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Galen Young wrote:Leaked trailer up for who knows how long.

I'm sorry but really, who the fuck are we kidding? It's going to come out before the election, record time for post, and you think they're going to take the trailer DOWN? No fucking way. They need all the publicity they can get. It's not like someone posted mini-dv footage from a screening of dallies. It's a full trailer with credits! Come on, folks... I thought Blair Witch and all the viral marketing that followed was a long, long time ago...

exte wrote:

Galen Young wrote:Leaked trailer up for who knows how long.

I'm sorry but really, who the fuck are we kidding? It's going to come out before the election, record time for post, and you think they're going to take the trailer DOWN? No fucking way. They need all the publicity they can get. It's not like someone posted mini-dv footage from a screening of dallies. It's a full trailer with credits! Come on, folks... I thought Blair Witch and all the viral marketing that followed was a long, long time ago...

Trailer be gone, homes.

souvenir wrote:Here's another

Hence, viral. They're not stupid, folks...

If anyone caught Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, the approach taken to W.'s character there (that he's basically just a fratboy fuckup with tremendous dad issues) doesn't seem far from what's happening here, except that gag lasts about 5 minutes.

Here's an embedded version on Ain't It Cools News' site.

I dunno, looks interesting to me. If Stone can nail the right satirical tone for this film, it could be a blast.

Oedipax wrote:If anyone caught Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, the approach taken to W.'s character there (that he's basically just a fratboy fuckup with tremendous dad issues) doesn't seem far from what's happening here, except that gag lasts about 5 minutes.

Except that gag will last well into the end of the century, I'm afraid...

Looks like a sophisticated analysis that will likely affect the election results.

I have a feeling, judging by that trailer, that this film just didn't have enough time to settle before being thrust out there. The actors don't reflect their real life counterparts whatsoever (especially Brolin and Cromwell) in either voice or appearance, which suggests rushed casting and an attempt to plant a name actor in each role.

The set design looks cheap and rushed as well, as far as I can tell from the trailer, that is. And from what has leaked of this script so far, yikes. This could be the biggest laughingstock of Stone's career, and actually hurt the democrats in the election.

This is what I don't get; why is he in such a rush to MAKE SURE this gets out before the November election? Bush isn't running for a third term. I have said from the beginning that everything about this seems overly rushed and for no reason. I see no reason why this couldn't be a great film about a tragically flawed character if Stone just gave it some time and really worked on his craft.

aox wrote:Bush isn't running for a third term.

Isn't he?


teaser poster

If this movie is bad, and given Stone's recent career I'm not too optimistic, it can backfire, much like some of the recent moveon.org ads that even had Jon Stewart ridiculing. Stone is basically appointing himself the political representative from Hollywood, but also a wild-card Obama surrogate, an easy target for not just the conservative media, and someone who's undermining Obama's message of looking at the future, not the past.

I'm not saying it will cost the election. Like Moore's 2004 film, this continued simplification of the Bush bio will likely have little effect. However, with weeks before a close election, you probably don't want Obama activists dropping their canvassing and registration efforts to see a movie.

Jeff wrote:

aox wrote:Bush isn't running for a third term.

Isn't he?

So you are suggesting that McCain is the Dmitry Medvedev to Bush's Vladimir Putin?

colinr0380 wrote:So you are suggesting that McCain is the Dmitry Medvedev to Bush's Vladimir Putin?

Not sure if the UK news reports this, but Obama's supporters have been making this point for weeks, if not months.

colinr0380 wrote:So you are suggesting that McCain is the Dmitry Medvedev to Bush's Vladimir Putin?

Some might argue McCain is the Deakins to Bush's Sonnenfeld.

Do you mean McCain = No Country, Bush = Raising Arizona? Isn't it the other way around?

I really like the final posters. It's hard to read at this size, but the tagline is, "A Life Misunderestimated."

Does it annoy anyone else that Josh Brolin doesn't look anything like George W. Bush?

mfunk9786 wrote:Josh Brolin doesn't look anything like George W. Bush

No, but he does look a lot like Dennis Quaid!

no. he's close enough.

Those posters are great; they have a real "it's 2:35 PM on the last day of school" feel to them. If Stone portrays Bush's extreme disinterest in the presidency (and his inherent ennui as a person) like these posters, this thing has a real shot at working. Honestly, that's why the last eight years have been such a debacle: the man at the top doesn't really care about the job, which leaves numerous matters of national importance either a) critically neglected or b) left in the trust of the various hacks, ideologues, and criminals that serve as his "subordinates."

mfunk9786 wrote:Does it annoy anyone else that Josh Brolin doesn't look anything like George W. Bush?

Not really, but what annoys me is that it appeared in the trailer that James Cromwell used his own voice as opposed to trying to imitate George Herbert. Oliver also did this in The Doors. Sure, Kevin Dillon looked a little bit like John Densmore but John never had a thick New Yawk accent either.

swo17 wrote:

mfunk9786 wrote:Josh Brolin doesn't look anything like George W. Bush

No, but he does look a lot like Dennis Quaid!

I thought he was a dead ringer for Nick Nolte in Grindhouse... pretty versatile.

Tom Hagen wrote:Those posters are great; they have a real "it's 2:35 PM on the last day of school" feel to them. If Stone portrays Bush's extreme disinterest in the presidency (and his inherent ennui as a person) like these posters, this thing has a real shot at working. Honestly, that's why the last eight years have been such a debacle: the man at the top doesn't really care about the job, which leaves numerous matters of national importance either a) critically neglected or b) left in the trust of the various hacks, ideologues, and criminals that serve as his "subordinates."

I think the key fact you're missing here isn't so much that Bush doesn't care about the presidency, but that he cares about himself more. Throughout his history running oil companies, baseball teams or whatever, is that they are usually plum roles given to him that pay a lot of money, and allow him to run around using his influence in ways that will make himself and his buddies happy (ie. rich). The only way this film will work is if it taps into Bush's arrogance, rather than his stupidity. There are already enough daily calendars, websites and YouTube videos that document Bush's diminished intelligence. A brave, challenging film will expose the rotten, duplicitous, selfish core that is at the heart of the past eight years. Unfortunately, based on the trailers and posters, it appears Stone is only looking for the most reflexive, tic-worthy portrait rather than anything deeper. He might as well have gotten Mike Myers to play Bush.

Antoine Doinel wrote:The only way this film will work is if it taps into Bush's arrogance, rather than his stupidity.

The posters make it look like they're aiming for both:


..........STUPID.....................ARROGANT.........