With Friends Like These

A peerless ensemble, some surprising cameos (Bill Murray) and a knowing glimpse at life on the Hollywood fringes recommend this comic sleeper about a Sopranos type (Robert Constanzo) character actor who gets word from his agent (Beverly D'Angelo) that Martin Scorsese is doing a bio-pic on Al Capone and wants to cast an unknown. Adam Arkin, David Straithairn and Jon Tenney star as his best friends, also struggling actors, who find out about the top-secret project and scheme to get an audition themselves. Laura San Giacomo, Elle McPherson and Amy Madigan co-star as the supportive, but long-suffering women in their lives. The Good Sportsmanship Medal goes to Scorsese, who does indeed appear in the chaotic audition scene, although the editing suggests that, a la Frank Sinatra in Cannonball Run 2, he wasn't actually in the room with any of the principles. A film festival award-winner, this resourceful indie could have used some sharper writing, but for the most part is a keenly-observed treat that, unlike the doomed TV series Action, is not too inside. Recommended. (K. Lee Benson)