After getting out of prison, former gangster Herman Tibbets (Paul Guilfoyle) and his wife Goldie (Lee Patrick) hop a train headed for California, where they’re planning to start a duck farm. Along the way, they meet screenwriter Michael Winston (Lee Tracy) and aspiring actress Barbara Lang (Joan Woodbury). Michael has been working on writing gangster movies, but realizes that having Herman’s input could be great for his next movie. Together, they write a movie called “The Hawk”, which bears a striking similarity to a bank heist pulled off by Herman’s former associate, also named The Hawk (Bradley Page). When the movie hits theaters, it’s a huge hit! Everybody loves it…except for the real Hawk, who goes to Hollywood to find Herman. When the bank president sees the movie, he also sees the similarities and suspects Michael of being involved with the heist.
Crashing Hollywood is a B-movie and that’s all it was ever meant to be. It’s fast paced, the story is paper thin, and the cast isn’t particularly remarkable. Lee Tracy is the only noteworthy cast member, and even he isn’t used to his full potential. There are far worse ways you could spend about an hour, but if you’re really in the mood for a movie about a gangster who turns to the film industry, go for Lady Killer with James Cagney instead. It’s far superior to Crashing Hollywood in every way.
