Tue, June 3, 2008
Burn After Reading Trailer Looks like this might deliver what I had expected from Raising Arizona. (And if so, I think the larger ensemble is the key.)
THE LATEST FROM POOP READING:
Where Do the Lions Go From Here?
Clint Eastwood: What I've Learned
Resuscitation: A Q&A With the Creator of Scrubs
More, more, more at poopreading.com
© onebee · all rights reserved
Joe Mulder — Tue, 6/3/08 1:16pm
Also, looks like somebody (other than those responsible for "12 Monkeys" and "True Romance") finally figured out how to use Brad Pitt.
Bee Boy — Tue, 6/3/08 2:46pm
Excellent point, though I have to give some credit to Doug Liman and the makers of Mr. & Mrs. Smith.
Joe Mulder — Tue, 6/3/08 3:10pm
I have nothing against that movie, but I think a lot of people could have played that part and the movie would have been fine. Or at least serviceable.
I've gotten over-excited about trailers before, but, BURN AFTER READING looks like one of those situations where they must have been like, "Boy, thank God Brad Pitt exists, or else we couldn't even have begun to think about making this movie."
Bee Boy — Tue, 6/3/08 4:47pm
Okay, who?
I'm sure you're right, but I do think it was a nice use of his ability to do understated comic/ironic moments and his ability to be a hunky guy like the type you expect to see in an action movie. Others might have been able to pull it off as well or almost as well, but as far as someone finding a way to use Brad Pitt – of course it isn't 12 Monkeys, but it's pretty decent.
Brandon — Wed, 6/4/08 1:26am
Between this and Step Brothers, everything is coming up Brandon... between July 25th and September 12th. Woo-hoo!
"Mike" — Wed, 6/4/08 11:36am
To the glorious Bee Boy's question, George Clooney and Matt Damon could've done Mr. and Mrs. Smith well...though I still like the casting of Pitt the best.
Also, Fred Schneider of the B-52's.
Bee Boy — Wed, 6/4/08 12:06pm
Ha ha! (For you hate-filled partisans who don't keep current on The Daily Show, Schneider dropped by Monday night to read excerpts from Scott McClellan's book – accompanied by the karaoke track from "Love Shack" – in an attempt to perk up McClellan's dreary audiobook performance.) I'm not sure which was sadder, The Daily Show calling on Schneider to fill time with this pointless bit, or Schneider's resigned compliance.
I figured someone would say Damon, but Damon comes up to, what, Angelina's navel? I agree: it'd be okay, but Pitt was better. Clooney has never been a fast-paced action guy in my view. The Peacemaker? Decades ago. Sure his car blew up in Michael Clayton, but it's not like he was running top speed at the time.
For the purposes of preventing the Brangelina tabloidsplosion, I say cast anyone else. Roger Moore, Charles Durning, DJ Qualls. But Mr. & Mrs. Smith was a pretty awesome movie. If Brangelina is the price we have to pay, so far I think it's a push.
"Mike" — Wed, 6/4/08 2:15pm
Oh, I disagree about Schneider. I think everything is funnier when read in the voice of Fred Schneider. A few years back, it was a fun game I'd often play in the car with folks who had the misfortune of traveling with me. Singing "Everybody Hurts" or "Doll Parts" in Schneider-ese is always funny. In fact, I'm pretty sure I invented this game and "The Daily Show" owes me money! So, I suppose, by my own logic, I owe Jameson an apology.
As for Damon being a shortie, he seemed fine with Angelina in "The Good Shepard," though they weren't beating each other up with vases and kitchen utensils in that one.
Joe Mulder — Wed, 6/4/08 2:25pm
It should be noted that IMDb has Angelina at 5'8" and Matt Damon at 5'10".
I must first of all stipulate to the fact that although MR. & MRS. SMITH didn't knock my socks all the way off it was certainly an enjoyable movie, and if they could get Brad Pitt for it (his presence in the movie should indicate that indeed they could) they would have been crazy not to cast him because he's a gigantic movie star. And a really, really good actor.
I would also stipulate that MR. & MRS. SMITH almost certainly wouldn't have been as big a hit without Brad Pitt.
But from a standpoint that would take into account movie goodness and nothing else, I submit that the quality of MR. & MRS. SMITH would have been largely unaffected if Brad Pitt's part has been played by, say, Affleck, Christian Bale, Eric Bana, Antonio Banderas, Gerard Butler, Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, Aaron Eckhart, Colin Ferrell, Ethan Hawke, Jude Law, Marky Mark (5'8" 1/2, if you're wondering), Ewan McGregor, Viggo Mortensen, Clive Owen, Sean Penn, Joaquin Phoenix, The Rock, Will Smith or Luke Wilson, to name a few.
I'm not saying all those guys are as good as Brad Pitt, and arguably none (except for Will Smith) are bigger stars, but, I contend that MR. & MRS. SMITH would have been fine with any of them.
Whereas I think we can all agree that as great as the Coen Brothers are and as great at the rest of the cast is, watching BURN BEFORE READING without Brad Pitt would be like watching GOOD LUCK CHUCK while getting kicked in the nuts by Pol Pot.
Also, some quiz team friends and I decided in college that it would be fun to do an entire quiz meet answering every question as Fred Schneider (although maybe I did get the idea from Wagner). We never went through with it, although two things arose out of the discussion:
1) my friend Big Joe did the best Fred Schneider impression of of any of us, by far, and
2) the funniest quiz question answer you could possibly give in a Fred Schneider voice is "Ambrose Bierce."
Bee Boy — Wed, 6/4/08 4:03pm
Oh, sure, bring facts into it. I'll be the judge of what should and should not be noted, thank you very much. It should be noted that women wear heels. And – by my rough estimate – Angelina's are about 8"-14" on average.
The role is certainly somewhat interchangeable in terms of box office viability. For the banter I fell in love with, Clooney could've pulled it off but the action would've been flat. Clive Owen is probably the best contender on your list (again, not financial success; this is the Bee Boy Quotient – not your list's fault). Most of the other guys would've failed in the non-action scenes, which, for me, made Mr. & Mrs. Smith stand out. Obviously, most movies are not made with the Bee Boy Quotient in mind – the rest of you might get bored with Amy Adams as Maggie Haskins in Pixar's "The Kristin Gore Story" – but since no one asked, that's my take on it.
My issue with the Schneider bit was his attempt to twist every excerpt into the rhythm and cadence of "Love Shack." I don't know whether this was Schneider's call or a decision by The Daily Show (but if it was Mike's idea, then I've got a knuckle sandwich waiting for you).
Joe Mulder — Wed, 6/4/08 4:42pm
It should be noted that I rule.
Bee Boy — Wed, 6/4/08 4:54pm
Don't anybody dare note that!
"Mike" — Wed, 6/4/08 7:14pm
Ahh, it was the twisting the cadence "Love Shack"-style. I see. That would be annoying. It's much funnier when the Schneider voice is done to the rhythm of the song in question. Sigh, a missed opportunity on "The Daily Show."
I'd like to note that Joe rules.