Mistry Green" asks an interesting question throughout: What is a friend? Better yet what does a "friend" in Hollywood even mean? Rosalind Eleazar who portrays the has been actress Misty Green has emerged as a favourite for the 2027 Best Actress Oscar nomination lineup. Mistry Green is given chance after chance but the exploitative nature of Hollywood has her sinking further and further into nothingness. Interestingly I see Chris Rock maturing in his direction, utilizing the two time Oscar nominated actor Adam Driver like never before on scene and honestly unretiring a talented Daniel Kaluuya. Misty Green shows the pitfalls of Hollywood but it begs for another question, what can be done from stars spiralling out of control? 

 

            Rosalind, from "Slow Horses" fame on Apple TV, finally gets her breakout lead role in Misty Green. From the jump you can sense the turmoil surrounding her and the volcanic self destructive nature within in her. But what is explored is also racial identity politics involved in being an actress. Midway through her audition for a huge 'Dreamgirls' audition one of the people int he room assisting the casting director inappropriately asks "Are you mixed?". Mortified Misty continues, only to get interrupted again, and before everything unravels, she demands to finish her audition. What's so fascinating about these string of scenes is that it turns Misty into the aggressor when in fact she was the one being imposed on. Other moments also call in to question the identity politics Black actresses have to deal  with and the conundrum every actress comes across: with Misty saying "I'm too Black for Leo, not Black enough for Damson, not a nepo baby and not a Brit". The audience had a nice chuckle with "Not a Brit" because Rosalind is one and she's famous for her British roles. A tongue and cheek reference Chris Rock wrote but that's what make this film so interesting. It's the anti-'Entourage' where instead of a bond of friends grounds the central actor and glamorises their adventures the star in the center of this dream is surrounded by people looking to exploit her and only see her as transaction. With her as the transaction! Rosalind's performance as Misty Green is chilling and sad because she normalizes her erratic behaviour and glosses over her mistakes. She justifies it by her circumstances and you feel sad for her because of the perdicament she's in. Playing a has been who is on the brink of homelessness all while trying to land a big time audition is probably the most Hollywood tale of it all. But shhh, don't let Hollywood know that because this is the ugly side that's not often explore. The raw nature of Rosalind's performance at the least should earn her a Best Actress nomination for the 2027 Oscars.  

           When it comes to Chris Rock films and the third acts sometimes they go off the rails or he self indulges to the point where you're just watching a Chris Rock stand up bit played out in a film. But with this Chris Rock he is subdued and makes the main focus on Misty Green. The supporting characters of Adam Driver's sleazy on again off again fling with Misty and her brother who is just released from a mental facility add to the chaos of Misty's world. The third act of this film feels unpredictable, hopeful, destitute and revelatory. Showing the dark side of Hollywood through the character study of Misty Green is a good social experiment to layout for a film. Do audience respond to this side of Hollywood being shown? Absolutely, the audience I saw it with knew when Chris Rock was going to give us a laugh but were equally attentive during the more dramatic scenes. The Hollywood glamour of Rosalind landing a role was juxtapose with her living out of her car once she's thrown out of an apartment that wasn't technically hers. Chris Rock always has a penultimate question he asks the question in his films. "I Think I Love My Wife" begged the question of would you cheat on your wife with the dream woman that got away? "Top Five" challenged the idea of a "comeback" for a has been. But with Misty Green her having no redemptive qualities, just pure selfishness, is the question itself. How desperate will you be to get that role? Not in a nefarious way but in a way where you get it handed to you, can you handle that pressure? 

Chris Rock gives us so much to ponder with his script and his directing. Rosalind takes it to another level with her dedication and the question I'm asking now is: What is Misty Green up to now?