Mondo Hollywoodland, an Intricate Yet Fun Journey in the World of Psychedelic Mushrooms

By Tom Soares

Mondo Hollywoodland, the latest project by Oscar nominated actor and executive-producer James Cromwell, and directed by Janek Ambros, has arrived on Amazon Prime Video bringing a rambling psychedelic story about a mushroom dealer and a 5th dimension narrator in search of the meaning of “mondo” in Los Angeles, California.

As the duo embark on their journey trying to make sense of Hollywood and learn the meaning of “mondo”, they run into many different types of film industry characters, extremist political activists and magic mushroom users.

Although imperfect and sometimes hard to follow, Mondo Hollywoodland is a great example of indie movie with a gigantic, fun personality that never hides behind the bushes. You know what it is trying to accomplish from the very beginning, with its bright neon colors, reflective introductory monologue and satirical social commentary. 

However, the story does get lost somewhere between second and third act, and most of its secondary storylines don’t mashup as they should by the end of the movie. Additionally, Mondo Hollywoodland demands great and constant attention from its audience, which unfortunately makes it even hard to follow its many rambling dialogues.

But the movie does introduces some very interesting characters, such as the man named Normand Boyle (Chris Blim), a house maintenance guy who doubles as psychedelic mushroom dealer; Ted (Alex Loynaz), a Hollywood producer with a cocaine problem; Paloma (Miranda Rae Hart), a white-passing Latinx actor known for being hard to work with; and Derrick, the nosey neighbor and extremist political nuts played by Janek Ambros himself. 

Each and every character played with great dedication by their respective actors. Had the movie focused solely on them, it would have been much easier to connect with.

As for directing, Ambros, who has dedicated most of his professional life to producing and directing short films and political documentaries, did a fantastic and inventive job by deciding to film the entire movie with an iPhone, and with a reported ten thousand dollars budget. Mondo Hollywoodland has some very beautiful and dynamic shots that match the proposed idea of a “documentary”. 

Mondo Hollywoodland also marks the second producing project of James Cromwell, who is better known for his performance as the kind hearted farmer Arthur Hoggett, from the 1995 family drama Babe, and for which he received an Academy Awards-nomination for Best Supporting Actor. In 2015, Cromwell executive-produced a documentary called Imminent Threat, about the War on Terror - an United States-led military initiative to combat terrorism following the 9/11 terrorist attacks on American soil by the Al-Qaeda - and its consequences for civil liberties. Imminent Threat was also directed by Ambros.

Now available on Amazon Prime Video, Mondo Hollywoodland is a very dynamic and entertaining movie with an original point-of-view, but that unfortunately misses the mark a bit due to its complex storyline and many characters. Under the direction of Janek Ambros and executive-produced by Hollywood legend James Cromwell, Mondo Hollywoodland succeeds as a satirical film with good and irreverent social commentary on Hollywood, drugs, political extremism and the meaning of life.