Limelight

For me, the film is a statement about about vanity and ego in the Hollywood industry. The traps aspiring young people fall into through their own naive entitlement and cravings for validation. Especially with this new wave of social media influencer like "Miles" who have flooded the Hollywood scene since this movie was made. Being that it was actually shot back in the Summer of 2015, probably written in 2014, it was a bit ahead of it's time and correctly predicted what was just around the corner - which is unqualified social media influencers getting direct offers and being rolled into projects that in the past would've gone to the more experienced and better actors. There was also a message that whether you're a straight white male producer like the antagonist "Sergio", a closeted gay agent like "Jim", or a female publicist like "Scarlett", everyone is in it for themselves, nobody is entirely innocent, and everyone is working their own angle. For an indie made for under 100k, they effectively hit their message and I enjoy the sarcasm and in-your-face arrogance.