I'm very sad to say that it's not looking good for Nailed. ... again ...

After a slew of shutdowns and a whole heap of monetary problems, it looked like David O. Russell's strange comedy was on the up and up. Earlier this month, the production struck a deal with Comerica Bank, and things seemed to be back on track, at least, until filming shot and post-production began.

Still, just two days shy of wrapping principal photography, Variety reports that the production has once again been halted. Some "below-the-line" crews refused to work on Friday when they weren't paid and IATSE told them not to show up. I guess Comerica didn't fork over enough cash. However, a Variety source says that the hope is to finish up the last two days this week, which includes "a key restaurant scene." I'm not sure where they're getting the cash for the final two days, but I hope they find it.

So, should things go smoothly this week, we can expect the filming to be wrapped, and then we can look forward to a long line of post-production money troubles. I just hope we get to see it in the end.

When it's a regular, run of the mill movie, I don't mind so much if it hits the dust before hitting the screen and the shelves. Sure, it's unfortunate to miss an interesting role, or see what a director had in mind, but there's enough similar fare out there that you can pop in another movie and likely get similar results. However, when the movie is truly strange and piques your interest from the get-go, the thought of never seeing it can be impatiently infuriating.

Luckily, Nailed hasn't reached that stage quite yet, no matter how many problems it's plagued with. The Hollywood Reporter says that the political comedy is resuming production today (yay!), after securing "a late-breaking financing deal with Comerica Bank and the film's financier, Capitol Films." Unfortunately, that doesn't mean the production is out of the woods yet. The film has to continue and finish production by June 22, or it loses its stars, but even then, it needs to make it through post and then get distributed.

God, I hope they pull this all together. David O. Russell makes great films and I just don't think we'll have another chance any time soon to see the story of a waitress who gets a nail to the head and becomes a saucy deviant who heads to DC to fight for her cause.

Nailed is one film that is not going to catch a break. It was already shut down once by SAG because the movie's funding had not set enough money aside for the actors. That was cleared up, only to have it shut down a second time when IATSE members (solid, behind-the-scenes people like stagehands and technicians) revealed they weren't being paid.

Now, Nikke Finke is reporting the film has been shut down a third time, again by the IATSE who have ordered their members off because they still aren't being paid.

Of course, the longer the film is shut down, the more money it loses. A vicious cycle, really. But if it makes Russell feel better, there are several indie films suffering. Capitol Films is apparently going through a financial upheaval and several films have met the same fate as Nailed.
Who knows which indie flicks could bite the dust in the following weeks?

At this point, all the actors are bravely hanging in, although production will probably be delayed about two weeks. Even though I haven't been 100% behind the concept, even if it is Russell, I hate to see little films die off. Plus, this is being filmed right next door to where a good friend of mine resides, and he promised to keep me (and you guys) updated. So here's wishing the best.

[via CHUD]

Oh, David O. Russell. The man is completely imbalanced: physical confrontations with George Clooney on set, putting Christopher Nolan in a headlock, going on a tirade towards Lily Tomlin, and arguing with James Caan about whether it's possible to choke and cough at the same time. But say what you will about his stability, he puts out some pretty damn good films.

This week's double feature is all about his deliciously talented imbalance. If you're not up for wildly colorful car racing or crappy-looking weddings in Vegas, maybe some Iraq-set comedy and over-the-top existential intervention is more up your alley. Oh yes, I'm talking about the wildly fun Three Kings and one of my favorite giggle-inducing comedies of all time -- I Heart Huckabees.

Last month, James Caan quit David O'Russell's Nailed because the two had a blow up over a cookie. Russell said he should choke and cough on this cookie at the same time, while Caan said it wasn't possible. I don't see why Russell wouldn't just show him, if he was convinced it was possible. Then again, the director isn't the most rational and level-headed man out there. Nevertheless, production moves on with a new man -- The Hollywood Reporter posts that James Brolin has replaced Caan in the role, and that Kirstie Alley and Olivia Crocicchia have also signed on.

As we know, Jessica Biel is playing a woman who gets accidentally shot in the head by a clumsy worker with a nail gun. The nail hits her noggin in such a way that she begins to have wild sexual urges. But she's uninsured, so she goes on "a crusade to Washington to fight for the rights of the bizarrely injured." The naughty congressman Jake Gyllenhaal, meanwhile, takes advantage of her urges.

So we've got Brolin now as the speaker of the house who chokes on a cookie. (Coincidentally, as his son chokes on a pretzel as Dubya.) As for Alley, she'll play a veterinarian aunt of Biel's character who fails to remove the nail. (No insurance = vet treatment, I guess.) And Crocicchia, she'll play a "disgruntled youth" who helps the nailed woman fight for health care.

I am so dying to see this. If it's even half as fun as Huckabees, the production turmoil should be worth it.

We are all well aware that David O. Russell doesn't have the best reputation when it comes to working with actors. We've heard the stories about near fist-fights on the set of Three Kings, and everyone has seen the meltdown during I Heart Huckabees. The latest casualty of Russell's people skills is celebrated actor James Caan, who has officially quit Russell's political comedy, Nailed.

What caused the irreconcilable rift, you might ask? It was all over a cookie. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the final straw for Caan was during a scene in which his character is supposed to be choking on a cookie. Russell instructed Caan to cough and choke at the same time during the scene, which Caan thought was impossible for a human being to do both. The two couldn't come to an agreement and Caan left the set never to return. The film's producer got to work on the damage control and was quoted as saying the disagreement was "part of an ongoing creative conversation between the actor and director", and that Russell had been nothing but professional throughout the shoot.

