Filmmaker Roman Coppola is no stranger to chronicling strange corners of some seminal cultural decades. While he's spent the last decade assisting friends and family like Sofia, Francis Ford Coppola and Wes Anderson (he co-wrote the upcoming "Moonrise Kingdom") his vastly underrated directorial debut, "CQ," is a hilarious and wonderfully weird look at the '60s, filtered through the black and white solipsism of the French New Wave and the wacky, outre aesthetic of spy films like "Danger Diabolik" and cornball sci-fi like "Barbarella."
Coppola not only embraced the cheesier elements of that genre (as the Beastie Boys also did in their homage to 'Diabolik' for the video "Body Movin' "), but worked them in his favor both comedically and stylistically. Essentially, ahead of the curve, "CQ" fell on deaf ears when it was released in 2001, but it showcased the unique talents of the filmmaker who had already been highlighting his skills in various music videos (Air, The Strokes, etc.).
So, suffice to say we're greatly anticipating his upcoming follow-up, " A Glimpse Into The Mind Of Charlie Swan III," which features the an awesome all-star cast fronted by Charlie Sheen. Not only that according to co-star Aubrey Plaza, the film will explore and put a twist on another iconic decade.
"I've seen some clips from the film and it's delicious," she teased to MTV last week while promoting her Sundance time-travel comedy "Safety Not Guaranteed." Well, in what way is it delicious exactly?
"Well, you got Charlie Sheen being crazy, Bill Murray's in it. Jason Schwartzman is playing a stand-up comedian, he has like a full beard and he's amazing. It's a really, really playful, fun movie set kind of like a fantasy version of the '70s," she said. "So everything looks amazing. Roman has such a unique voice, he's an amazing director and Charlie is an amazing actor and I think its gonna be really good."
Considering how hysterical Coppola's take was on the '60s — the lead in that film is a filmmaker directing a cheesy sci-fi/spy film –we're pretty intrigued to see what he's cooked up for his version of the '70s. Another potentially fabulous element could be the music. "CQ" was scored by French band Mellow and while they failed to every gain traction Stateside, the comical brew of futuristic psychedelia they concocted for the film is aces (and we included it in our Best Scores Of The Decade feature we penned at the end of the aughts). We do know Beck, Spoon, Air, Jason Falkner, Brian Reitzell and Sofia Coppola collaborator Roger Neil ("Beginners," "Tanner Hall") is composing the score to 'Charlie Swan'), and we're hoping his score (and the soundtrack choices) are rather boss.
Arriving in 2012? Too early to tell and the calendar might be a little too crowded this year, but is conceivable that it could debut in a place like the Venice Film Festival in September. Fingers crossed.
I have to agree with Jimmiescoffee. I was drawn to seeing this film with the false promise it would be a film in the same bawdy Tongue in Cheek vein as Barbarella, but alas no!
After watching it my first thought was that it was an expensive attempt by Roman Coppola to get in to the pants of Angela Lindvall. It had its moments, but there was a reason why it bombed at the cineplex and has remained dead ever since.
The cast of this offering is as impressive as CQ, which has me a bit worried. Let's hope he ran the script past his father and sister before exposing that first frame of film…
I remain skeptical about this one…
godammmmmn. the playlist has such an incredible hard-on for 'CQ.' i mean, we get it. personally, i enjoyed seeing it quite a bit and actually remember the theater i saw it in and who i was with. but fuck me it's barely more than a passing grade 80 minute student film.