"Franken-Film" Accidental Love Actually Gets Trailer

[MovieBob]

"Franken-Film" Accidental Love Actually Gets Trailer

Unfinished film abandoned by its director 7 years ago re-edited back to life, set for release

It was one of the most infamous production disasters in recent Hollywood history: Way back in 2008, Nailed, director Al Gore [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/tag/view/david%20o%20russell]) was so plagued by funding problems, actor walk-offs and multiple shutdowns that a theatrical employees union ultimately closed the entire production down.

Russell ultimately abandoned the incomplete project altogether; despite having shot a good deal of footage and the presence of then-hot/rising stars like Jessica Biel, Jake Gyllenhaal, James Marsden and Tracy Morgan. [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/136091-Tracy-Morgan-Sues-Wal-Mart-Over-Deadly-Crash]

Producers who invested in the film, however, were still seeking a return on their investment; and have apparently spent the intervening 7 years stitching the remnants of Russell's footage back together into something resembling a releasable film. A trailer, poster and release date for the resulting creation, now-retitled Accidental Love, unexpectedly appeared online today. [http://thefilmstage.com/trailer/first-trailer-for-david-o-russells-long-delayed-nailed-with-jake-gyllenhaal-and-jessica-biel/]

The film (now credited to director "Stephen Greene") is about a diner waitress (Biel) who becomes afflicted with erratic, unpredictable behavior - including an out-of-control sex drive - after an accident lodges a nail in her brain which cannot be removed because she lacks health insurance. She becomes an activist for health care reform, ultimately causing a love triangle between herself, her former fiancee (Marsden) and a Congressman (Gyllenhaal).

David O. Russell has not yet commented on the repurposing of his footage.


Source: The Film Stage [http://thefilmstage.com/trailer/first-trailer-for-david-o-russells-long-delayed-nailed-with-jake-gyllenhaal-and-jessica-biel/]


[http://www.escapistmagazine.com/movies-and-tv/]

Permalink

 

[Barbas]

(Snip).

Typo in title - "Get's".

 

[vid87]

Aside from the screwball premise which sounds interesting enough, is this really ANOTHER movie where James "Cyclops" Marsden randomly loses his girlfriend? I mean, the concept itself isn't an actual issue but his filmography is surprisingly consistent with the theme.

 

[Sylocat]

I wondered why the new director's name was in scarequotes, so I looked it up. Apparently, "Stephen Greene" doesn't even exist. It's a fake name.

I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when the studio meetings about this thing were going on. It's just too hilarious a story to not be curious about.

 

[McGuinty1]

I wondered why the new director's name was in scarequotes, so I looked it up. Apparently, "Stephen Greene" doesn't even exist. It's a fake name.

Actually there are a few real people with that name, including a deceased American artist and a current sitting senator up here in Canada. However you are correct, in this case it is a pseudonym used for a film when its real director refuses to have his name credited because of various reasons, mostly disputes with producers or actors over creative direction.

The name Alan Smithee famously served this purpose for over 30 years, but was discontinued by the Director's Guild in 2000 because of a brouhaha involving a crappy film that parodied the use of the name. It was called "An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn", and it told the story of a director named Alan Smithee who wants to remove his name from a film he made but is unable to do so, as the only pseudonym he would be allowed to use was "Alan Smithee". Then in real life, the director of "An Alan Smithee Film", Arthur Hiller, had a dispute with the producer and had his name removed. So to recap, there is a movie called "An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn", whose main character is a movie director named Alan Smithee, and the movie's direction is credited to Alan Smithee. You cannot make this stuff up.

Anyway, I will probably watch this no matter how it turns out, to try chasing that pre-"The Fighter" David O. Russell high that you got from his films back when he still gave a shit about them.