Hang Fire

By: Anthony Mora
Publisher: The Royal Penny Press
Publication Date: January 15, 2025
ISBN: 978-0-9912370-3-6
Reviewed by: Shrubaboti Bose
Review Date: December 28, 2024

Unfolding at the heart of Hollywood, Hang Fire is a satirical comedy portraying the desperate dreams and crazy aspirations of a motley group of characters pulled straight from the back alleys of the industry. We have our protagonist Jerry, who is a delusional wannabe producer-director; then there is Jerry’s psychotherapist, Kimberley, who is a thirty-seven year old blond woman harboring a secret desire to make her name on the big screens; there is also Amber, a young up and coming actress who still feels threatened by other potential actresses and driven by her insecurities, takes drastic measures to secure a role that will guarantee her some commercial success. Another significant character includes Stangerson, a famous but sleazy film director whose power seems to be on a steady decline as he often resorts to sexploitation to churn out movies that he believes will become the next blockbuster hits.

On the sidelines, we have Lannier, embodying the role of an overlooked PR agent who keeps adding fuel to the fire by circulating various rumors about the celebrities, while trying to manipulate them into striking a business deal with her. And lastly, there is James, forming the nucleus of the story, Jerry’s long time best friend who is drastically different from him. Jaded by all the pointless drinks and meetings at lavish hotels, people’s constant disrespect towards him and their total lack of interest in his book, James finds himself increasingly disillusioned and frustrated by the political strife and cut-throat competitions within the inner circles of the film industry. The moment he decides to pull out from that circle of power-hungry people, who were clearly more curious about Kimberley than about making a film based on his novel, they sniff out a potential chance of riding James’ imminent fame and plunge to fight each other tooth and nail for any scraps of his attention, symbolizing the present sorry state of the once glorified American dream that was Hollywood.

However, the idea that Hollywood would appreciate indie films or art house movies seems to be slightly misplaced as it generally represents mainstream movies which are indeed box-office hits but not necessarily critically acclaimed or independent productions, the latter being usually small scale and having a different target audience than that of a typical Hollywood film. So criticizing it for not appreciating art for art’s sake or putting commercial success as its higher priority might not hold as much of a strong influence over readers as it was expected to because it has always been that way. The fact that Jerry refers to a film called Exposée multiple times as some kind of benchmark for himself shows that despite following the formulaic eye-candy and steamy scenes rule, his benchmark film hadn’t gained much publicity either, proving how there is no set rule for success in the film industry.

However, some of the details definitely help us gain a new unflattering insight of the industry from another perspective. Like riding a taxi through the back alleys of a cosmopolitan city, the book manages to capture the dirt and grime of this dreamscape like a dash of cold water on our faces to break us out of our reveries. It encourages us to scrutinize the illusion created by Hollywood and its paraphernalia, allowing us to step out of our bubble, even if momentarily.

Although the story feels a bit repetitive in the first half of the book, as Jerry keeps rambling on about his delusions trying to manipulate both his friend and therapist to act in the manner he wishes them to, the narrative picks up its pace in the second half, with tensions escalating and unexpected conflicts brewing. It was particularly interesting to note how Amber longed to be among other ordinary people, to walk incognito in the streets with them and remain unidentified. It touches a chord somewhere deep, showing us a side of her that is quite surprisingly humane and vulnerable, despite her outer-worldly glamour and her frequent engagements with bitter politics in the industry.

Quill says: Hang Fire is not an occasional read for the hopeless romantic, but if you’re into dark comedy, betrayals, deceptions and stories about the nitty gritty details of human failings, this one is for you!

For more information about Hang Fire, please visit the author’s website at: anthonymorawriter.com.