CharlieKauffman Tagged Articles at Cinematical

1. Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom (Logo)
2. Synecdoche, New York (Sony Pictures Classics)
3. Let the Right One In (Magnolia)

How on earth did an unheralded, under-the-radar movie from an untested distribution outfit manage to nearly out-earn a much-advertised period flick starring one of the biggest tabloid stars in the world, directed by one of the most respected? Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom, based on the Logo TV series, opened at theaters in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago, and Washington DC over the weekend and grossed $32,200 per screen, according to estimates compiled by Box Office Mojo. That puts it just behind Clint Eastwood's Changeling, starring Angelina Jolie. The romantic comedy follows four men and their partners as they travel to Martha's Vineyard and deal with relationship travails. The first release by Logo's film distribution unit, indieWIRE says that Noah's Arc "is already 2008's highest grossing narrative gay film overall."

If a romantic comedy starring gay African Americans sounds like an unlikely box office winner, what about a movie with a nearly unpronounceable title featuring Philip Seymour Hoffman as an aging theater director? Not exactly sexy, I suppose, but Synecdoche, New York nonetheless grossed $19,222 per screen at nine theaters in New York and Los Angeles. I don't think anyone expects this to be a huge box office smash, yet that's a good, strong start for Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut, one of the more intriguing films to be released this fall season.

Charlie Kaufman and the Coen Brothers recently held a radio play performance at the Royal Festival Hall in London. Hope Leaves The Theater was written and directed by Charlie Kaufman, and starred Meryl Streep, Hope Davis and Peter Dinklage. Kaufman's segment was very weird even for him. Streep has an existential crisis when Hope leaves the stage, turns and starts heckling the audience. Then Charlie Kaufman takes his life after completing the play. Meryl is taking this very badly because she says "Adaptation was better than Human Nature." And when it seems things won't get any weirder, a critic character deconstructs the entire play "whilst Meryl sings an Alanis-type ode to bitterness."