''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' is a 2002 American
biographical
A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...
spy film
The spy film, also known as the spy thriller, is a genre of film that deals with the subject of fictional espionage, either in a realistic way (such as the adaptations of John le Carré) or as a basis for fantasy (such as many James Bond films) ...
depicting the fictional life of
game show
A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...
host and producer
Chuck Barris
Charles Hirsch Barris (June 3, 1929 – March 21, 2017) was an American game show creator, producer, and host. Barris was known for hosting ''The Gong Show'' and creating ''The Dating Game'' and ''The Newlywed Game''. He was also a songwrite ...
. The film was
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by George Clooney, numerous accolades, including a British Academy Film Awards, British Academy Film A ...
's directorial debut, was written by
Charlie Kaufman
Charles Stuart Kaufman (; born November 19, 1958) is an American filmmaker and novelist. He wrote the films '' Being John Malkovich'' (1999), '' Adaptation'' (2002), and '' Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'' (2004). He made his directorial ...
and starred
Sam Rockwell
Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as '' Lawn Dogs'' (19 ...
as Barris, as well as
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and thr ...
,
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...
, and Clooney. It is based on Barris's 1984 "
unauthorized
Authorization or authorisation (see spelling differences) is the function of specifying access rights/privileges to resources, which is related to general information security and computer security, and to access control in particular. More fo ...
autobiography
An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life.
It is a form of biography.
Definition
The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...
" of the same name, in which he claimed to have been an assassin for the
CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
in addition to his show business career. These allegations have been denied by the CIA, while Barris throughout his life generally refused to say whether the claim was true or not.
The film had a long development process.
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
briefly planned to produce a
film adaptation
A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...
in the late 1980s, to be directed by
Jim McBride
Jim or JIM may refer to:
* Jim (given name), a given name
* Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James
* Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy
* OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism
* ''Jim'' (comics), a series by Jim Woodring
* ''Jim' ...
. The
film rights
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
were purchased in 1997 by producer
Andrew Lazar
Andrew Lazar (born 1966) is an American film producer and graduate of the New York University Tisch School of the Arts. He is associated with Mad Chance Productions, a production company he formed in 1997 and affiliated with Warner Bros., but als ...
, who hired Kaufman to write a screenplay; the project then quickly attracted a string of well-known directors, including
David Fincher,
Brian De Palma
Brian Russell De Palma (born September 11, 1940) is an American film director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for his work in the suspense, crime and psychological thriller genres. De Palma was a leading ...
and
Bryan Singer
Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed.
After graduating from the University of Southern California, Singer ...
, and lead actors, including
Mike Myers
Michael John Myers OC (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. His accolades include seven MTV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2002, he was awarded a star on the Hollywoo ...
,
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known ...
and
Johnny Depp. When Clooney was hired to direct, he brought on Barris to consult on the project in order to provide additional authenticity. This in turn led to (uncredited) rewrites on the script, which Kaufman was unhappy with, including the removal of a drug addiction subplot. Clooney also championed the casting of Rockwell, who at that point was mostly unknown. To accommodate the $30 million budget, Clooney convinced Barrymore and Roberts to lower their salaries.
The film was released to favorable reviews from critics and was modestly successful at the box office. Rockwell, in particular, was praised for his acting and won the
Silver Bear for Best Actor
The Silver Bear for Best Actor (german: Silberner Bär/Bester Darsteller) was an award presented at the Berlin International Film Festival from 1956 to 2020. It was given to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance and was chosen by ...
at the 2003
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...
.
Plot
Tired of being rejected by the beautiful women he lusts after,
Chuck Barris
Charles Hirsch Barris (June 3, 1929 – March 21, 2017) was an American game show creator, producer, and host. Barris was known for hosting ''The Gong Show'' and creating ''The Dating Game'' and ''The Newlywed Game''. He was also a songwrite ...
moves to Manhattan to become an
NBC page
The NBC Page Program is a 12-month paid fellowship at the NBCUniversal's studios in New York City and Universal City, California. Over the course of one year, pages gain exposure to various areas of the NBCUniversal portfolio. Pages contribute to ...
with dreams of becoming famous in television but is eventually fired. He moves back to Philadelphia and becomes
Dick Clark
Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...
's personal assistant on ''
American Bandstand'' in 1961. He writes the successful song "
Palisades Park" and becomes romantically involved with a woman named Penny Pacino. Chuck is given permission to pitch the concept for ''
The Dating Game
''The Dating Game'' is an American television game show that first aired on December 20, 1965, and was the first of many shows created and packaged by Chuck Barris from the 1960s through the 1980s. ABC dropped the show on July 6, 1973, but it ...
'' at
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
. He is given $7,500 to create a
television pilot
A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...
, but ABC abandons the idea in favor of ''
Hootenanny
A hootenanny is a party involving music in the United States. It is particularly associated with folk music.
Etymology Placeholder
Hootenanny is an Appalachian colloquialism that was used in the early twentieth century U.S. as a placeholder nam ...
''.
One night after Barris is kicked out of a bar for fighting, he is approached by
CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
agent Jim Byrd, who recruits him as an assassin. Returning from a mission in Mexico, Barris finds that Penny has become a hippie. Meanwhile, ABC
green-light
To green-light is to give permission to proceed with a project. The term is a reference to the green traffic signal, indicating "go ahead".
