Hail, Caesar!
This movie follows a day in the life of Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin), a Hollywood fixer for Capitol Pictures in the 1950s, who cleans up and solves problems for big names and stars in the industry. But when studio star Baird Whitlock (George Clooney) disappears, Mannix has to deal with more than just the fix.
Despite a respectable budget of $22.0M, Hail, Caesar! became a commercial success, earning $63.6M worldwide—a 189% return.
Nominated for 1 Oscar. 14 wins & 44 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Hail, Caesar! (2016) exemplifies meticulously timed plot construction, characteristic of Coen Brothers's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 46 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 3.9, the film takes an unconventional approach to traditional narrative frameworks.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
Eddie Mannix
Baird Whitlock
DeeAnna Moran
Hobie Doyle
Laurence Laurentz
Thora Thacker
Thessaly Thacker
Burt Gurney
Main Cast & Characters
Eddie Mannix
Played by Josh Brolin
Head of physical production at Capitol Pictures, a studio fixer who manages crises and keeps stars in line during Hollywood's Golden Age.
Baird Whitlock
Played by George Clooney
A dim-witted but charming movie star who gets kidnapped while filming the studio's prestige picture "Hail, Caesar!"
DeeAnna Moran
Played by Scarlett Johansson
A pregnant aquatic musical star who needs a husband to avoid scandal in the conservative 1950s.
Hobie Doyle
Played by Alden Ehrenreich
A sincere cowboy actor being forced into prestige pictures despite his limited acting range and thick accent.
Laurence Laurentz
Played by Ralph Fiennes
A pretentious European director struggling to direct Hobie Doyle in a sophisticated drawing room drama.
Thora Thacker
Played by Tilda Swinton
A gossip columnist twin sister who competes with her sister Thessaly for scandalous scoops about movie stars.
Thessaly Thacker
Played by Tilda Swinton
A gossip columnist twin sister who competes with her sister Thora for exclusive Hollywood dirt.
Burt Gurney
Played by Channing Tatum
A Communist screenwriter and member of "The Future" study group who helps orchestrate Baird's kidnapping.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Eddie Mannix kneels in confession at 3 AM, admitting minor sins before heading to Capitol Pictures to fix problems. His life is an endless cycle of managing crises for the studio, showing a man devoted to his work but questioning its meaning.. The analysis reveals that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 11 minutes when Studio star Baird Whitlock disappears from the set of "Hail Caesar." Eddie receives a ransom note from "The Future" demanding $100,000. The studio's biggest production is halted, and its biggest star is missing, creating Eddie's most serious crisis.. At 11% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 24 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 22% of the runtime. This reveals the protagonist's commitment to Eddie decides to handle the kidnapping himself, arranging to pay the ransom from studio petty cash without involving police or studio heads. He commits to solving this problem the way he solves everything - through personal intervention and institutional loyalty., moving from reaction to action.
At 48 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 45% of the runtime—arriving early, accelerating into Act IIb complications. Structural examination shows that this crucial beat Baird, drugged and captive, is swayed by the communist writers' intellectual arguments about the exploitation of Hollywood labor. The kidnappers aren't criminals but ideologues, and Baird seems genuinely converted - raising stakes beyond a simple ransom situation., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 71 minutes (67% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Eddie contemplates accepting the Lockheed job, nearly ready to abandon Hollywood for "respectable" work. His crisis of faith reaches its nadir - after years of fixing problems for an industry that makes "frivolous" entertainment, he questions whether any of it matters., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 76 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 72% of the runtime. Hobie finds Baird and brings him back. Eddie realizes that simple, faithful work - like Hobie's - has its own dignity. He sees that manufacturing meaning (movies) IS meaningful work, that faith doesn't require grand gestures, and that his role as studio protector has value., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Hail, Caesar!'s emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs proven narrative structure principles that track dramatic progression. By mapping Hail, Caesar! against these established plot points, we can identify how Coen Brothers utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Hail, Caesar! within the comedy genre.
