Confessions of a Dangerous Mind was better than I expected. What do you think about Clooney's direction and do you think he should direct again?
Um, I thought this was supposed to be the director's forum...
I have not seen Confessions yet...but one thing about this guy. I respect him as an actor, and love the idea of him directing. Lame in my ideas, I like him mostly for no other reason than he makes tons of 20's, 30's, 40's, 50's , and etc. aged women mushy in their panties. He has yet to settle down with a girl, and even won a bet with some fine hunny co-stars....I envy him like no other, and he seems to keep his cool...reguardless of the few lame movies he as been in. Shit, I even liked One Fine Day.
Clooney is sweet for no other reason than Out of Sight...as that has me sold on him. I would like to see Confessions as well as more of what he brings to the table....
I was also took by surprise with Confessions...I expected an average "actor turned director" film, with no visual style and just good acting. But I'm impressed, actually, specially with the dark humor in the film, I laughed a lot.
The film is really entertaining and has a kind of social commentary about America, which is pretty cynical and smart. I don't understand the criticisms agains the visual style of the movie. What's wrong with cool camera takes if they help to tell the story?? It's more entertaining than just seting up the camera and roll, right???
And the "I can't help falling in love with you sequence" is fucking brilliant.
The problem here was that the visuals didn't help to tell the story, they were a distraction. They were totally at odds with the tone of the material and the comic timing of the writing.
Quote from: mutinycoThe problem here was that the visuals didn't help to tell the story, they were a distraction. They were totally at odds with the tone of the material and the comic timing of the writing.
I didn't felt that at all. And the people in the theatre were so receptive to the film's comedy and visual style that I was surprised by that also, since most of them seemed to be george clooney and julia roberts fans who just picked the film because of it's stars...
But why do you think that the visuals are at odds with the tone???? what's so dispar about them???
I think Confessions was a good film. Visually great, fantastic performances but suffered from a bad final act. I mean, I think the last 20-or-so minutes of the film weren't nearly as great as the rest. Still, it was great for a first time director.
QuoteBut I'm impressed, actually, specially with the dark humor in the film, I laughed a lot.
It didn't really surprise that much. If you read any interviews with Clooney you'll know he has a great sense of humour. Also, the script was Charlie Kaufman's... :)
I think the movie would've been better served with a naturalistic tone. That's the trick -- when shooting absurd material, especially material purported be be "true", it works better to play it straight. Spike Jonze gets it, so did Kubrick. Clooney shot it like a music video, and I never bought anything that was happening in it. I kept watching it feeling that the timing of the script was at odds with the timing of the direction and editing. There were beats that seemed so obvious to hit that it was missing. Just basic comic timing that's inherent to successful film comedies. Knowing how long to hold a moment, knowing how to build a punchline, etc. Just wasn't there. It never gelled.
He directed one movie and it's got two threads already...
http://www.xixax.com/viewtopic.php?t=260&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=confessions+dangerous+mind&start=0
and
http://www.xixax.com/viewtopic.php?t=1041&highlight=george+clooney
Quote from: mutinycolike a music video
as good or as bad as it may be...I think a lot of the general movie going public want to see this kinda stuff, so it makes money. Granted I am not able to give a valid opinion on Confessions, but I just mean in general.
Look at something like The Cell...it did pretty well and liked by a lot.
....But, don't even get me started on how believable JLo is as any character havin' a doctrine in anything.
Are Clooney and Soderbergh still in business together?
Yeah, it's called Section 8. They're doing Ocean's 12 now.
But truthfully, if there's such an audience, why was Confessions such a flop?
Quote from: RegularKarateHe directed one movie and it's got two threads already...
Richard Kelly has about eight threads.
Quote from: mutinycoBut truthfully, if there's such an audience, why was Confessions such a flop?
I just ment along the lines of...a lot of people have pretty short attention spans. And enjoy fast-paced, music-video type eye candy. Versus, say a long 3 1/2 hour Magnolia type. ya know? I haven't seen Confessions, so I dunno if this is the case here. Sorry for strayin' from subject, but thou I enjoy some music video style films, it kinda gets under my skin when it's replacing things like good dialogue, content, development. It's just sounded like that's what you didn't like about Confessions.