Film industry
In the context of the film and television industries, to green-light something is to ...
s ''The Dating Game'', and by 1967 the show is a phenomenon.
On a CIA mission in
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
, Finland, he meets female operative Patricia Watson. He finds more success back home when ''
The Newlywed Game
''The Newlywed Game'' is an American television game show that puts newly married couples against each other in a series of revealing question rounds to determine how well the spouses know or do not know each other. The program, originally create ...
'' goes on air. He and Penny decide to move to Los Angeles, but Barris is cautious of marriage, much to Penny's dismay. In 1970, Byrd convinces Barris to go on a mission to
West Berlin
West Berlin (german: Berlin (West) or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin during the years of the Cold War. Although West Berlin was de jure not part of West Germany, lacked any sovereignty, and was under mi ...
to assassinate Hans Colbert. Barris is introduced to German-American agent Keeler, whom he helps to kill Colbert. However, he is captured by the
KGB
The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
and, after some weeks, freed during a west–east spy exchange.
In 1976, Barris creates ''
The Gong Show
''The Gong Show'' is an American amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976, through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976 to 1 ...
,'' becoming famous as its host. Keeler is murdered and Byrd warns Barris of a
mole
Mole (or Molé) may refer to:
Animals
* Mole (animal) or "true mole", mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America
* Golden moles, southern African mammals in the family Chrysochloridae, similar to but unrelated to Talpida ...
in the agency. His TV shows are canceled due to poor ratings, and Penny threatens to leave after catching him cheating. One night, Barris finds Byrd sitting atop the diving board of his backyard pool. Byrd reveals why he was chosen by the CIA to become an assassin: he is the son of a serial killer and had been raised as a girl by his mother, so he "fit the profile". Barris threatens Byrd, and after Byrd is shown dead moments later, we can see him holding a gun at him.
Faced with the unpleasant truth about himself, Barris begins to spiral out of control. After almost having a
nervous breakdown
A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...
on ''
The Gong Show
''The Gong Show'' is an American amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976, through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976 to 1 ...
'', Barris shuts himself away in a New York City hotel. Penny finds him and tries in vain to convince him to return to California to get married.
Barris finally leaves his room to meet Patricia in Boston. After a cup of coffee, Barris collapses, seemingly poisoned. Patricia reveals that she is the mole. Barris has tricked Patricia into drinking from the poisoned cup, and she falls dead. After her death, he returns home and begins writing his autobiography, ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind''. He finally decides to marry Penny. At the end of the ceremony, he sees some of the people he killed in the crowd. Distraught, he confesses to her his double life as a CIA assassin, but she merely laughs, assuming he is joking, and he decides not to correct her.
Cast
*
Sam Rockwell
Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as '' Lawn Dogs'' (19 ...
as
Chuck Barris
Charles Hirsch Barris (June 3, 1929 – March 21, 2017) was an American game show creator, producer, and host. Barris was known for hosting ''The Gong Show'' and creating ''The Dating Game'' and ''The Newlywed Game''. He was also a songwrite ...
**
Michael Cera
Michael Austin Cera (; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor and musician. He started his career as a child actor, voicing the character of Brother Bear on the children's television show ''The Berenstain Bears'' and portraying a young Chuck B ...
as Young Chuck Barris
*
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...
as Penny Pacino
*
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by George Clooney, numerous accolades, including a British Academy Film Awards, British Academy Film A ...
as Jim Byrd
*
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and thr ...
as Patricia Watson
*
Rutger Hauer
Rutger Oelsen Hauer (; 23 January 1944 – 19 July 2019) was a Dutch actor. In 1999, he was named by the Dutch public as the Best Dutch Actor of the Century.
Hauer's career began in 1969 with the title role in the Dutch television series ' ...
as Keeler
*
Jerry Weintraub
Jerome Charles "Jerry" Weintraub (September 26, 1937 – July 6, 2015) was an American film producer, talent manager and actor whose television films won him three Emmys.
He began his career as a talent agent, having managed relatively unknown ...
as Larry Goldberg
*
Robert John Burke
Robert John Burke (born September 12, 1960) is an American actor known for his roles in '' RoboCop 3'' (1993), '' Tombstone'' (1993), and '' Thinner'' (1996). During the 2000s Burke became well known for his portrayal of Mickey Gavin on '' Rescue ...
as Instructor Jenks
*
Michael Ensign
Michael Ensign (born February 13, 1944) is an American actor who mostly played very small roles. One of his most-known roles was Benjamin Guggenheim in the 1997 film ''Titanic''.
Early life
Ensign was raised in both the United States and Englan ...
as Simon Oliver
*
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Margalit Ruth "Maggie" Gyllenhaal (; born November 16, 1977) is an American actress and filmmaker. Part of the Gyllenhaal family, she is the daughter of filmmakers Stephen Gyllenhaal and Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal, Naomi Achs, and the older sister o ...
as Debbie
*
James Urbaniak
James Christian Urbaniak (born September 17, 1963) is an American character actor. He is best known for his roles as Simon Grim in three Hal Hartley films: '' Henry Fool'' (1997), '' Fay Grim'' (2006) and '' Ned Rifle'' (2014), Robert Crumb in ...
as Rod Flexner
*
Rachelle Lefevre as Tuvia
*
Kristen Wilson
Kristen Wilson (born September 4, 1969) is a former American actress, best known as Miranda DuBaer in '' Twitches'' and '' Twitches Too'' and as Lisa Dolittle in the films ''Dr. Dolittle'', '' Dr. Dolittle 2'', and '' Dr. Dolittle 3''.
