Steven Soderbergh has long made a habit of keeping a wide-ranging roster of regular collaborators to turn to, depending on the needs of whatever project he's working on. And with the cameras now rolling on his next effort "The Bitter Pill" he's taking a step away from the electronic-driven scores by Cliff Martinez and David Holmes of his last two films "Contagion" and "Haywire."
Sources close to the project have confirmed with The Playlist that ten-time Oscar nominee Thomas Newman will be scoring the upcoming thriller. It seems that Newman and Soderbergh have made an unofficial pact to work together every six years, first pairing up in 2000 for "Erin Brockovich" and again in 2006 for "The Good German" (with Newman earning an Ocar nod for his work). This time around he'll cue the strings for the film which stars Rooney Mara, Channing Tatum, Jude Law, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Vinessa Shaw in a story about a young woman who turns to prescription meds to deal with the anxiety caused by her husband's upcoming relase from prison. The film is slated for a February 8, 2013 release, but you'll be able to hear some fresh Newman tunes before then, as he's also scoring the blockbuster "Skyfall" this year.
In related news, Deadline reports the electronic musician and tea enthusiast Moby will be scoring "The Necessary Death Of Charlie Countryman." Starring Shia LaBeouf, Evan Rachel Wood, Mads Mikkelsen, Melissa Leo and Til Schweiger, the action flick tells the story of a young man who goes to Europe, falls in love and gets tangled up with a mobster. Moby's music has cued more than a few moments in feature films and commercials over the years, so it only makes sense that he would eventually transition into writing a score himself. Filming kicks off in May.
I really like "Playlist" and I am always interested in your content; except for the documentary offered in "SnagFilms" entitled "Bullfight at Malaga." I know that the documentarian's job is to portray the truth and the truth can be, and often is, in fact, ugly. But, to me, this is a staged event that has at its center the torture and death of a bull. It may be "cultural heritage" that Spain uses as an excuse to continue the barbarity that takes place; to me that is a facade. My point is this: why celebrate the mutilation of an animal for sport? Why not have a documentary that cheers the "hunter" when they slaughter baby seals and include a track of people cheering in the background? I just don't understand how a site dedicated to "independent" (which translates into "aware" "insightful" and "progressive") film would even offer a documentary that glorifies two killers as they "face off " and two magnificent animals are sacrificed in the process. Why not let the "Animal Exploitation for Ego Inflation" channel cover this hideous display of cruelty. I realize that it is "Snagfilms" that is actually putting the video up as a choice of documentary to view. I also realize that it is the producers and the director of this "film" that I should be directing my wrath toward. I plan to send "comments" to them as well. But, I also feel that you are as responsible as they are for the perpetration, and in this case, the glorification of animal torture because you do not set a standard of practice for what you present as "independent" in film. Bullfight footage has been around for a very long time. There is nothing new and insightful about this. It remains the gruesome practice that it has always been. To imagine that the childish premise of "I'm better than you are" which is at the core of this "documentary" is enough to call it "independent" makes me ask you: why not film dog fights and bear baiting, not to expose them for their barbarity; but to put the dog owners that promote these atrocities on a pedestal because of their tenacity. It's the same premise, isn't it. Shame on all of you. I don't want to receive your newsletter any more. You're not "independent" you are archaic.