Stop the presses. I am told that Warren Beatty’s still untitled, still unseen Howard Hughes movie may surface at one of the upcoming film festivals.
A source close to the production says nothing is solid. But “there’s a chance” that Beatty may give in and show his film at either Venice, Telluride or Toronto. Schedules for those festivals haven’t been announced yet. And even when they are, the Beatty film could be a “surprise” screening — especially in Toronto.
Shooting on the Hughes project ended over a year ago, and editing has been going on ever since then. Beatty is a noted perfectionist who doesn’t like to commit to anything. In the past, he’s waffled for some time before letting a film go.
So far there’s no trailer, no teaser, not a single production photo, nada. Not title. Beatty has done a good making the film as mysterious as Hughes himself.
But this time Beatty does have substantial financial backers including New Regency and James Packer-Brett Ratner’s RatPac. He also has stars who’d like to see themselves on screen before too much time passes, including his own Oscar nominated wife Annette Bening.
I have a strong, good feeling about this movie despite knowing almost nothing about it. I am counting on Warren Beatty. We need him now more than ever!
PS I strongly object to that BBC list of all time best American films. They left off “Reds,” one of the greatest epics of all time, as well as “Shampoo” and “Heaven Can Wait”– not to mention Warren’s work in “Splendor in the Grass.” Feh on Brit crits!
