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Oliver Stone's Bush Biopic a Comedy?

By SYANTANI CHATTERJEE, Reuters
Posted: 2008-05-09 13:10:02
Filed Under: Movie News
LOS ANGELES (May 8) - "W" may not be Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone's first political biopic or even his first controversial film, but it may be his first comedy.

Stone, who has made movies of past presidents including Richard M. Nixon, is now shooting "W," about President George W. Bush's life, and the film has already stirred up controversy in Hollywood for what Stone may -- or may not -- say.

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In a sneak peek of Oliver Stone's 'W' movie, Entertainment Weekly has the first look at Josh Brolin as George W. Bush and Elizabeth Banks as Laura. Click ahead to see the cast, and who we think should play unfilled roles.

His first words on the film: "Bush is funny."

"This movie can be funnier because Bush is funny," Stone told Entertainment Weekly magazine in the issue that hits newsstands Friday.

"He's awkward and goofy and makes faces all the time. He's not your average president. So let's have some fun with it," Stone said.

The director, 61, is best known for Vietnam war films such as "Platoon" and "Born on the Fourth of July," as well as thriller "Natural Born Killers" and political dramas "JFK" and "Nixon," which met with controversy for his looks at John F. Kennedy's assassination and Nixon's doomed presidency.

"W" has snapshots of a 26-year-old Bush crashing his car into his parents' lawn in Washington, D.C., interspersed with Bush, as president, playfully stealing a mint from U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, according to the story in Entertainment Weekly.

"It's almost Capra-esque, the story of a guy who had very limited talents in life, except for the ability to sell himself," Stone said of Bush's life.

Frank Capra, of course, is the director of homespun American movies such as 1939's "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" and 1946's "It's a Wonderful Life."

While "W" will not likely to redeem the increasingly unpopular president's image, it delves into a life overshadowed by events and people larger in stature than him. Stone even admits to admiring some of the president's attributes.

"The fact that he had to overcome the shadow of his father and the weight of his family name, you have to admire his tenacity" Stone said.

But Stone was unable to find funding for "W" from a major Hollywood studio, so he resorted to independent financing. Lionsgate recently acquired North American distribution rights to the film, and has set an Oct. 17 release date, putting it in theaters three weeks before this November's presidential election.

Stone signed Josh Brolin to play Bush and Elizabeth Banks, First Lady Laura Bush. Other cast members include James Cromwell as former President George H.W. Bush and Ellen Burstyn as former First Lady Barbara Bush. Thandie Newton plays Rice. One key figure not yet cast is Vice President Dick Cheney.

Copyright 2008 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2008-05-09 13:01:57
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brianelawson223 11:32:19 PM May 10 2008

You trashed Jim Morrison and the Doors, why should we believe any thing you say as though we should hold you up in high regards? You do not tell the truth like you portend in the movie reviews you set up in advance for us all to hear. You are a second-hander big time. A Real Director and for that matter producer, should be able to make a good movie without the aid of Real-Life Named characters to try your hand at judging people according to your opinions. You certainly do not evenly distribute the truth with both good and bad deeds in regards to your story. You abscissiously multilate truthful events to further your destructive hatred and maliciousness and call it art. You hide behind Political Correctness, a term not found in the Constitution, but in the Marxian writings in the Communist Manifesto. Of course you would know that, wouldn't you. You are a puke

I2BURS2NITE 03:29:10 PM May 09 2008

Just one freaking question....Thandie Newton as Condoleza Rice.....WTF?
Condoloza isn't even 1 ounce of good looks that Thandie has.
Talk about makeup, they'll need plenty of it to get her tolook as ugly as condolsleezer

kili70 01:09:38 PM May 09 2008

OLIVER, GET A LIFE !

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