Polanski Directing ‘God of Carnage’ Film

Deadline.com has reported that Academy Award winning director, Roman Polanski’s next film project is adapting the Tony-Award winning play, God of Carnage. Yasmina Reza’s play is a dark comedy about two sets of parents who meet after a bloodied fight transpires between their young sons at school. As heated arguments ensue, accusations of inadequate parenting skills run amuck, and personal problems air, each couple reflects on their ultimate role in the children’s fight. The quartet of characters will be played by Academy Award winner’s Kate Winslet (The Reader), Jodie Foster (Silence of the Lambs), Christoph Waltz (Inglorious Basterds), and nominee Matt Dillon (Crash). There is no word yet of how the actors will be coupled or which parts they are playing, but I’d like to see Winslet paired with Dillon, and Foster with Waltz.

Although the story takes place in Brooklyn, filming is set to begin in February of next year for twelve weeks in Paris. Due to Polanski’s French citizenship, he is safe from extradition to the United States for charges against him of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor from 1977.

When God of Carnage debuted at New York City’s Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on Broadway to rave reviews in March 2009, the cast included Hollywood stars like three-time Emmy winner James Gandolfini (The Sopranos), Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden (Whip It), and Golden Globe nominees Jeff Daniels (Speed) and Hope Davis (About Schmidt). All four were nominated for Tony Awards. However, Harden was the only cast member to take home a trophy. Also, the dramedy earned a Tony for Best Play and Best Direction for Matthew Warchus.

When the cast ended their run in November 2009, the acclaim and success of the debut run enticed more Hollywood faces such as Emmy winner Jimmy Smitts (West Wing), Golden Globe Winner Annie Potts (Designing Women), and Academy Award winner Christine Lahti (Chicago Hope), along with Scottish actor Ken Stott, to take over until February of 2010. The final cast included Emmy nominees Dylan Baker (The Good Wife) and Lucy Liu (Kill Bill: Vol. 1), Academy Award nominee Janet McTeer (Tumbleweed), and Jeff Daniels, who returned to reprise Gandolfini’s original role. The Broadway show finally closed in June 2010 after a total of 452 performances.

On a personal note… I saw the original production of God of Carnage last fall. The play itself is a riveting, modern day depiction of what I’ve always loved about Edward Albee or Sam Shepard’s contemporary plays. As these characters are in conflict with each other, their internal conflicts add more fuel to the already complex fire of clashing personalities, inviting the audience into an investigation of the human condition. The performance as a separate entity was impressive for the most part, but overall lacking the appropriate luster that I anticipated from such a decorated cast of talented actors.

With such an all-star cast slated for the film version, God of Carnage has the potential to blow audiences away with its raw illustration of marriage, parenting, and a battle of the sexes. Of course, there’s always something magical to be said about witnessing first-hand such a compelling story at a Broadway theatre in a way that isn’t quite captured on screen all the time. However, a tour-de-force combination of Polanski’s genius, the flawless Winslet, powerhouse Foster, dynamic Waltz, and sometimes under-estimated Dillon can bring a whole new, unexpected livelihood to Reza’s world where more wrongs prevail than desperate rights.