Los Angeles, March 21: What better way for Starz to follow up on "Head Case," a show depicting stars driven nuts by Hollywood, than with a show about wannabe stars going crazy trying to get into Hollywood? With "Party Down," Starz has found not only a companion to its first attempt at scripted comedy but a superior one at that, though not quite the breakthrough it needs to put its original programing on the map.Amusing as "Head" is, with Alexandra Wentworth`s inspired turn as a nutty celebrity shrink, it`s a one-note affair. Not so with "Party," which makes the working stiffs at a cheesy catering service worth sticking around to get to know.
With Los Angeles serving as the setting, it`s only natural that most of these characters are trying desperately to make it in Tinseltown. But that`s not true for all of them: Boss Ron Donald (Ken Marino) dreams of trading in his pink bow tie -- standard uniform for the Party Down crew -- for the deed to a fast-food franchise. (Ron also happens to be a buffoon who acts like "The Office`s" Michael Scott is his long-lost twin.) And then there`s his old friend Henry (Adam Scott), a recovering actor who suffered some unspecified career setback that has left him sour on showbiz and life in general.
The only thing that seems to lift Henry`s spirits is Casey (Lizzy Caplan), a co-worker torn between her showbiz aspirations and a difficult husband intent on moving them to Vermont. The cast also features two graduates of the Judd Apatow Comedy University: Martin Starr ("Knocked Up") is an aspiring screenwriter who uses the parties he works as an excuse to peddle his "Jurassic Park" knockoff script, and Jane Lynch ("The 40-Year-Old Virgin"), who already has gone through the showbiz ringer and has the stories to match.
Rob Thomas, one of the series` four executive producers, isn`t above calling on old friends from his "Veronica Mars" days to help "Party" out. Enrico Colantoni shows up as a bored suburbanite who takes to skinny-dipping in his backyard pool to liven up a homeowners association party. He is topped only by Ed Begley Jr., who is a riot in the show`s outstanding third episode as a pill-popping Casanova working the room at a singles event for senior citizens.
Each of the 10 episodes in "Party" largely is contained to whatever event the caterers are working that week. No complaints here: Starz proves you don`t need to spend too much production money if you can bring the funny. Moving from a powwow for young conservatives to a porn-industry convention sets up one sacred cow after another for "Party" to tip, but it isn`t all about toppling taboos: Lurking behind the surface of this raucous comedy is an astute meditation on the promise and peril of leading an unconventional life, something about which aspiring actors know a thing or two.
Bureau Report
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