So, the Academy Award nominated editor of Cameron Crowe‘s “Almost Famous” and Terrence Malick‘s “The Thin Red Line” is making his directorial debut with “Things People Do.” Pretty cool, but not much else, right? Well, peer a little closer and you’ll see a number of connections to Malick and more, making this a fascinating collection of talent for a movie with some pretty decent promise. So, let’s dive right in.
Wes Bentley, Vinessa Shaw, Haley Bennett and Jason Isaacs will star in the movie, and as Malick fans already know, Bentley features in Malick’s “Knight Of Cups,” while Bennett is in his “Untitled Music Scene Project.” Sara Green, producer of every Malick movie since “The Tree Of Life,” is putting those talents to work here, as is filmmaker Doug Liman, who hired Klein to edit “The Bourne Identity” and “Jumper.” So with that Kevin Bacon-esque game out of the way, what’s it all about?
The story will follow Bill Scanlin (Bentley) loses his job and, unable to tell his wife Susan (Shaw) for fear of losing his family, embarks on a life of crime. He befriends a detective, Frank McTiernan (Isaacs), who has chosen to uphold the law for a living but believes very little in its value. Ruby (Bennett), the first stranger to show him kindness, inspires Bill to commit a crime in her honor, and he starts to enjoy his newfound power. As Bill stays ahead of the law, he discovers that sometimes the only thing worse than getting caught is getting away with it.
Filming starts tomorrow in New Mexico and yeah, we’re curious.