French Canadian filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallée has been around. He directed Emily Blunt in “The Young Victoria" and got good notices with “Cafe De Flore,” but all it took was “Dallas Buyers Club” to score several Oscar nominations and then win two acting Academy Awards, and then Vallée soon found himself to be one of the most in demand directors working today. “Wild” with Reese Witherspoon followed, and right up on its heels is “Demolition,” the filmmaker’s collaboration with Jake Gyllenhaal, Naomi Watts and more.
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“Demolition” centers on a investment banker (Gyllenhaal) who loses everything and tries to put back the pieces of his life through cathartic destruction. Hope comes in the form of kindred soul (Watts) who has been through the ringer herself.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Davis (Jake Gyllenhaal), a successful investment banker, struggles after losing his wife in a tragic car crash. Despite pressure from his father in law Phil (Chris Cooper) to pull it together, Davis continues to unravel. What starts as a complaint letter to a vending machine company turns into a series of letters revealing startling personal admissions. Davis’ letters catch the attention of customer service rep Karen (Naomi Watts) and, amidst emotional and financial burdens of her own, the two form an unlikely connection. With the help of Karen and her son Chris (Judah Lewis), Davis starts to rebuild, beginning with the demolition of the life he once knew.
READ MORE: TIFF Review: Jean-Marc Vallée’s ‘Demolition’ Starring Jake Gyllenhaal & Naomi Watts
“Demolition” received mixed reviews out of TIFF last year — maybe its the leaning on all those implosion metaphors — so instead of dropping it in the crowded Oscar season, Fox Searchlight decided to hold the movie until Spring 2016. Co-starring Chris Cooper and Judah Lewis, “Demolition”… explodes… into theaters on April 8th. Watch the new trailer below.