the family fang ( film )
“the family fang” was one of the most buzzed about titles heading into the toronto film festival .
nicole kidman on the set of her new movie ,
the family fang .
the family fang is funny and bittersweet, poignant and often bracingly dark. the hollywood reporter
jason bateman and nicole kidman play brother and sister in' the family fang.'
nicole kidman and jason bateman in the family fang. courtesy of starz digital hide caption
starz media’s ryan heller and michael messina caught jason bateman’s sophomore feature directorial the family fang at last year’s toronto international film festival .
the family fang is far from the feel good movie of the year. but it has purpose .
family fang follows a brother and sister who return to their family home in search of their famous parents after they go missing .
nicole kidman, jason bateman and christopher walken attend the tribeca film festival premiere of their new film,' the family fang.' kidman, who had husband keith urban by her side, optioned the book that the quirky film is based on. (april 16 )
jason bateman (second from left) directs a scene in the new film adaptation of' the family fang,' in which he stars with nicole kidman .
kidman and wilson called the tennessean to chat about “the family fang” and what makes it appealing, relatable and compelling .
even when the family fang stretches credulity, we stay with it. bateman knows how to tell a story .
looking for movie tickets? enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing the family fang near you .
a month after it premiered at the toronto film festival, starz has purchased u. s. rights to jason bateman ’s dark comedy “ the family fang ” and is planning to release the film theatrically in 2016, variety has learned .
jason bateman (center) and nicole kidman (right) attend the premiere of' the family fang' with co - star christopher walken at tribeca film festival in new york .
starz has snapped up all u. s. distribution rights to the jason bateman - directed family drama the family fang with plans of a 2016 theatrical release through its multiplatform label starz digital. following a theatrical play and home entertainment release, family fang will play exclusively on starz. family fang premiered at the toronto film festival and was in the mix among those titles that would eventually land acquisition. bateman’s feature directorial debut bad words played the festival in 2013 and was acquired by focus features .
we all know readers are predisposed to hate the movie version, but fans of kevin wilson' s the family fang should not have too many bones to pick with the family fang (2016), a mostly faithful translation of the book. helmed by arrested development (2003 -)' s jason bateman and premiering at tribeca film festival 2016, the family fang preserves a number of wholly intact scenes and driving plot arcs from the original story .
if you spot family fang filming in nyc, let us know about it at olv @ onlocationvacations. com !
sensitively directed by bateman, the family fang features superb performances from its excellent cast, and is an insightful portrait of a strange family with all too familiar problems of connection .
read more: tiff review: jason bateman’s ‘the family fang’ starring bateman, nicole kidman & christopher walken “the family fang” premiered at last year’s toronto international film festival. starz digital will release it in new york tomorrow, april 28, before expanding to select cities nationwide and on demand on may 6 .
in a pre - cannes move, christopher walken has joined jason bateman and nicole kidman in the comedy “ the family fang. ”
movie review: the family fang jason bateman directs a cast including himself, nicole kidman and christopher walken in the story of a family where the parents' experimental performances included the kids from an early age .
bateman knows his fractured family well, but
fang
doesn' t give him enough to chew on. the characters are all scarred, but the film doesn' t leave a mark .
nicole kidman teams with local author for' the family fang' the nashville actress and author kevin wilson discuss their upcoming film and what makes it appealing and compelling. check out this story on urltoken urltoken
united kingdom «the family fang» in the uk has no theatrical release date. the movie released on dvd and blu - ray on february 6, 2017 .
nicole kidman (left) and jason bateman play grown children of performance artists in' the family fang,' adapted from the kevin wilson novel .
stars film scenes for' the family fang' in new york city, new york on july 24, 2014. the movie tells the story of a brother and sister who return to their family home in search of their world famous parents who have disappeared. < br / > pictured: kathryn hahn
directed by bateman, the family fang opens april 29 in new york and goes nationwide may 6. watch the trailer above, and check out the exclusive poster below .
nicole kidman, jason bateman lead less private lives in' family fang' a new film based on kevin wilson' s novel is also shaped by its stars behind the scenes. check out this story on urltoken urltoken
“the family fang” is rated r (under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian). adult language. running time: 1 hour 47 minutes .
actors nicole kidman and jason bateman are spotted filming bateman' s
the family fang
in westchester, new york, on aug. 7 .
even knoxville’s bad - boy image is a boon to the film, shriver said .
when kevin wilson takes a seat in a movie theater in toronto next week to watch the world premiere of the film adaptation of his critically acclaimed bestselling novel the family fang, he will be like most of the other guests there—he’ll be seeing the movie for the first time. five years after wilson finished writing his novel, the quirky family drama is hitting the big screen at the toronto international film festival on sept. 14 and wilson will be there, popcorn in hand .
