Being the Ricardos

Year: 2021

Actors: Nicole Kidman, Javier Bardem, J.K. Simmons, Alia Shawkat

Duration: 131 min

The film is told from three perspectives: interviews with the show's three lead writers: Jess Oppenheimer (who was also the show runner), Madelyn Pugh, and Bob Carroll; flashbacks; and preparations for a live taping in 1953. In 1939, Ball, 28, is an actress contracted to RKO Pictures. She gets small parts in big studio productions, but featured mainly in low budget films which gives her the moniker "Queen of the B-Movies." She is cast in the comedy Too Many Girls, a film Pugh describes as a bad play made into an even worse movie. She meets one of the film's cast, charismatic 22-year-old Cuban singer Desi Arnaz and the two fall for each other instantaneously. Months after filming, they marry and buy a home in Hollywood. Desi has a successful stint fronting the Desi Arnaz Orchestra that tours around the country, while Lucy continues her film career with little success. After Desi serves in World War II, he resumes his success with his orchestra, with Lucy having to accompany him because of his cheating. Lucy finally gets a break when she is cast in 1942's The Big Street. The film is only a modest hit, but Ball's performance is praised. She meets with RKO President Charles Koerner confident she will get better scripts on par with established stars like Rita Hayworth and Bette Davis. But Koerner terminates her contract as several actresses RKO loaned to other studios will be returning and there will be nothing for her. He suggests she use her voice for radio, and with no substantial film roles coming, she does. In 1948, she is cast in the radio show My Favorite Husband, which becomes a success. The show draws interest from CBS and Philip Morris, but Ball only agrees if Desi plays her on screen husband. The executives refuse because Arnaz is Hispanic, but relent after Lucy refuses to give them the show. Ball also hopes that working with Desi will curb his cheating and save their marriage. By 1953, the show is renamed I Love Lucy and becomes a smash hit with nearly 60 million viewers each week. A three camera system, designed by Desi, allows viewers on the East Coast to see the show live and without static. Lucy deals with several issues on the show. Vivian Vance and William Frawley, who play the Ricardos' married neighbors the Mertzes, cannot get along, and Frawley's drunkeness on the set. Lucy also clashes with the directors and writers at the table reads, scene blockings and run throughs. Particularly a scene where Desi comes home and covers Lucy's eyes while she sets the table, and she names several different men before Desi reveals it's him. The writers and director find the scene controversial as it will imply adultery. The couple announce to CBS and Phillip Morris executives that Lucy is pregnant. They insist Lucy hide the pregnancy behind large objects, but the couple refuse and that the pregnancy will be shown (though they are never allowed to say the word on television). Lucy also deals with Desi being out late, and tales and a picture in the tabloids about him being with another woman. He tells her he plays cards on a boat with some other celebrities and sleeps there when he is too tired to come home, and the picture is 6 months old. She reluctantly believes him. Frawley has Lucy understand that Desi's adultery may stem from her making the business and creative decisions on the show which makes him feel emasculated, though she tells everyone he makes all the decisions. She asks Jess to give Arnaz a producer credit hoping it will stop Desi's cheating and save the marriage. Oppenheimer, instead tells Desi that has top billing being the "I" in I love Lucy to placate him. Lucy confronts him, and Oppenheimer relents. The night of the live filming, a newspaper article deems Lucy a Communist, though she was cleared during a HUAC hearing months earlier. Lucy admits she registered as a member of the Communist Party, but Desi insists she lie and say she accidentally marked the wrong box to which she refuses. Desi cancels his usual warm up to inform the audience of the accusations. He takes a live call with FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, who assures the crew and audience that Lucy has been cleared of all the charges. As the couple celebrates backstage, Lucy shows Desi a handkerchief with lipstick on it. Desi says it's hers, but Lucy shows him another one with her own lipstick on it, proving Desi's infidelity. When taping begins, Lucy momentarily loses her concentration. They start over, with Lucy focused. The film ends with a title card saying Ball filed for divorce after the taping of the last show in 1960.

Genre: Action   Biography   Drama   History