Hollywood Shuffle 1987

Janet Maslin, New York Times: Mr. Townsend has taken aim at the industry's funny bone and struck a solid blow. Read more

Pat Graham, Chicago Reader: Improv talent Robert Townsend is pretty much the whole show. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Under the circumstances, Hollywood Shuffle is an artistic compromise but a logistical triumph, announcing the arrival of a new talent whose next movie should really be something. Read more

Geoff Andrew, Time Out: Despite the film's conspicuously minuscule budget and shaky narrative structure, it is funny. If you value enthusiasm and imagination more than glossy sophistication, you'll laugh. Read more

Variety Staff, Variety: Brimming with imagination and energy, Hollywood Shuffle is the kind of shoestring effort more appealing in theory than execution. Read more

Richard Harrington, Washington Post: For a mere $100,000, Townsend and company have made a funny, poignant and technically proficient film -- one that should thoroughly embarrass those studios that routinely offer up badly made, multimillion-dollar disasters. Read more