Early li ...
as Loretta
*
Daniel Zacapa
Daniel Zacapa (born July 19, 1951) is a Honduran-American movie actor. Zacapa played the role of Detective Taylor in the 1995 David Fincher film '' Seven''. He has worked steadily since, amassing a number of television credits and a role in '' Up ...
as Renda
*
Emilio Rivera
Emilio Rivera (born February 24, 1961) is an American film and television actor and stand-up comedian. He is best known for his portrayal of Marcus Álvarez in ''Sons of Anarchy'' and its spin-off, '' Mayans M.C.'' He is also known for his dep ...
as Benitez
*
Carlos Carrasco as Brazioni
*
Richard Kind
Richard Bruce Kind (born November 22, 1956) is an American actor and comedian, known for his roles as Dr. Mark Devanow in ''Mad About You'' (1992–1999, 2019), Paul Lassiter in ''Spin City'' (1996–2002), Andy in ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' (2002 ...
as Casting Executive
*
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. ...
as Bachelor #1
*
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige Damon (; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North Ameri ...
as Bachelor #2
*
Jen Taylor
Jennifer Taylor is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Cortana in ''Halo'' games and the intelligent personal assistant.
Career
Jen Taylor taught herself how to do voice work by recording the radio and imitating what she ...
And
Spencer Kayden
Spencer Lemon Kayden (born May 27, 1968) is an American actress, comedian and writer. Kayden played Little Sally in the Broadway musical ''Urinetown'' and was a cast member on sketch comedy series ''MADtv.'' She also voiced Mrs. Pepper on ''Blue' ...
as Crowd Scenes (uncredited)
Barris,
Dick Clark
Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...
,
Jim Lange
James John Lange (; August 15, 1932 – February 25, 2014) was an American game show host and disc jockey. He was known to listeners in the San Francisco and Los Angeles radio markets with stints at several stations in both markets, racking u ...
,
Murray Langston
Murray Langston (born June 27, 1944), who frequently performed using the stage name "The Unknown Comic", is a Canadian actor and stand-up comedian best known for his performances on ''The Gong Show'', during which he usually appeared with a paper ...
,
Jaye P. Morgan
Jaye P. Morgan (born Mary Margaret Morgan) is a retired American popular music singer, actress, and game show panelist.
Early life
Morgan was born in Mancos in Montezuma County in far southwestern Colorado. Her family moved to California by t ...
, and
Gene Patton are featured in interviews central to the storyline.
Production
Development
Chuck Barris
Charles Hirsch Barris (June 3, 1929 – March 21, 2017) was an American game show creator, producer, and host. Barris was known for hosting ''The Gong Show'' and creating ''The Dating Game'' and ''The Newlywed Game''. He was also a songwrite ...
first sold the
film rights
A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
of his "unauthorized autobiography" to
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
in the late 1980s. Columbia president
Dawn Steel
Dawn Leslie Steel (August 19, 1946 – December 20, 1997) was an American film studio executive and producer. She was one of the first women to run a major Hollywood film studio, rising through the ranks of merchandising and production to head ...
greenlight
To green-light is to give permission to proceed with a project. The term is a reference to the green traffic signal, indicating "go ahead".
Film industry
In the context of the film and television industries, to green-light something is to ...
ed ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' with
Jim McBride
Jim or JIM may refer to:
* Jim (given name), a given name
* Jim, a diminutive form of the given name James
* Jim, a short form of the given name Jimmy
* OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism
* ''Jim'' (comics), a series by Jim Woodring
* ''Jim' ...
directing.
McBride offered the lead role to
Richard Dreyfuss, who refused to read the script because he believed Barris's
morbid humor was distasteful.
The project was abandoned at Columbia when Steel was fired in 1989.
Producer
Andrew Lazar
Andrew Lazar (born 1966) is an American film producer and graduate of the New York University Tisch School of the Arts. He is associated with Mad Chance Productions, a production company he formed in 1997 and affiliated with Warner Bros., but als ...
optioned the film rights from Columbia in 1997 and set ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' at
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
Pictures that same year.
Charlie Kaufman
Charles Stuart Kaufman (; born November 19, 1958) is an American filmmaker and novelist. He wrote the films '' Being John Malkovich'' (1999), '' Adaptation'' (2002), and '' Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'' (2004). He made his directorial ...
entered discussions to write a new screenplay in June 1997
and finished his first draft later that year. Barris gave positive feedback to Kaufman's script
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by George Clooney, numerous accolades, including a British Academy Film Awards, British Academy Film A ...
, Chuck Barris
Charles Hirsch Barris (June 3, 1929 – March 21, 2017) was an American game show creator, producer, and host. Barris was known for hosting ''The Gong Show'' and creating ''The Dating Game'' and ''The Newlywed Game''. He was also a songwrite ...
, Sam Rockwell
Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as '' Lawn Dogs'' (19 ...
, ''Behind The Scenes of Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'', 2003, Miramax Home Entertainment
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was initially a lead ...
and
Curtis Hanson
Curtis Lee Hanson (March 24, 1945 – September 20, 2016) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. His directing work included the psychological thriller '' The Hand That Rocks the Cradle'' (1992), the neo-noir crime film ''L. ...
instantly agreed to direct
with
Sean Penn
Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He has won two Academy Awards, for his roles in the mystery drama ''Mystic River'' (2003) and the biopic ''Milk'' (2008).
