SHOOTING STARS; DVDS DVD OF THE WEEK BOBBY (15, pounds 17.99) ***.

Byline: JESSICA MELLOR

The cast list of this dynamic drama reads like a Who's Who of Hollywood. Anthony Hopkins, William H Macy, Laurence Fishburne, Demi Moore, Elijah Wood, Sharon Stone, Christian Slater, Lindsay Lohan, Helen Hunt, Heather Graham, Freddy Rodriguez, Martin Sheen and Harry Belafonte all appear. Oh, and Ashton Kutcher's in it too.

In fact, Kutcher - hamming it up as a hippy - is the only fly in this otherwise effective ointment directed by Emilio Estevez.

The story is based around the dramatic events that unfolded in the Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles on June 4, 1968 when Senator Robert F Kennedy was shot. But this film is all about the people affected by this history-changing event - those staying and working in the hotel, or in Kennedy's entourage.

Macy plays hotel manager Paul Ebbers, who runs a tight ship, but is cheating on his beautician wife Miriam (Stone) with youthful telephone operator Angela (Graham). Ebbers wants all his workers to be given time off to vote in the upcoming presidential elections, but his kitchen manager Timmons (Slater) has other ideas, stating that most are illegal immigrants anyway.

Meanwhile, bride-to-be Diane (Lindsay Lohan) pours her heart out to Miriam, revealing she is marrying high-school pal William (Wood) to save him from having to serve in Vietnam. Retired hotel workers John (Hopkins) and Nelson (Belafonte) reminisce over a game of chess, while sous chef Edward (Fishburne) provides kitchen worker Jose (Rodriguez) with some friendly advice. Rodriguez is enjoyable while Hopkins and Belafonte also bring maturity and humour to the piece - bouncing off each other's witty remarks as if they've been doing so all their lives. But it's Slater and Macy who have the most to do and manage to pull it off with aplomb.

This isn't a particularly emotional tale because the story flits to and from so many different characters and it's hard to bond with any of them. But technically, and as far as the acting goes, Bobby is pretty faultless.

The DVD also includes a making of mini-movie and eyewitness accounts from the Ambassador Hotel.

STAR RATINGS: ***** Must see at all cost **** A+ entertainment *** Average ** Poor * Save your money

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WEDDING: Wood and Lohan; HISTORY IN THE MAKING: Bobby features a huge ensemble cast