Coen Brothers's Structural Approach
Among the 11 Coen Brothers films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 5.1, showcasing experimental approaches to narrative form. Hail, Caesar! takes a more unconventional approach compared to the director's typical style. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Coen Brothers filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional comedy films include The Bad Guys, Ella Enchanted and The Evening Star. For more Coen Brothers analyses, see The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Inside Llewyn Davis and The Big Lebowski.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Eddie Mannix kneels in confession at 3 AM, admitting minor sins before heading to Capitol Pictures to fix problems. His life is an endless cycle of managing crises for the studio, showing a man devoted to his work but questioning its meaning.
Theme
Lockheed representatives pitch Eddie a respectable corporate job, asking "Would that be so terrible?" - presenting the central question of whether his Hollywood work has real value or if he should pursue something more "meaningful."
Worldbuilding
Tour of Capitol Pictures' controlled chaos: Baird Whitlock filming the biblical epic "Hail Caesar," DeeAnna Moran's pregnancy scandal, Hobie Doyle's miscasting in a prestige picture, twin gossip columnists threatening exposés. Eddie orchestrates solutions to each crisis with weary competence.
Disruption
Studio star Baird Whitlock disappears from the set of "Hail Caesar." Eddie receives a ransom note from "The Future" demanding $100,000. The studio's biggest production is halted, and its biggest star is missing, creating Eddie's most serious crisis.
Resistance
Eddie investigates the kidnapping while juggling other problems: covering for Baird's absence, managing DeeAnna's pregnancy, mediating Hobie's struggles with director Laurence Laurentz. He debates how to handle the ransom and whether to involve authorities, all while the Lockheed offer weighs on him.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Eddie decides to handle the kidnapping himself, arranging to pay the ransom from studio petty cash without involving police or studio heads. He commits to solving this problem the way he solves everything - through personal intervention and institutional loyalty.
Mirror World
Hobie Doyle, the sincere cowboy actor struggling with sophisticated dialogue, represents authentic simple faith - a contrast to Eddie's crisis of meaning. Hobie's genuine nature and workmanlike approach to his craft mirror what Eddie needs to rediscover about his own work.
Premise
The "fun" of 1950s Hollywood: elaborate musical numbers, religious consultants debating Christ's divinity for the film-within-a-film, Baird drugged and indoctrinated by communist screenwriters, DeeAnna's pregnancy solution, synchronized swimming spectacles. The absurd machinery of dream-making runs at full tilt.
Midpoint
Baird, drugged and captive, is swayed by the communist writers' intellectual arguments about the exploitation of Hollywood labor. The kidnappers aren't criminals but ideologues, and Baird seems genuinely converted - raising stakes beyond a simple ransom situation.
Opposition
Pressure mounts: the twin columnists close in on multiple scandals, the Lockheed deadline approaches for Eddie's answer, Baird must be found before production collapses entirely, and Eddie's sleep-deprived crisis management becomes increasingly frantic. His faith in the value of his work wavers.
Collapse
Eddie contemplates accepting the Lockheed job, nearly ready to abandon Hollywood for "respectable" work. His crisis of faith reaches its nadir - after years of fixing problems for an industry that makes "frivolous" entertainment, he questions whether any of it matters.
Crisis
Eddie sits in darkness, spiritually exhausted, facing the choice between duty to the studio and escape to corporate respectability. The competing claims on his conscience - faith, work, meaning, loyalty - create paralysis.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Hobie finds Baird and brings him back. Eddie realizes that simple, faithful work - like Hobie's - has its own dignity. He sees that manufacturing meaning (movies) IS meaningful work, that faith doesn't require grand gestures, and that his role as studio protector has value.
Synthesis
Eddie confronts the returned (and now repentant) Baird, slapping sense into him. He rejects the Lockheed offer, recommits to the studio, and resolves all remaining crises with renewed conviction. The communists flee with their ransom; the movies continue. Eddie accepts his calling.
Transformation
Eddie returns to confession, but this time his tone has changed - he's at peace with his work. The same routine that opened the film now carries different meaning. He still fixes Hollywood problems, but he understands that serving the dream factory is itself an act of faith.