Penn began his acting career in televisi ...
in the lead role and
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by George Clooney, numerous accolades, including a British Academy Film Awards, British Academy Film A ...
and
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...
attached to co-star.
Hanson eventually dropped out, but with the financial success of ''
My Best Friend's Wedding
''My Best Friend's Wedding'' is a 1997 American romantic comedy film directed by P.J. Hogan from a screenplay by Ronald Bass. The film stars Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Cameron Diaz, and Rupert Everett.
The film received generally positiv ...
'' (1997),
P. J. Hogan entered discussions with Warner Bros. to direct in January 1998.
Mike Myers
Michael John Myers OC (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. His accolades include seven MTV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2002, he was awarded a star on the Hollywoo ...
signed on to replace Sean Penn, who vacated the lead role. However, negotiations with Hogan fell through;
Sam Mendes,
David Fincher and
Darren Aronofsky
Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His films are noted for their surrealistic, melodramatic, and sometimes disturbing elements, often in the form of psychological fiction.
Arono ...
all became interested in taking over the director's position.
Fincher and Myers were
fast track
The fast track is an informal English term meaning "the quickest and most direct route to achievement of a goal, as in competing for professional advancement". By definition, it implies that a less direct, slower route also exists.
Fast track or F ...
ing production for ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' in April 2000 but Fincher dropped out and, by that October,
Brian De Palma
Brian Russell De Palma (born September 11, 1940) is an American film director and screenwriter. With a career spanning over 50 years, he is best known for his work in the suspense, crime and psychological thriller genres. De Palma was a leading ...
was attached to direct with
Renaissance Pictures
Raimi Productions (formerly Renaissance Pictures) is an American film and television production company. It was founded by director Sam Raimi, producer Robert Tapert, and actor Bruce Campbell, with help from publicist Irvin Shapiro, on August ...
co-financing. Later that month, Warner Bros. put the project in
turnaround, and Myers lost interest.
Russell Crowe,
Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey Fowler (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor. He began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, obtaining supporting roles before gaining a leading man status in film and television. Spacey has received various accolade ...
, and
Edward Norton
Edward Harrison Norton (born August 18, 1969) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received numerous awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe Award and three Academy Award nominations.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts and raised ...
had also been attached to the film in the early development stages.
In December 2000,
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known ...
was in discussions to star as Chuck Barris, with
Bryan Singer
Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed.
After graduating from the University of Southern California, Singer ...
directing and Clooney still aboard. However, Stiller was forced to vacate ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' due to scheduling conflicts with ''
Zoolander
''Zoolander'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by and starring Ben Stiller. The film contains elements from a pair of short films directed by Russell Bates and written by Drake Sather and Stiller for the '' VH1 Fashion Awards'' television ...
'' (2001) and ''
The Royal Tenenbaums
''The Royal Tenenbaums'' is a 2001 American comedy-drama film directed by Wes Anderson and co-written with Owen Wilson. It stars Danny Glover, Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Bill Murray, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson, and Owen W ...
'' (2001).
Although Singer was interested in
Sam Rockwell
Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as '' Lawn Dogs'' (19 ...
in the lead role,
the director cast
Johnny Depp to replace Stiller and commenced
pre-production
Pre-production is the process of planning some of the elements involved in a film, television show, play, or other performance, as distinct from production and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the content starts ...
in January 2001
on a planned $35 million budget. Renaissance Pictures was holding international distribution rights, but the filmmakers still needed more financing as well as a studio to cover distribution duties in the United States.
Grosvenor Park was interested in co-financing with Renaissance, but the next month (February 2001), ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' was once again stalled in development.
Miramax Films
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was initially a lead ...
had been negotiating for domestic rights, but difficulties arose when Miramax also wanted to cover international rights. Renaissance was also unable to close the financing in time to accommodate both the "production insurance" deadline and the 65-day
shooting schedule
A shooting schedule is a project plan of each day's shooting for a film production. It is normally created and managed by the assistant director, who reports to the production manager managing the production schedule
The production schedule is a ...
,
which was set to primarily take place in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
and
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, Canada.
Artisan Entertainment
Artisan Entertainment (formerly known as U.S.A. Home Video, International Video Entertainment (IVE) and LIVE Entertainment) was an American film studio and home video company. It was considered one of the largest mini-major film studios until ...
then became interested in covering North American distribution rights but dropped out after the bid went over $8 million. Johnny Depp eventually went to work on other films.
Director
With Singer busy preparing ''
X2'', ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' was rejuvenated with Clooney taking over as director.
Miramax Films
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was initially a lead ...
agreed to cover distribution duties and co-finance the film. In the end, funding for ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' came from Miramax, Clooney's own
Section Eight Productions
Section Eight Productions, or just Section Eight, was an American film production company founded in 2000 by film director Steven Soderbergh and actor/director George Clooney. It produced the critical hits '' Far from Heaven'', ''Insomnia'', '' ...
,
Village Roadshow Pictures
Village Roadshow Pictures is the American subsidiary of the Australian co-producer and co-financier of major Hollywood motion pictures established in 1986. It is a division under Village Roadshow Entertainment Group (VREG), which in turn is o ...
