August
19Stars Still Having Fun in Their Playpen
Carrying a big-budget picture can be a heavy burden for a top star, so more superstars have been taking on supporting roles that seem to be more fun than work.
Brad Pitt seems to relish his small role as a bird-brained, loopy gym instructor in the Coen brothers’ new film, “Burn After Reading.” He crosses paths with a government bureaucrat – a paranoid, sex-crazed treasury agent played by, of all people, George Clooney, also a ditzy minor character.
Both stars clearly love participating in the in-jokes of a dark Coen brothers’ farce and both, inevitably, are guilty of occasionally overacting in their playpen. The same can be said for Robert Downey Jr., who donned blackface make-up for his supporting role in “Tropic Thunder.” Then there’s Tom Cruise playing the bald, chubby, trash-talking studio chief, also in the Ben Stiller faux war movie.
Speaking of Tom Terrific, it’s also becoming clear that he’s serious about assuming his responsibilities as the real studio chief at United Artists. Having participated in the firing of his long term partner, Paula Wagner, and flirting with a number of star roles now in development at other studios, some insiders were assuming that Cruise would abandon his UA initiatives and become a full-time actor again.
But Cruise in fact seems to be enjoying his expanded studio responsibilities at UA (he’s also a co-owner), feeling it represents an intriguing turn in his career.
In any case, these activities appear to be a lot more fun than carrying a mega-budget tentpole movie, with its responsibilities for worldwide promotion and publicity – and its potential for serious career damage.
Both the Cruise and Pitt tentpoles nervously switched release dates in the last few days as their distributors gear up for their major promotional pushes. Cruise’s Nazi epic, “Valkyrie,” already has taken more flak than most films because of prior date shifts and random production rumors. Pitt’s film, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” is now opening on an already crowded Christmas Day, only one day away from the blast-off of “Valkyrie.”
There’s a lot riding on both pictures, which together represent at least $300 million in production costs and perhaps another $300 million in marketing and distribution costs.
That’s a lot to worry about. And that’s also why it’s a lot more fun playing crazed studio chiefs and loopy gym instructors.
Life is a lot easier in the playpen than on the firing line.
Brad Pitt seems to relish his small role as a bird-brained, loopy gym instructor in the Coen brothers’ new film, “Burn After Reading.” He crosses paths with a government bureaucrat – a paranoid, sex-crazed treasury agent played by, of all people, George Clooney, also a ditzy minor character.Both stars clearly love participating in the in-jokes of a dark Coen brothers’ farce and both, inevitably, are guilty of occasionally overacting in their playpen. The same can be said for Robert Downey Jr., who donned blackface make-up for his supporting role in “Tropic Thunder.” Then there’s Tom Cruise playing the bald, chubby, trash-talking studio chief, also in the Ben Stiller faux war movie.
Speaking of Tom Terrific, it’s also becoming clear that he’s serious about assuming his responsibilities as the real studio chief at United Artists. Having participated in the firing of his long term partner, Paula Wagner, and flirting with a number of star roles now in development at other studios, some insiders were assuming that Cruise would abandon his UA initiatives and become a full-time actor again.
But Cruise in fact seems to be enjoying his expanded studio responsibilities at UA (he’s also a co-owner), feeling it represents an intriguing turn in his career.In any case, these activities appear to be a lot more fun than carrying a mega-budget tentpole movie, with its responsibilities for worldwide promotion and publicity – and its potential for serious career damage.
Both the Cruise and Pitt tentpoles nervously switched release dates in the last few days as their distributors gear up for their major promotional pushes. Cruise’s Nazi epic, “Valkyrie,” already has taken more flak than most films because of prior date shifts and random production rumors. Pitt’s film, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” is now opening on an already crowded Christmas Day, only one day away from the blast-off of “Valkyrie.”
There’s a lot riding on both pictures, which together represent at least $300 million in production costs and perhaps another $300 million in marketing and distribution costs.
That’s a lot to worry about. And that’s also why it’s a lot more fun playing crazed studio chiefs and loopy gym instructors.
Life is a lot easier in the playpen than on the firing line.
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hEY, i TOO was excited to want to watch a trailer of brad pitt and george clooney in a movie. But.......Hmmmm. do I dare say my opinion here?
Posted by: FUDRUCKER | 8/25/2008 6:22:18 PM
Thanks for spoiling part of 'Burn After Reading', man... *Moderator Edited comment to remove plot detail (that was also removed from blog).*
Posted by: Scott | 8/19/2008 7:19:17 PM
Gee, thanks a lot for spoiling a key plot point Peter, a MONTH BEFORE THE FILM IS RELEASED. Classy.
Posted by: toby | 8/19/2008 7:18:45 PM