"Hollywoodland" is an intriguing place to visit, but you wouldn't want to live there. In fact, people who live there often wind up dead or wishing they were.

The compelling new film "Hollywoodland" fosters such a cynical perspective. It focuses on the 1959 death of George Reeves, the "Superman" television series' Man of Steel. Officially his demise has always been listed as suicide, but the film proposes that it could have been murder. There's no shortage of suspects, as the hapless Reeves dwelled in a glittering human zoo of cool-headed tigresses, soft-spoken serpents and roaring dinosaurs.

Director Allen Coulter and screenwriter Paul Bernbaum have problems balancing the story's multiple story lines. However, they've created a trio of intriguing lead characters, and the star triumvirate of Adrien Brody, Diane Lane and Ben Affleck responds with haunting performances.

Lane, whose career started when she was a radiant 14-year-old in 1979's "A Little Romance," gives a performance unlike anything she's done before. She captures each layer of Toni Mannix, fire-and-ice wife of studio executive Eddie Mannix (Bob Hoskins).

Eddie Mannix openly flaunts a mistress, while younger wife Toni keeps Reeves (Affleck) in comfort during his lean years. Lane skillfully makes the transition from hungry female vulture to wounded, despondent sparrow, making her character as much victim as predator.

Considering Reeves' fate, his vulnerability is more apparent than Toni Mannix's. Affleck's thoughtful performance reflects the despair of a natural-born charmer who discovers that charm isn't enough to reach Hollywood's heights. Those who insist that Reeves' rise and fall mirrors Affleck's career trajectory are entitled to their opinions, but "Hollywoodland" is definitely an upward step.

Affleck's Reeves appears in flashbacks, since the story is seen largely through the eyes of gumshoe Louis Simo (Brody). A downtrodden private eye, Simo is hired by Reeves' mother to investigate the case. Reeves' death has devastated Simo's young son, reflecting how the news of Superman's suicide horrified America's youth.

Always an inventive actor, Brody invests Simo's sleazy opportunism with both desperation and a well-hidden concern for right and wrong.

Unfortunately, Bernbaum's screenplay wobbles when attempting to draw parallels between Simo's and Reeves' lives. As written and directed, those scenes are the movie's most pretentious. The screenplay knowingly raises questions about Reeves' demise without fully answering them, which may irritate some viewers.

Otherwise, director Coulter, making his feature debut after working successfully on "The Sopranos" and "Sex and the City," reveals a strong visual flair and an actor-friendly rapport with his cast.

Among the supporting players, the blustering Hoskins makes us wonder if there's any difference between a studio chief and a gangland czar. Robin Tunney shimmers as Reeves' sycophantic post-Toni fiancee, who wishes Superman would get her on more A-lists. Expert character actress Lois Smith delivers strongly as Reeves' mother, who may have more on her mind than maternal grief.

"Hollywoodland" is filled with dazzling ingredients that never fully congeal. The sparks don't always connect. Nevertheless, they do sparkle.