, producer
Andrew Lazar
Andrew Lazar (born 1966) is an American film producer and graduate of the New York University Tisch School of the Arts. He is associated with Mad Chance Productions, a production company he formed in 1997 and affiliated with Warner Bros., but als ...
's Mad Chance,
Allied Filmmakers
Allied Filmmakers was a British film production company, founded by Jake Eberts in London in 1985 as a film branch from Pathé.
Production filmography
*'' Hope and Glory'' (1987; uncredited)
*''The Adventures of Baron Munchausen'' (1988)
*''Las ...
, and
The Kushner-Locke Company
The Kushner-Locke Company was an American independent motion picture/television production founded on March 12, 1983 by Donald Kushner and Peter Locke.
It is known for films such as ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'', '' Liberace: Behind the Music ...
.
Clooney explained, "I thought if I came on board as a director, for scale, and was able to bring everybody else on inexpensively, if I could get the film back down to $30 million, then I was going to be able to get the film made. That was a big part of my
pitch to
Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein (; born March 19, 1952) is an American former film producer and convicted sex offender. He and his brother, Bob Weinstein, co-founded the entertainment company Miramax, which produced several successful independent films includ ...
at Miramax."
Because ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' was his directing debut, Clooney took inspiration from friends
Steven Soderbergh
Steven Andrew Soderbergh (; born January 14, 1963) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer and editor. A pioneer of modern independent cinema, Soderbergh is an acclaimed and prolific filmmaker.
Soderbergh's direc ...
and the
Coen brothers
Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...
for his filmmaking style.
Writer
Charlie Kaufman
Charles Stuart Kaufman (; born November 19, 1958) is an American filmmaker and novelist. He wrote the films '' Being John Malkovich'' (1999), '' Adaptation'' (2002), and '' Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'' (2004). He made his directorial ...
said he was dissatisfied with the way Clooney treated the screenplay. "I spent a lot of time working on the script," he explained, "but I don't think he was interested in the things I was interested in. I've moved on and I don't have any animosity towards Clooney, but it's a movie I don't really relate to." Clooney acknowledged that Kaufman's original script contained "really funky scenes that would never reach the green light of being a studio film."
A
drug addiction
Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use of ...
subplot was removed based on Barris's request for historical authenticity.
Clooney was adamant that Barris become heavily involved during production in an attempt to portray the film from his point of view.
Barris was so enthusiastic with Clooney's work on the film that he began writing ''Bad Grass Never Dies'' (), the sequel to ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind''; Miramax also owns the film rights to ''Bad Grass''.
Barris filmed
cameo appearance
A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
s of himself during the shoot in Canada and taped a
voice-over
Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non- diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentation ...
in Clooney's house.
When asked about Barris's claim of being a CIA assassin, Clooney commented, "I don't know how much I believed it. I didn't want to officially ask him, because I didn't want him to say, 'I made it up.' I wanted to tell the story and I thought how interesting, if it was all made up, why someone as wealthy and as successful as Chuck Barris would have to do that. I thought that was an interesting person to explore, and that's what we wanted to do with the film."
(Barris had already admitted he had made the story up in a 1984 interview promoting the book; he wrote the story in large part because he had been exiled from television over the controversy surrounding one of his shows, ''
3's a Crowd''. In the same interview, Barris noted that he had applied for work with the CIA in the early 1960s but never actually entered the agency; ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' was the product of Barris imagining how he could have done both at the same time.) Clooney acknowledged that his upbringing with father
Nick Clooney
Nicholas Joseph Clooney (born January 13, 1934) is an American journalist, anchorman, and television host. He is the brother of singer Rosemary Clooney and the father of actor George Clooney.
Early life
Clooney was born in Maysville, Kentucky, t ...
had a great bearing on his choice of depicting the 1960/70s
game show
A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...
s. "My father had a game show when I was growing up called ''
The Money Maze
''The Money Maze'' is an American television game show seen on ABC from December 23, 1974, to June 27, 1975. The show was hosted by Nick Clooney and was announced by Alan Kalter. It was produced by Daphne-Don Lipp Productions, of which Dick Cav ...
''. I know what those sets look like. I showed the guy how to do
cue card
Cue cards, also known as note cards, are cards with words written on them that help actors and speakers remember what they have to say. They are typically used in television productions where they can be held off-camera and are unseen by the au ...
s. I grew up on them," the director reflected, "and knew what it looked like and smelled like. And I know something about some of the trappings of fame, so I thought I had a unique take on it."
Casting
Casting the lead role of Barris was a long, difficult process. "After two months of
screen test
A screen test is a method of determining the suitability of an actor or actress for performing on film or in a particular role. The performer is generally given a scene, or selected lines and actions, and instructed to perform in front of a came ...
s and everything I still wasn't able to get
Sam Rockwell
Sam Rockwell (born November 5, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in independent films and also as a character actor portraying a wide variety of roles both comedic and dramatic in films such as '' Lawn Dogs'' (19 ...
," Clooney reflected.
Rockwell had always been Clooney's first choice ever since they worked together on ''
Welcome to Collinwood
''Welcome to Collinwood'' is a 2002 American caper comedy film written and directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and starring William H. Macy, Isaiah Washington, Sam Rockwell, Michael Jeter (in his last movie, during his lifetime), Luis Guzmán, Pa ...
'' (2002).
