Information Hollywood

For a program about Hollywood, Information Hollywood looks awfully low-budget and rinky-dink. Purportedly a 12-step guide to breaking into the business, the video is really more of a general introduction of terms. Viewers will learn that acting classes are important, as is creating a professional looking resume. They will also learn what the various unions and guilds are, as well as the primary publications in the industry. Jock Devereaux (who appeared in Last of the Finest) is a bug-eyed, exclamation point driven narrator who takes about 30 seconds to get on your last nerve. Production-wise, Information Hollywood has a few choice moments that will make reviewers laugh (my favorite is a pan shot of various trade magazines which is immediately followed by a reverse pan shot of the same magazines, and then repeated ...because the narration is still going on). The program concludes with a wonderfully ludicrous two-punch. First, the producer appears on camera and offers a solemn message about life in the fast lane leading to drugs-which destroys careers. This is immediately followed by a breathless female narrator who sounds like she's been mainlining helium hawking the book Information Hollywood. While there is some good information on this program, the tape is more hype than performance. Not a necessary purchase. (Available from: The Bridgestone Group, 2091 Las Palmas Dr., Carlsbad, CA 92009; 1-800-5230988.)