I never imagined Billy Zane as Marlon Brando, but holy shit, he looks and sounds just like him. If Hollywood ever got reckless enough to remake The Godfather, Don Vito is already cast. Zane’s performance is so eerily convincing that his recreations of Brando’s most iconic moments dazzle in a way that makes you want to watch them side by side with the originals. He’s genuinely incredible here and absolutely the reason I’d tell you to see this movie on release day, even if you have no interest in the story.
Directed by Bill Fishman and adapted from Bernard Judge’s memoir Waltzing with Brando: Planning a Paradise in Tahiti, the film follows five years in the life of Judge (played by Jon Heder). An ordinary Los Angeles architect, Judge gets pulled into Brando’s eccentric vision: building the world’s first sustainable paradise on the Tahitian atoll of Tetiaroa. What begins as a fish-out-of-water tale, “city architect meets eccentric movie star,” morphs into a fever-dream about friendship, chasing impossible dreams, and trying to bend nature (and finances) to human will.
Shot on location in Tahiti, the film has an authenticity that is both lush and surreal, at times reminding me of Bruce Robinson’s The Rum Diary. There is something deeply satisfying about watching Brando swim with sharks just because, or seeing Richard Dreyfuss as Brando’s money manager slowly unravel while everyone else just vibes in paradise. Tinalei Mahuta’s vocals lend a magnetic touch to the soundtrack, and there are flashes of charm scattered throughout.
But here’s the problem: everything outside of Zane and the makeup department feels half-baked. The narration, lifted from Judge’s memoir, constantly breaks the fourth wall and undercuts the drama. Instead of letting us sink into the story, it reminds us we are listening to someone explain it. The emotions feel undercooked, and the film loses steam about an hour in. At 104 minutes, it somehow feels too long for what it is.
Heder, best known as Napoleon Dynamite, does what he can with Judge, playing him as an everyman thrust into madness, but the voiceover-heavy framing makes his performance oddly passive. And yes, in case you’re wondering, you really do get to see Napoleon Dynamite naked. It is a moment ripped straight from Judge’s memoir, where Brando and Judge strip down and dive into Tahitian waters. Heder joked in our interview that by the time they filmed it, he was “full-on Bernard,” but it still catches you off guard.
The supporting cast has mixed results. Tia Carrere, once a magnetic presence in Wayne’s World, feels awkwardly misused here, and Heder himself looks distractingly odd under heavy spray tan at times. The film is also unevenly paced and bogged down by clunky narration that doesn’t add much.
There is undeniably an interesting story here. Brando’s ecological idealism was ahead of its time, and the clash between his boundless dreams and Judge’s grounded pragmatism could have made for a sharp character study. Instead, what we get is a film that is predictable, strangely edited, and ultimately more interested in mythologizing Brando than in telling Judge’s story.
Still, Zane makes the ride worthwhile. His Brando is a revelation, uncanny, charming, and layered enough that you almost forget you are watching an impersonation. When he slips into Don Vito’s gravelly cadence, it is as though Brando himself has stepped back into frame. For that alone, Waltzing with Brando is worth a look. But do not be surprised if you leave the theater wishing the rest of the movie had lived up to the brilliance of its lead.
Jessie Hobson