Both Clooney and Barris also believed Rockwell shared an
uncanny
The uncanny is the psychological experience of something as not simply mysterious, but creepy, often in a strangely familiar way. It may describe incidents where a familiar thing or event is encountered in an unsettling, eerie, or taboo context. ...
resemblance to Barris.
"I didn't want someone too famous to play the role," the director reasoned. "In my opinion, you cannot have famous people playing famous people. It doesn't work. Sam was the guy for the part, ready to break and hadn't yet."
Prior to his audition, Rockwell "immersed" himself in the role by watching episodes of ''
The Gong Show
''The Gong Show'' is an American amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976, through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976 to 1 ...
'' in an attempt to impress the filmmakers. "I went to LA
nddid an old-fashioned screen test, like a real
Scarlett O'Hara-type screen test, which you know they don't really do anymore," the actor remembered.
For research, Rockwell spent two and a half months with Barris. "We went to coffee shops and dinner and movies, took walks, went to the zoo; I even filmed him," Rockwell explained. "I had him tape my lines in a tape recorder, and I listened to that to get his voice down."
Clooney cast
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles in films encompassing a variety of genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and thr ...
as the mysterious CIA agent Patricia Watson due to their positive working relationship in ''
Ocean's Eleven
''Ocean's Eleven'' is a 2001 American heist comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh from a screenplay by Ted Griffin. The first installment in the ''Ocean's'' film trilogy, it is a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film of the same name. The ...
'' (2001). Her role was originally set for
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...
, who dropped out over scheduling conflicts with ''
The Hours''. After Rockwell's casting, ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' was once again briefly postponed; Miramax did not
greenlight
To green-light is to give permission to proceed with a project. The term is a reference to the green traffic signal, indicating "go ahead".
Film industry
In the context of the film and television industries, to green-light something is to ...
the film until Roberts signed on.
Clooney commented, "Julia really helped me. Her doing the part made it possible for me to cast Sam Rockwell. He can't drive a $28 million film, but Julia certainly can."
Renée Zellweger
Renée Kathleen Zellweger (; born April 25, 1969) is an American actress. The recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards, she was one of the world's highest-paid ...
and
Gwyneth Paltrow were considered for the Penny Pacino role, which eventually went to
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...
.
Miramax was unsure of Clooney's decision to cast Rockwell
over other famous actors such as
Robert Downey Jr.
Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965) is an American actor and producer. His career has been characterized by critical and popular success in his youth, followed by a period of substance abuse and legal troubles, before a resurgence of ...
, and
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known ...
.
Clooney convinced the studio into giving him the right of
final cut privilege
Final cut privilege (also known as ''final cutting authority'') is the right or entitlement of an individual to determine the final version of a motion picture for distribution and exhibition. The final cut on a film can be held by film studios ...
and casting Rockwell in exchange for
first-look deal
A first-look deal is any contract containing a clause granting, usually for a fee or other consideration that covers a specified period of time, a pre-emption right, right of first refusal, or right of first offer (also called a right of first neg ...
s on ''
Full Frontal'' (2002) and other
low-budget film
A low-budget film or low-budget movie is a motion picture shot with little to no funding from a major film studio or private investor. Many independent films are made on low budgets, but films made on the mainstream circuit with inexperienced or ...
s from Clooney's
Section Eight Productions
Section Eight Productions, or just Section Eight, was an American film production company founded in 2000 by film director Steven Soderbergh and actor/director George Clooney. It produced the critical hits '' Far from Heaven'', ''Insomnia'', '' ...
.
Clooney also agreed to cameo in Miramax's ''
Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over'' (2003) so Rockwell could be cast. To accommodate the $30 million budget, Clooney convinced Roberts and Barrymore to lower their
asking price
Ask price, also called offer price, offer, asking price, or simply ask, is the price a seller states they will accept.
The seller may qualify the stated asking price as firm or negotiable. Firm means the seller is implying that the price is fixed ...
s.
Filming
Under Clooney's direction, filming was initially set to begin in September 2001, but
principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...
did not start until January 14, 2002.
From January to March 2002, production for ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' took place primarily in
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
and
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
.
The Playboy Mansion
The Playboy Mansion, also known as the Playboy Mansion West, is the former home of ''Playboy'' magazine founder Hugh Hefner who lived there from 1974 until his death in 2017. Barbi Benton convinced Hefner to buy the home located in Holmby Hill ...
scene was shot in early April at Los Angeles, California; the remaining two weeks of production took place around the
Mexico – United States border
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
. Filming for ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' ended in late April 2002.
Clooney and
cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel
Newton Thomas Sigel, (born August 1955; sometimes credited as Tom Sigel) is an American cinematographer best known for his collaborations with director Bryan Singer on films like ''The Usual Suspects, Valkyrie,'' and the ''X-Men'' film franch ...
used various techniques when portraying the different decades of Barris's life. "We thought in order to go back in time, most people remember things through film," Clooney reasoned. "I don't remember the 1950s – I wasn't around for them – I know the 50s through
Technicolor
Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades.
Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...
. Not Technicolor as it was shot, but Technicolor as it has faded now."
The filmmakers studied various films and magazine issues of that decade for inspiration on the color palette.
Racking focus
A focus puller or first assistant camera (1st AC) is a member of a film crew's camera department whose primary responsibility is to maintain the camera lens's optical focus on whatever subject or action is being filmed.
"Pulling focus" refers to ...
es were highly stylized for scenes set in the 1960s, similar to the
Spaghetti Westerns of that era.
