brady corbet Tagged Articles at Cinematical

As the junior partner in the pair of white-clad killers in Michael Hanekne's English-language remake of his own Funny Games, actor Brady Corbet may be one of the lesser-known names in the cast, but his work as a smiling, shy sociopath makes for a haunting performance. At the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, Corbet spoke with Cinematical about Haneke's working process, what it's like to play someone who's already playing a role, and his take on Funny Games's combination of entertainment and commentary: "The first (version) asked the question 'Why are you watching this?' And the new film asks 'Why are you watching this again?'"

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Michael Haneke's remake of his own Funny Games is a great movie. It's also a great film. It's also a great piece of commentary on film. It's hard to say which Funny Games stirs up more -- your guts, or your brain. There's a line about how the film criticism of Manny Farber "played both brows against the middle." Funny Games smashes lowbrow violent entertainment and highbrow thoughts about violent entertainment into each other, hard, over and over again until the resulting wreck of bone and flesh and blood glistens like a sharp-edged gem. It gives you what you want and asks why you want it in the first place, and it does both those things superbly. It is cruel, cold and darkly thrilling.

The Farber family (played by Naomi Watts, Tim Roth and Devon Gearhart) are getting away from it all to their lakeside vacation home. They're going to relax, meet friends, play golf and enjoy good food and good music. But they're not going to get to do any of those things. Two polite young men (played by Brady Corbet and Michael Pitt) drop by; they're guests of the neighbors, and the neighbors sent them over to borrow four eggs. Watts is glad to help. But the eggs break, and they'd like to borrow another four. Watts is less glad to help, but still polite. And then second set of four eggs are broken, and then it's not about the eggs at all, and politeness becomes irrelevant. Which, really, it is in the first place. Soon the Farber family is bound and frightened and hurt, and the two young men stay cool and courteous and curious, proposing games and posing probing questions. Roth chokes out a simple question: "Why are you doing this?" Pitt's answer is simpler: "Why not?" Pitt spools off a long series of complex and contradictory rationalizations for his associate's part in events that are rapidly going out-of-control for the Farbers, closing by noting that " ... he's jaded and disgusted by the emptiness of existence. It's hard." None of it is true, and what would it matter if it were?

Cinematical was just given an exclusive first-look at the brand new poster for Funny Games (click on the image for a larger version), written and directed by Michael Haneke (who, interestingly enough, is remaking his own film of the same name from 1997). This time around, the English-language version will feature Naomi Watts, Tim Roth and Devon Gearhart as a family who've decided to spend a fabulous weekend away at their lakeside vacation cabin. Problems for the three arrive in the form of two white-gloved strangers, as played by Michael Pitt and Brady Corbet, who aren't exactly passing out Girl Scout Cookies. Psychological and physical torture ensues.

I was real fond of the recently-released trailer for Funny Games, which kind of dresses up the horrific premise in a darkly comedic tone. This new poster, which boasts a tagline that reads: "You Must Admit, You Brought This On Yourself," reminds me of the cover of a novel that I'd immediately pick up if it were out on a bookshelf somewhere. I'm also a huge fan of Tim Roth (who's about to hit mainstream audiences in a big way next year, starring in both Funny Games and The Incredible Hulk), dig the role choices Naomi Watts has been making lately and have nothing but good things to say about the up-and-coming Michael Pitt. Funny Games is due out in theaters on February 15, 2008.