Screen Junkies » bennett miller

Steve Carell To Join ‘Moneyball’ Director, Murder A Wrestler In ‘Foxcatcher’

Wookie Johnson — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 14:30:04 +0000

Steve Carell is teaming up with Moneyball director Bennett Miller for the drama Foxcatcher. Based on a true story, Carell will play John du Pont, a multimillionaire whose hobbies include birdwatching, stamp collecting, and being a paranoid schizophrenic. He’s also a big wrestling fan and builds a training facility, called Team Foxcatcher, on the grounds of his estate. He then murders his long-time friend and Olympic wrestling champ under the belief that the combatant was part of an international conspiracy to kill him.

There’s no word yet on casting the ill-fated wrestler David Schultz, but he does strike a remarkable resemblance to John C. Reilly. If I thought it were safe to put he and Carell in a film together without it devolving into silly voices, I’d say he’s perfect for the part. But alas. Just get the Rock. (Variety)

New ‘Moneyball’ Trailer Says “Take That, Baseball Traditionalists!”

Penn Collins — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 21:54:33 +0000

If you want to see some hopelessly pragmatic academics upset a bunch of baseball traditionalists by ripping out the heart, soul, and tradition of the game, then Moneyball is the film for you. Starring Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman (who actually looks like a retired baseball player), Moneyball is the story of the Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane who took a scientific approach to assembling a winning team on a budget. Sort of like Major League if the team had been assembled by MIT grads instead of scruffy Lou Brown.

The trailer does an abrupt heel-turn, going from slapstick to Friday Night Lights-style inspiration. So when you watch this trailer, start by giggling incessantly, but by the end, you’ll have a thousand-yard stare and a solitary tear running down your face. At least I did.

Pitt Out To Prove There Can Be Math, And Crying, In Baseball

Col. Longshanks — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 17:30:14 +0000

Sony has dropped the trailer for Bennett Miller‘s Moneyball. Based on the book by Michael Lewis, Brad Pitt plays Billy Beane, who, with the help on Paul De Podesta (Jonah Hill), used fancy mathematics to help the Oakland A’s not suck. Philip Seymour Hoffman makes an appearance in the trailer as A’s coach Art Howe, but he doesn’t say a damn thing. Was Art Howe a mute, or did he just employ a controversial coaching method?

The film looks like it has all the makings of a sports underdog story. There is laughter, tears, guys being chummy, chairs being thrown, and a slow-motion home run hit. Pitt handles all of these things well, except the homer. He leaves that to the guys with less attractive features.