Hand-held camera
Hand-held camera or hand-held shooting is a filmmaking and video production technique in which a camera is held in the camera operator's hands as opposed to being mounted on a tripod or other base. Hand-held cameras are used because they are conve ...
s were used for scenes set in the 1970s,
an
homage to the films of
Sidney Lumet
Sidney Arthur Lumet ( ; June 25, 1924 – April 9, 2011) was an American film director. He was nominated five times for the Academy Award: four for Best Director for ''12 Angry Men'' (1957), ''Dog Day Afternoon'' (1975), ''Network'' (1976), ...
,
Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols (born Michael Igor Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was an American film and theater director, producer, actor, and comedian. He was noted for his ability to work across a range of genres and for his aptitude fo ...
and
Alan J. Pakula
Alan Jay Pakula (; April 7, 1928 – November 19, 1998) was an American film director, writer and producer. He was nominated for three Academy Awards: Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Picture for ''To Kill a Mockingbird (film), To Kill a Moc ...
, primarily ''
Klute
''Klute'' is a 1971 American neo-noir crime thriller film directed and produced by Alan J. Pakula, written by Andy and Dave Lewis, and starring Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, Charles Cioffi, and Roy Scheider. The film follows a high-priced call ...
'' (1971), ''
Carnal Knowledge
Carnal knowledge is an archaic or legal euphemism for sexual intercourse. In modern statutes, the term " sexual penetration" is widely used, though with various definitions.
Biblical source
The term derives from ''carnal'', meaning "of the fles ...
'' (1971), and ''
The Parallax View
''The Parallax View'' is a 1974 American political thriller film produced and directed by Alan J. Pakula, and starring Warren Beatty, Hume Cronyn, William Daniels and Paula Prentiss. The screenplay by David Giler and Lorenzo Semple Jr. was base ...
'' (1974).
Bob Fosse
Robert Louis Fosse (; June 23, 1927 – September 23, 1987) was an American actor, choreographer, dancer, and film and stage director. He directed and choreographed musical works on stage and screen, including the stage musicals ''The Pajam ...
's ''
All That Jazz'' also influenced Clooney's direction.
Clooney commented that
post-production
Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments.
The ...
for ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' was stressful because he was simultaneously acting in ''
Solaris
Solaris may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Literature, television and film
* ''Solaris'' (novel), a 1961 science fiction novel by Stanisław Lem
** ''Solaris'' (1968 film), directed by Boris Nirenburg
** ''Solaris'' (1972 film), directed by ...
'' (2002).
Reception
Release
To
tie in with the release of the film,
Miramax Books
Miramax Books was an American publishing company started by Bob and Harvey Weinstein of Miramax Films to publish movie tie-ins. Between 2000 and 2005, while Jonathan Burnham was its president and editor-in-chief, the imprint published the memoirs ...
republished Barris's 1984 book. The film premiered out-of-competition at the May
2002 Cannes Film Festival before
Miramax Films
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was initially a lead ...
gave it a
limited release
__FORCETOC__
Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...
in the United States on December 31, 2002; the
wide release In the American motion picture industry, a wide release (short for nationwide release) is a film playing at the same time at cinemas in most markets across the country. This is in contrast to the formerly common practice of a roadshow theatrical r ...
came on January 24, 2003.
The film only barely recouped its production costs, grossing only $33.01 million, of which $16 million was domestic revenue and $17.01 million came from foreign markets.
It also suffered poor sales in its September 2003
Region 1 DVD
DVD region codes are a digital rights management technique introduced in 1997. It is designed to allow rights holders to control the international distribution of a DVD release, including its content, release date, and price, all according to ...
release. The DVD includes over 20 minutes of
deleted scene
A deleted scene is footage that has been removed from the final version of a film or television show. There are various reasons why these scenes are deleted, which include time constraints, relevance, quality or a dropped story thread. A similar o ...
s, Rockwell's three
screen test
A screen test is a method of determining the suitability of an actor or actress for performing on film or in a particular role. The performer is generally given a scene, or selected lines and actions, and instructed to perform in front of a came ...
s, a short documentary titled ''The Real Chuck Barris'', Clooney's
audio commentary
An audio commentary is an additional audio track, usually digital, consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with a video. Commentaries can be serious or entertaining in nature, and can add informatio ...
, and a
making-of
In cinema, behind-the-scenes (BTS), also known as the making-of, the set, or on the set, is a type of documentary film that features the production of a film or television program. This is often referred to as the EPK (electronic press kit) vid ...
featurette.
Critical response
The film received positive responses from critics. On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film holds an approval rating of 79% based on 165 reviews, with an average rating of 7.2/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Rockwell is spot-on as Barris, and Clooney directs with entertaining style and flair." On ''
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
'', the film has a weighted average score of 67/100, based on 33 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' was shown at the
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festi ...
on February 10, 2003. Sam Rockwell won the
Silver Bear for Best Actor
The Silver Bear for Best Actor (german: Silberner Bär/Bester Darsteller) was an award presented at the Berlin International Film Festival from 1956 to 2020. It was given to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance and was chosen by ...
and George Clooney was nominated the
Golden Bear
The Golden Bear (german: Goldener Bär) is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival. The bear is the heraldic animal of Berlin, featured on both the coat of arms and flag of Berlin.