This is one of those movies that has a premise so incredibly bizarre, yet has cast so strong, that I figure there is some promise I am simply not seeing. David O. Russell's romantic comedy Nailed already stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Jessica Biel, and The Hollywood Reporter says that the film has now added Catherine Keener, James Marsden and Tracy Morgan to the cast.

The plot follows a naive waitress, Alice, who is shot in the head with a nail. The injury causes her behavior to be erratic and outrageous (the IMDb says it causes her to become a sexually adventurous bombshell), and she heads to Washington to campaign on behalf of better health care for the freakishly injured. She ends up falling for a young and clueless new congressman, who must summon up his political courage to save her. Biel plays the waitress, Gyllenhaal the congressman. Keener will be playing a self-serving congresswoman, and Marsden the small-town boyfriend of Alice. Hopefully he's not the one who shot her with a nail. Morgan's character has yet to be decided.

Like I said, there is probably something I am not seeing. The script is penned by Russell and Kristen Gore, so the charm must lie there. But is the waitress' naivete the reason she was shot in the head? Or is she naive because she thinks her insurance will cover the cost of her injury? And must James Marsden lose a girl not only to Wolverine, to Superman and to Patrick Dempsey, but to Congressman Jake Gyllenhaal too?

To be fair, I'm willing to give Mr. Russell a fair shot after the surprisingly unique Three Kings -- although people still keep dissuading me from seeing I Heart Huckabees.

We now have another reason why Jessica Biel didn't want to take on Wonder Woman -- she wanted to jump in bed with Jake Gyllenhaal! The Hollywood Reporter has posted that Jake and Jessica (with names perfect for tabloid coupledom) have signed on to star in David O. Russell's latest film -- Nailed -- both the bed sort of nailing and the, well, nail sort of nailing. Not only that, but it is also getting another Gore into the movie biz -- O. Russell is co-writing the script with Al's daughter, Kristin Gore.

Coming from David O., this won't be your run-of-the-mill political satire. Biel will play "Sammy Joyce, a socially awkward small-town receptionist who has a nail accidentally shot into her head by a clumsy workman, eliciting wild sexual urges." It gets better: "The uninsured Joyce goes on a crusade to Washington to fight for the rights of the bizarrely injured. She meets an immoral congressman (Gyllenhaal) who takes advantage of her sex drive and capitalizes on her crusade as Joyce heads into her own career in politics."

Talk about having a ton of reasons to see this sucker. O. Russell makes some funny movies (Three Kings, I Heart Huckabees), and has this really funny tendency to go apeshit on set. Remember? Then there's the next Gore entering the movie biz, which I hope will mean some inside info, rumors, political goodies masked in the script. Then there's Biel taking on a political comedy -- can she do it? And finally, Jake as a congressman. Pre-production begins this month, shooting starts in January, and maybe we'll get this just in time for the next Presidential election.

The hissy-fit-filled David O. Russell clip from I Heart Huckabees is still managing to get some play. First, Scott Weinberg posted word of the clip when it started making the rounds, nabbing tons of visitors on YouTube. Then, I shared the big rumor that George Clooney, who had an altercation with the director during the filming of Three Kings, could be the man behind the Internet link. Well, since then, he's obviously denied any involvement in the leak, and he's even offering a $1 million reward to anyone who proves that it wasn't him. Either that's a brilliant way to cover up your own tracks, or he's one lucky bugger. Imagine throwing seven figures down just to quash a rumor that isn't that big a deal anyway! (At least, not a big deal for him.)

While talking with Entertainment Weekly about his upcoming Ocean's Thirteen, Clooney chatted some more about the now-infamous leak. While the clip was news to most of us, Clooney says that it's been circulating for over two years and everyone (who's anyone that's not us apparently) had seen it. The actor says that he saw it during the filming of Ocean's Twelve, and: "I felt bad for Lily, but I also felt a little vindicated for anyone that thought that that had anything to do with me on [Three Kings]." That being said, he still maintains that he had nothing to do with the leak and re-asserts that he's clueless about YouTube -- as if actors can't have tech-savvy assistants and friends! The noble Clooney draws his prank-line at career interference: "There are pranks I like to play [but] that falls into the world of screwing with people's careers. I'm up for a good fight, but not sneaky. I like 'em face-to-face." The grey-haired actor seems much more worried about paparazzi-like stunts where films capture people with "Spanktro-vision" on. Is he worried about other people, or will the actor start chaining the door when he turns on his saucy pay-per-view?

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in front of the camera, David O. Russell (Three Kings, Outrageous YouTube Video) strikes again -- this time, by attaching himself to the Columbia Pictures comedy Sammy's Hill. Pic will be based on Kristin Gore's novel ... and if that name sounds familiar, it's because she's Al Gore's daughter. Screw Washington, this family belongs in Hollywood baby! Russell will pen the screenplay, as well as direct; currently, there's no word on whether anger management classes were part of the deal.

Book tells the story of a girl desperately trying to balance her career as a congressional aide on Capitol Hill, while at the same time attempting to find love in the seedy, depressing, money-hungry town. Doug Wick, who's producing along with Lucy Fisher and Red Wagon, says the film "will do for Washington D.C. what Talladega Nights did for race car driving." Wait, so audiences will feel the urge to camp outside the next congressional meeting with a few kegs of Budweiser? I don't get it. However, the book is then compared to Thank You for Smoking and Election -- two of my favorite dark comedies in recent years -- and so if Russell can somehow manage to churn out a smart, successful comedy without accidentally killing one of the cast members, Sammy's Hill could be a film to watch out for.