I thought Clooney's direction was the best part of this movie. I understand what mutinyco is saying, but I disagree with it. I think Jonze is the filmmaker of the two hindering the material while Clooney is giving it its just deserves.
Jonze goes about it wrong in that he brings up all the performances to weirdness. He shoots the scripts straight, but shooting straight never fully helps and if their is weaknesses in the writing, as is definitely with both Jonze films, the lack of invention on the director's part only makes those weaknesses more sore. Both Being John Malkovich and Adaptation are pretty poor scripts in trying to ride feature length movies based on a few cute ideas and bragging about them. With Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, a better script, the comedic aspect of the film is raised because the performances are much more natural and believable while the directing identifies the movie as comedic in its continuous invention of situation upon situation scene as an act of comedy. The performances don't give away the obvious because they could easily be hammed, but the situations are so absurd that they really can't be taken serious. A masterful comedic film did this back in 60s, "How I Won the War", in that it saw the material as stupidity but played it with a tone of unfunny in the performances and kept continuously being inventive in the same tone through out the movie. No one shot or sequence really felt like a repeat, but the tone was the same through out that you felt nothing was out of place and it came from the same idea of thought in concept.
Clooney directs the film as a comedy, but doesn't dress the performances as merely parody. It gave believability to the characters while addressing their situation as comedy in an absurd story and finding an odd, but effective tone it in all.
~rougerum
once again, you make absolutely no sense sometimes... not just your frenzy of disconnected thoughts, but your inconsistent new opinions on films.
Sometimes I do write poor and I'll be the first to admit it. I read that over again and it reads perfectly for me.
~rougerum
No, I understood the post, your opinion doesn't make any sense.
Then say why. I can't do anything with a statement.
~rougerum
Tastes will always collide, but I don't think his direction should be put down because it's "not the way this type of story should be directed." He had the fortunate position of being the director, so he could execute whatever type of visual style he pleased. I think he made a lot of interesting choices, and there's not one moment where I want to bash him for being "too flashy" or anything like that. He did what he needed to, which was succesfully translate the script to screen. And I applaud that.
Quote from: meatballTastes will always collide, but I don't think his direction should be put down because it's "not the way this type of story should be directed." He had the fortunate position of being the director, so he could execute whatever type of visual style he pleased. I think he made a lot of interesting choices, and there's not one moment where I want to bash him for being "too flashy" or anything like that. He did what he needed to, which was succesfully translate the script to screen. And I applaud that.
that pretty much sums it up for me too..i hate criticisms of "too flashy", i hate that...i like flashy movies......
George Clooney Helming Leatherheads
Source: Variety
Universal Pictures has set George Clooney to direct and star in football film Leatherhead. Renée Zellweger is in talks to co-star in the romantic comedy set against the backdrop of pro football's formation in the 1920s.
Clooney is rewriting the script and will begin production in early spring. His Smoke House Productions partner Grant Heslov will produce with Casey Silver.
The film has had several incarnations over the years. The original premise revolved around an aging football player who coaxes a college star to drop out and try his luck in a new professional league.
Clooney was once close to starring in it for former Section Eight partner Steven Soderbergh; they expected to make it their follow-up to Universal's Out of Sight.
Double play for Clooney at Warners
Source: Hollywood Reporter
George Clooney will earn his stripes with the Warner Bros. family. The actor-director-producer has signed on to two high-profile projects with Warner Bros. Pictures and Warner Independent Pictures.
First, Clooney is set to star in and produce "White Jazz," an adaptation of a James Ellroy novel, for WIP. He then will reteam with his "Ocean's Eleven" producer Jerry Weintraub to direct the heist movie "Belmont Boys" for Warners.
"Jazz," which Clooney will produce with his Smokehouse producing partner Grant Heslov, will be directed by Joe Carnahan from a script by his brother Matthew Carnahan ("The Kingdom"). "Jazz" is the last volume of what is known as Ellroy's "L.A. quartet" of crime novels, which includes "L.A. Confidential," "The Big Nowhere" and "The Black Dahlia."
