House of Hammer Review

The downfall of actor Armie Hammer has dominated the news worldwide ever since some recent serious accusations of abuse were made against the actor. Little did we know, there is a lot more to that story. While not always the easiest watch and will certainly not be for everyone, House of Hammer is an important docuseries that documents those accusations while diving into the dark and troubled history of the Hammer family. An actor on the rise, his career came suddenly crashing down as those disturbing allegations of some truly depraved behavior surfaced but this was merely a continuation of a pattern of behavior which began several generations prior. The docuseries dives deep into the allegations against the actor into disturbing detail as it relates them to the darker history that preceded them. What unfolds is a roller coaster journey over the course of 3+ hours and 3 episodes. As much as it is an expose of real impropriety, the series is also an indictment of class and gender warfare and how it has evolved from the 1970s to the now social media generation. Though those issues aren’t exactly new by any means, it is nonetheless eye-opening as it provides some not so surprising context.

In terms of documentaries, House of Hammer doesn’t necessarily reinvent the wheel. Using interviews with prominent figures in the story of Armie Hammer and the Hammer family, including many victims, alongside archival footage, the series creates an engaging narrative that lets the story and the evidence, be it social media messages, text messages, video, or audio, speak for themselves because they are more than jarring enough. The structure saw the series go up and down the generational tree to chronicle a pattern of bad behavior that started at the top with oil magnate Dr. Armand Hammer, an uber-wealthy capitalist who used his wealth and privilege to his advantage, flaunting both as a means to maintain control and protect his reputation. These tendencies merely trickled down to the other men of the family who didn’t know any better as a life of privilege and little to no accountability was all they ever knew. Meanwhile, those proclivities may be questionable personally but they also led to success in the boardroom to further their own power and influence. Ultimately for a family built on a foundation of wealth and power, that was also what led to their downfall as greed and a lust for power drove them apart.

Armie Hammer was very much an outlier on the surface compared the rest of his family, wanting to make his own way out of their shadow. Having the height and good looks, the actor managed a series of minor roles across television and film until he got his big break in 2010’s The Social Network. Believed to be the next big movie star, Hammer’s next few films were unfortunately box office bombs. A career upswing appeared to be in the cards following 2017’s Call Me By Your Name but that upswing was stalled following the aforementioned string of allegations made against the actor, seemingly revealing a completely different side to say the least. Despite the depravity of his alleged actions, Hammer had a charm to him that was hard to resist as the women he interacted with believed that they could change him. However, that ship had clearly sailed as a pattern of behavior developed reminiscent of the previous men in his family. While many of his known victims have since moved on, some other scars will take to longer to recover from. Besides his career being essentially over, Hammer has faced little to no repercussions. Entering rehab in what looks to be a PR move more than anything else, whether or not it will make a difference remains to be seen though one can’t help but be skeptical considering everything.

At the end of the day, House of Hammer is a chilling watch pulled straight from the headlines that may not be all that surprising but is still an important one as it gives a voice to the silenced. Though the Hammer story is deserving of more, it is still a worthy tale.

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.