Hold the pedestal for ‘Idol’

Mike Heim and Christopher Long’s “Idol” highlights the pitfalls of improvisation and the mockumentary. Its premise is promisingly daffy but would require a Mel Brooks to pull it off.

When the macho star (Matthew Jett Schaefer) of the hit TV series “Espionage” dies in an accident, the network decides to deflect attention from the tragedy and keep the show about a gay spy going by replacing him with an unknown, openly gay actor (Scott Victor Nelson) amid a frenzy of publicity.

This elaborate promotion takes up most of the picture’s 82 minutes. The filmmakers give everyone his or her moments, which means the occasional inspired absurdist line gets buried under an avalanche of increasingly tedious verbiage. (Also nearly buried is what seems to be the film’s surprise twist.) The sporadic appearance of a documentary filmmaker (played by Long) is but a further distraction heightening the impression that the film is but an interminable series of unfunny interviews. The best of the lot is by Samantha Harris, cast as a deceptively friendly TV entertainment reporter who becomes increasingly hostile to Nelson’s likable Kerry Mitchell, insisting that she and all other women will reject him -- and therefore “Espionage” -- because knowing that he’s really gay and not merely playing a gay character will prevent them from fantasizing about him sexually. This is the kind of provocative moment that is all too infrequent in this exceedingly slight endeavor.

“Idol.” MPAA rating: Unrated. Some sexual innuendo. Running time: 1 hour, 22 minutes. Exclusively at the Sunset 5, 8000 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. (323) 848-3500.