In "Jazz," Clooney will star as a corrupt police lieutenant assigned to a potentially explosive case for the Los Angeles Police Department during a time when the department is under investigation for corruption.
Patrick Cheh, Diane Nabatoff, Clark Peterson and Michelle Grace will produce the project.
"Jazz" is a Cherry Road co-production, with the company financing the development of the project. Bo Hyde and Kendall Morgan Rhodes of Cherry Road will serve as executive producers. Paul Federbush will oversee the project for WIP.
WIP is looking for an early 2008 start date.
"Belmont Boys," written by "Ocean's Thirteen" writers Brian Koppelman and David Levien, is the name of a group of seven thieves who meet as railbirds at the racetrack in the old days and almost pull off the job of a lifetime. Now, 30 years later, they are thrown back together to finish what they started.
The film will take place in the U.S. and locations throughout Europe, with Clooney and Weintraub already in discussions with seven major actors for the lead roles.
Weintraub said the movie will not be an "Ocean's" retread and that the actors will be much older, "though all big stars."
Kevin McCormick will oversee "Boys" for Warners.
Clooney's calendar is all tied up through 2008. He is set to star in Joel and Ethan Coen's upcoming film, "Burn After Reading," for Focus Features after he helms "Leatherheads," a football movie he is directing and starring in for Universal Pictures. Shooting for "Leatherheads" is to start in the spring, and Clooney's producing partner Heslov is producing via Smokehouse along with Casey Silver.
Clooney will move on to "Jazz" in early 2008 before tackling "Boys" at the end of that year.
The CAA-repped Clooney made his directorial debut in 2002 with "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" and earned an Oscar nomination last year for best director for "Good Night, and Good Luck." He won the best supporting actor Oscar in 2006 for "Syriana."
"George deserves to be busy," Weintraub said. "He's a good guy. He's my dear friend and a great artist."
Clooney, Heslov visit 'Tehran'
CIA tale's up in Smoke
Source: Variety
George Clooney and his Smoke House partner Grant Heslov will co-write a dramedy for Warner Bros. Pictures detailing how the CIA, with help from Hollywood, used a fake movie project to smuggle a handful of Americans out of Tehran during the 1979 hostage crisis.
Warners has snapped up the film rights to Joshuah Berman's Wired magazine article on the real-life intelligence tale and set it up with Smoke House to produce.
As with any Smoke House project, "Escape From Tehran" is a potential directing and starring vehicle for Clooney.
Project is the first Heslov and Clooney have penned together since 2005's "Good Night, and Good Luck."
Berman's article in the current issue of Wired centers around CIA operative Tony Mendez, a master of disguise who was put in charge of rescuing six Americans hiding out in Tehran. He came up with the idea of using a bogus movie and contacted Hollywood makeup artist John Chambers.
Chambers and Bob Sidell, also a makeup artist, launched Studio Six Prods. (an allusion to the six Americans awaiting rescue) and announced their first movie project, to be shot in Iran. Both Variety and the Hollywood Reporter were duped into writing news stories on the film after Studio Six took out trade ads.
Mendez went to Tehran in January 1980 and told the Americans to pretend they were Canadians on a scouting trip for a big-budget Hollywood epic. The ruse worked.
Smokehouse VP Nina Wolarsky brought in "Escape." David Klawans ("Nacho Libre") is attached to produce.
UTA repped the magazine article.
Heslov and Clooney launched the Warners-based Smoke House last year after Clooney parted ways with former partner Steven Soderbergh.
Clooney is currently directing and starring in the 1920s sports pic "Leatherheads," which Smoke House is producing for Universal.
WB votes DiCaprio for 'Farragut'
Clooney eyeing stage adaptation as director
Source: Variety
Warner Bros. is developing a screen version of Beau Willimon's play "Farragut North," with Leonardo DiCaprio attached to star and George Clooney eyeing the project as director.
DiCaprio's Appian Way will produce with Clooney and Grant Heslov's Smoke House shingle.
Willimon is writing the script. Appian Way and Smoke House both sparked to the play after reading it, and a marriage was made at WB, where both Smokehouse and Appian Way have first-look deals. It is unclear yet whether Clooney will have an onscreen role.
