Reception
The film was generally well-received, with review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reporting that 87% of 23 professional critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 6.5 out of 10. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times called the film “an artistic compromise but a logistical triumph, announcing the arrival of a new talent whose next movie should really be something.” Richard Harrington of the Washington Post calls the film “a funny, poignant and technically proficient film.”
Some critics addressed Townsend's use of stereotypes as problematic in his depiction of women and homosexuality. Jami Bernard of the New York Post claims that Townsend is “passing the buck,” addressing the misrepresentation of African Americans, but maintaining stereotypes of other groups of people, such as the image of the stereotypical homosexual hairdresser. Harriet Margolis claims that “Townsend ignores gender issues, thereby weakening certain aspects of his own attack on Hollywood's misuse of stereotypes.”
Read more about this topic: Hollywood Shuffle
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