Poolman

Chris Pine is usually a likable screen presence but he’s let down here by a flimsy script and over-indulgent direction -- which could have something to do with the co-screenwriter (Chris Pine) and the first-time director (er, Chris Pine).

I’m sure Pine meant well. He probably had a good idea and couldn’t execute it. An incredibly stoned person wouldn’t be able to decipher Poolman—and neither can a general audience.

It's fun! Yes, I was almost pushed to the edge a few times, but it's fun if you don't expect too much.

Surely, you hope, this turkey will eventually come to life. Surely, you think, with one eye glancing at the exit door, it will turn out to be about something. But all hopes are eclipsed by its idiotic, self-indulgent nothingness.

There's not a whole lot of plot to describe or even allude to, and I don't think "Poolman" is all that interested in what little there is.

Pine wisely avoids winks to the audience. But he whiffs at making the mystery especially gripping...

There is a great deal of intrigue but just as much baffling confusion, revealing a film with tremendous potential that makes selective use of its assets for a hypnotic but ultimately chaotic viewing experience.

…Pine the writer deals Pine the director a crook hand&#59; Poolman is crammed full of cringe-worthy self-awareness…jammed with weird ideas and oddball scenes, you certainly won’t forget you saw it…

With a protagonist who’s not as cool as The Dude and a mystery that isn’t as pulpy as Under the Silver Lakes’, Pine’s LA noir directorial debut fails to make much of a splash as a genre piece.

Poolman is like a flimsy and faulty floating device that's full of holes and quickly sinks due to its sheer incompetence. This comedy noir mystery is very un-amusing and incoherent. Everyone involved in this mess should be embarrassed.