Protag is a young communications director for a fast-rising presidential candidate. During the course of the campaign, the idealistic young man falls prey to the backstabbing and other dirty trickery of seasoned rivals.
The play is headed for Broadway next year, with Mike Nichols reportedly in line to direct Jake Gyllenhaal in the thesp's Broadway debut.
Willimon worked for Howard Dean's 2004 presidential run, an experience that informed the play. While "Farragut North" has yet to be seen, the script has been circulating around Hollywood, leading to a quick transition to screenwriting for Willimon.
Aside from the WB pic adaptation, Willimon was tapped last week by director Marc Forster to adapt the 2002 British miniseries "The Jury" into a feature for Fox 2000. The director sought out the writer after reading "Farragut."
Timing of the screen version of the play hasn't been determined.
DiCaprio just finished starring with Kate Winslet in the Sam Mendes-directed "Revolutionary Road" for DreamWorks, and he's currently at work starring with Russell Crowe in the Ridley Scott-directed "Body of Lies" for WB.
Clooney and Heslov are completing "Leatherheads," the 1920s gridiron comedy that Clooney directed for Universal. The film recently got pushed to an April 4 release date after Clooney asked for more time because of his recent motorcycle accident. He's finishing post-production on that film and starring with Brad Pitt in the Coen brothers-directed "Burn After Reading."
I mentioned watching Clooney on Letterman and my boss overheard me and she goes "he's so politically incorrect. handsome but politcally incorrect." She dont know shiz, that's why I run her business.
then she started coughing/choking and my friend and I snickered.
and she's my mom.
Aaron Sorkin set for WB's 'Challenge'
George Clooney's Smokehouse to produce
Source: Variety
Warner Bros. has set Aaron Sorkin to write "The Challenge," a courtroom drama for George Clooney's Smokehouse shingle.
Clooney is producing with Smoke House partner Grant Heslov. Clooney may direct and hopes to play Navy lawyer Charles Swift in the drama about the effort by Swift and Georgetown U. law professor Neal Katyal to ensure a fair trial for Osama bin Laden's driver, Salim Hamdan, who'd been held at Guantanamo Bay for five years.
WB and Smokehouse got started on the project over the summer by optioning Jonathan Mahler book "The Challenge: Hamdan v. Rumsfeld and the Fight Over Presidential Power".
The courtroom drama wouldn't debate Hamdan's guilt or innocence but chart the dogged efforts of the two lawyers who sue the president because they feel the U.S. government has broken the law and violated the Constitution.
Captured in 2001 in Afghanistan while transporting two missiles in a car, Hamdan was ultimately convicted and sentenced to 5½ years by a military commission for providing material support to Al-Qaeda. He was cleared of the terrorism conspiracy charges that would have drawn a much longer sentence.
Sorkin, who most recently penned "Charlie Wilson's War," is working on a film about the formation of the social network Facebook. He's also prepping for production on DreamWorks pic "The Trial of the Chicago 7," to be directed by Ben Stiller.
Ryan Gosling in talks for 'Farragut North'
Political drama co-written, to be directed by George Clooney
Source: THR
Ryan Gosling is in negotiations to step into the shoes of Leonardo DiCaprio in "Farragut North," the political drama George Clooney co-wrote and is directing and producing via his Smoke House shingle.
The project is based on a play by Beau Willimon and originally got set up in 2007 with DiCaprio attached to star. A reading that summer involved Jake Gyllenhaal.
Titled after the Washington Metro station that is located near many lobbyists' offices, the movie is based on a play which in turn is loosely based on Howard Dean's 2004 presidential election campaign, during which Willimon worked for the Democrat.
The story follows a young, idealistic communications director who works for an inspiring, though unorthodox, presidential candidate. During the campaign, his career is done in by more seasoned politicos who thrive on poisonous partisan politics, dirty tricks and back-stabbing.
Clooney, producing with his Smoke House partner Grant Heslov, is now independently financing the drama.
Gosling, repped by IFA, is currently shooting a rare foray into action fare with "Drive" and is generating awards buzz with "Blue Valentine," which the Weinstein Co. will open in late December.
Gosling's involvement was first reported by Deadline.