History
The win ...
but lost to
Michael Winterbottom
Michael Winterbottom (born 29 March 1961) is an English film director. He began his career working in British television before moving into features. Three of his films—''Welcome to Sarajevo'', ''Wonderland'' and ''24 Hour Party People''—h ...
of ''
In This World
''In This World'' is a 2002 British docudrama directed by Michael Winterbottom. The film follows two young Afghan refugees, Jamal Udin Torabi and Enayatullah, as they leave a refugee camp in Pakistan for a better life in London. Since their jour ...
''.
Roger Ebert gave ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' a positive review, awarding it 3 out of 4 stars. "George Clooney's directorial debut is not only intriguing as a story but great to look at," Ebert said, "a marriage of bright pop images from the 1960s and 1970s and dark, cold spyscapes that seem to have wandered in from
John le Carré
David John Moore Cornwell (19 October 193112 December 2020), better known by his pen name John le Carré ( ), was a British and Irish author, best known for his espionage novels, many of which were successfully adapted for film or television. ...
."
Peter Travers
Peter Joseph Travers (born ) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film interview prog ...
of
''Rolling Stone'' magazine wrote that the film carried a perfect balance of dark humor and psychological drama. "Clooney tackles a far-reaching absurdist fantasy with Barris as a
paradigm of paranoia," Travers reviewed. "He wisely hooks up with talent he worked with as an actor: cinematographer
Newton Thomas Sigel
Newton Thomas Sigel, (born August 1955; sometimes credited as Tom Sigel) is an American cinematographer best known for his collaborations with director Bryan Singer on films like ''The Usual Suspects, Valkyrie,'' and the ''X-Men'' film franch ...
, from ''
Three Kings
The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the ...
'' (1999), and editor
Stephen Mirrione from ''
Ocean's Eleven
''Ocean's Eleven'' is a 2001 American heist comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh from a screenplay by Ted Griffin. The first installment in the ''Ocean's'' film trilogy, it is a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film of the same name. The ...
'' (2001)."
Mick LaSalle
Mick is a masculine given name, usually a short form ( hypocorism) of Michael. Because of its popularity in Ireland, it is often used in England as a derogatory term for an Irish person or a person of Irish descent. In Australia the meaning broad ...
from the ''
San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The ...
'' wrote that "there may be more entertaining and less problematic movies, but ''Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' has something about it that hangs in there, working on the mind like a dog gnawing on a table leg. The movie makes a case for itself through sheer oddness and perversity. I'm not sure ''Confessions'' is a good movie, but I am sure I like it."
Owen Gleiberman, writing in ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'', observed that "Sam Rockwell is handsome in a rumpled, slightly goofy rabbit-toothed way, but he doesn't really have the look, or aura, of a
movie star
A movie star (also known as a film star or cinema star) is an actor or actress who is famous for their starring, or leading, roles in movies. The term is used for performers who are marketable stars as they become popular household names and w ...
," Glieberman stated. "He's more like a weirdly sincere space cadet, babbling to himself with puppyish befuddlement, breaking into funky soft dance moves that look as if he's been doing them in his bedroom since he was 8. All of which makes him an inspired choice to play Chuck Barris."
Kenneth Turan
Kenneth Turan (; born October 27, 1946) is an American retired film critic, author, and lecturer in the Master of Professional Writing Program at the University of Southern California. He was a film critic for the ''Los Angeles Times'' from 1991 ...
of the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' gave a negative review. He disliked the characterization of Chuck Barris and commented that "with its multiplicity of over-stylized looks and slick gimmicks, ''Dangerous Mind'' was doubtless more stimulating to direct than it will be for audiences to experience." Internet reviewer
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli (born September 25, 1967) is an American film critic and former engineer. His reviews are mainly published on his blog ''ReelViews.'' Approved as a critic by the aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, he has published two collections of r ...
wrote a mixed critique. "George Clooney is eager to show how much he has learned at the hands of the A-list filmmakers he has toiled under. So we get a style that is about 50%
Steven Soderbergh
Steven Andrew Soderbergh (; born January 14, 1963) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer and editor. A pioneer of modern independent cinema, Soderbergh is an acclaimed and prolific filmmaker.
Soderbergh's direc ...
and 50%
Coen brothers
Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...
. Sometimes it works, but mostly it comes across as too artsy, with all sorts of bizarre angles and unusual shots."
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Confessions of a Dangerous Mindat the Internet Movie Script Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind
2002 films
2000s mystery comedy-drama films
2000s spy comedy-drama films
American biographical films
American mystery comedy-drama films
American spy comedy-drama films
Miramax films
English-language German films
German spy comedy-drama films
2000s English-language films
Films directed by George Clooney
Films with screenplays by Charlie Kaufman
Films about the Central Intelligence Agency
Cold War spy films
Films about television
Films based on non-fiction books
Films scored by Alex Wurman
Films set in Berlin
Films set in Helsinki
Films set in Los Angeles
Films set in Mexico
Films set in Massachusetts
Films set in New York City
Films set in Philadelphia
Films set in the 1940s
Films set in the 1950s
Films set in the 1960s
Films set in the 1970s
Films set in the 1980s
Films shot in Montreal
Films shot in California
Films shot in Florida
American neo-noir films
American nonlinear narrative films
2000s biographical films
2002 directorial debut films
2002 comedy films
2002 drama films
Films based on biographies
Biographical films about entertainers
Films set in West Germany
Films shot in Los Angeles
2000s American films
2000s German films