Hugo Pool, aka Pool Girl (1997)

Summary

Girl cleans pools. Stuff happens. Credits roll.

Director

Robert Downey Sr.

Downey Factor

Very Low.

Character

Franz, an eccentric European film maker.

Looks

Skinny and shirtless, bedecked in silk robes and giant sunglasses.

Performance

Weird.

Accent

Dutch

Dies, Gay or Villain

Nope.

Cast

Sean Penn, Malcolm McDowell, Alyssa Milano, Cathy Moriarty, Patrick Dempsey

Connection

Robert Downey Sr.'s Pound, Moment to Moment, Up the Academy, Rented Lips, America, Too Much Sun, Greaser's Palace, in The Last Party, Johnny Be Good and Sr.

Richard Lewis in The Last Party and That's Adequate.

Ann Magnuson in Friends and Lovers.

Cathy Moriarty in Soapdish.

Sean Penn in The Last Party.

RDJ Says

Very much like when Chaplin lost a kid and his next movie strangely was titled The Kid and it was a way for him to process the grief in his personal life, that's exactly what [my father] did in Hugo Pool. The movie was representing everything from [my stepmother] Laura's illness to my addiction to [his] turnaround ... [My father] was trying to help me out and I was just in a bad place. But it's a cult favorite among some of my peers because I was, like, 138 pounds and it was beyond improvisation. It's like, "Wow, he's literally bouncing this performance off some space shuttle far away!" Which, to tell you the truth, is just another one of my special skills: fencing, archery, and acting in a blackout ... It was really weird because my dad was directing it. My cousin was working on the film. It was ouchy and painful for them to see, but, my work didn't suffer from [my drug use]. But that didn't mean it was okay.

Time & Place

Present day (1997), Los Angeles.

Availability

Released in theaters on 12 December 1997. On DVD in Region 1, 2 and 4 (titled "Pool Girl" in R2)

Foreign Titles

Argentina: Las Piscinas de Hugo (Hugo's Pools)
Denmark: Klor-vand og Kærlighed (Chlorine Water and Love)
Finland: Rakkautta Uima-Altaalla (Love the Swimming Pool)
France: Chaude Journée à L.A. (Hot Day in L.A.)
Italy: Piscine-Incontri a Beverly Hills (Swimming Pools - Encounter in Beverly Hills)
Portugal: Sonhar em Los Angeles (Dreaming in Los Angeles)
Russia: Company Hugo (English translation)
Sweden: Simbassänger och Kärlek (Swimming Pools and Love)

Rotten Tomatoes

14% Fresh | 8 Reviews

Critical View

Emanuel Levy, Variety: It's also not surprising that the most idiosyncratic performance belongs to [the] helmer's son, Downey Jr., a brilliant actor who has a tendency to overact and here has a field day with his over-the-top European accent and mannerisms.

Jack Mathews, Los Angeles Times: We hate to hit a man when he's down, but what a week for Robert Downey Jr.! On Monday, a judge orders him to jail for six months for violating probation on past drug offenses, and today, Hugo Pool opens, putting on public display one of the worst performances he or any major star has recorded on film.

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: The movie, which seems to be taking place in a sitcom insane asylum, is so fey and scattershot that about all it leaves you to focus on is which actor is giving the most annoying performance ... One actor, I'm afraid, tops them all. Robert Downey Jr., as a lunatic who babbles camp gibberish in assorted unintelligible accents, is beyond bad. In Hugo Pool, he's truly his father's son—a granulated flake off the old block.

Does It Hold Up

Robert Downey Jr is not the only person in this movie who went on to do much better things — things they should be remembered for instead of this.

2 Reasons to See It

1. You really like the idea of a skinny shirtless Dutch Downey.
2. Plot and coherence rank last on your list of important qualities in a movie.

Overall

A senseless movie. Not worth seeing for his small, nearly unintelligible role.

If You Like It

You might also like Short Cuts (1993), Too Much Sun (1991), wishing you had the money to go to Sundance

Photos

Video