Man, get your “Parallax View,” or “Three Days Of The Condor
” on, huh?
The new poster for Anton Corbijn’s “The American” has surfaced along with the film’s official synopsis. The film stars George Clooney as a hitman trying to do one last job in Italy before he retires, but romantic entanglements make it difficult for him to exit his clandestine vocation. We saw the trailer last month and now this great looking, ’70s-styled poster has arrived and the official synopsis.
Corbijn’s last picture was the gray-ish and dour biopic of the band Joy Division called, “Control.” He’s also a well respected rock photographer having shot iconic photos for Depeche Mode, U2, Joy Division, New Order and also lensed the iconic video for Nirvana’s “Heart Shaped Box” plus many many more (he has his own Director’s Label Video DVD). Boldly, the film sticks to its title and Clooney is really the only ‘American’ in the film outside of character actor Bruce Altman. The rest of the cast are all Italian or international names. Here’s the complete synopsis of the film:
Academy Award winner George Clooney stars in the title role of this suspense thriller, filmed on location in Italy. Alone among assassins, Jack (played by Mr. Clooney) is a master craftsman. When a job in Sweden ends more harshly than expected for this American abroad, he vows to his contact that his next assignment will be his last. Jack reports to the Italian countryside, where he holes up in a small town and relishes being away from death for a spell. The assignment, as specified by a Belgian woman, Mathilde (Thekla Reuten of “In Bruges”), is in the offing as a weapon is constructed. Surprising himself, Jack seeks out the friendship of local priest Father Benedetto (Italian stage and screen veteran Paolo Bonacelli) and pursues romance with local woman Clara (Italian leading lady Violante Placido). But by stepping out of the shadows, Jack may be tempting fate.
The film was penned by Rowan Joffe (“28 Weeks Later,” writer/director of “Brighton Rock”) and is based on the Martin Booth novel, “A Very Private Gentleman.” German musician Herbert Grönemeyer composed the score and he also did the score to “Control” (he’s also an actor and he starred in Wolfgang Petersen’s 1981 picture “Das Boot”).
Focus Features is scheduling the picture for a wide release on September 1st and while that’s nice to see we’re not entirely crazy about that Bermuda triangle, after-Labor Day release. It feels like the date where movies go to die after the summer, but we’re still hoping it will at least appeal to the non-summer blockbuster heads.