the family fang
is kind of messy but also fun and touching; it' s a definite step forward for bateman as a director ...
on the heels of its premiere at the toronto international film festival earlier last month, variety report that starz has picked up the u. s. rights to “ the family fang, ” jason bateman ’s sophomore directorial feature starring nicole kidman, christopher walken and bateman himself .
a month after it premiered at the toronto film festival, starz has purchased u. s. rights to jason bateman’s dark comedy “the family fang” and is planning to release the film theatrically in 2016, variety has learned. as part of the deal, starz digital will handle the dramedy’s digital, on - demand, and theatrical rollout. starz’s anchor bay [ … ]
nicole, you bought the rights to kevin’s book “the family fang” and your production company, blossom films, produced it. can you explain the role your production company plays in the work you take on ?
the film has received generally positive reviews with a 79% score on aggregate site rotten tomatoes :
critics' consensus: layered performances from nicole kidman and director - star jason bateman add extra depth to the family fang' s sharply observed look at domestic dysfunction .
following its debut at key west film festival (with a party at his home on the island), the title screened at the havana film festival, filling the 1, 600 - seat yara theater. yari film group is releasing the title itself. the feature will open in more than 300 theaters in a traditional window this weekend .
the nashville actress and author kevin wilson discuss their upcoming film and what makes it appealing and compelling .
there’s a good film hiding in “the family fang, ” one that i desperately wanted to see reveal itself. it does in the form of the performances, and the reveal at the end is rather ingenious. it doesn’t feel earned, though, making one wish it were. i wanted to like “the family fang, ” warts and all, but anytime i grew comfortable with it, the overwritten script reared its ugly head. one of the criticisms lodged against the performance artists in the documentary was that their stunts were hollow; fitting as that’s how the overall production felt .
the film will surely leave you with some compelling questions to mull over, not just about parenting, but about the impact of death, whether real or imagined, and if one is more valid than the other. it may not be as poignant a story as its characters give way to, nor reach the cathartic resolutions it builds towards, but the family fang is still a refreshingly creative approach to the family drama .
the fangs may be an odder family than most, but the damage they inflict is a matter of attitude .
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a new film based on kevin wilson' s novel is also shaped by its stars behind the scenes .
obviously, movies like the family fang are tough to get made. as a director, do you seek out material that, maybe, is sometimes hard to come by as an actor ?
principal photography will commence in july with bateman directing in his follow - up to “bad words. ” “ the family fang ” is based on david lindsay - abaire’s adaptation of the novel by kevin wilson .
bateman and kidman will portray siblings who grew up in a performance artist family and learn the hard way about the differences between real life and art when their parents inexplicably disappear. walken will play the siblings’ father caleb fang .
this family - friendly take on the classic novel takes a light approach to its naturalistic source material .
the family fang tells the story of annie and buster, the children of performance artists caleb and camille fang, who have subjected their progeny to an unconventional childhood by continually having them play roles in their parents’ unsettling public performance pieces. after suffering a series of professional and personal disasters, the adult fang children return home to reckon with their past and the older fangs, who have always been more committed to their art than their parenting .
papa hemingway had its debut as the opening night film of the key west film festival in november where the legendary writer lived part of his life. the feature then screened at the havana film festival in december, not far from another place hemingway called home. filmmaker bob yari had first read the story a decade ago, and acquired the script from writer denne bart petitclerc’s widow in 2009 .
new york — in the new film the family fang, an adaptation of kevin wilson' s best - selling novel, nicole kidman and jason bateman — who both savor time out of the spotlight with their spouses and children — play a brother and sister whose performance - artist parents put them on public display during their childhood .
fang is directed by bateman with a sensitivity that the story' s sour whimsy doesn' t quite deserve .
adapted from the novel of the same name by kevin wilson and penned by “rabbit hole” writer david lindsay - abaire, “the family fang” is a dark comedy featuring kidman and bateman as siblings whose attempt to reconnect with their parents over the course of a chaotic family weekend is thrown for a loop when their performance artist parents turn up missing .
a humorless, debbie downer of a dysfunctional family drama, all the more disappointing given its promising pedigree .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans. it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
“ jason bateman continues to impress as a director, ” said brett marottoli, vice president of acquisitions for starz, in a statement. “‘the family fang’ is as moving as it is funny and features a stellar cast at the top of their game. we can’t wait to bring such an impassioned film to audiences. ”
actress melanie griffith attends a press conference during the 67th locarno film festival on aug. 7 in locarno, switzerland .
everyone’s parents are weird in their own way, but not everyone’s parents are weird for a living. such is the case for jason bateman and nicole kidman’s sibling characters in the first trailer for the family fang, which debuts exclusively via ew .
walken’s caleb fang has a mantra of sorts: “if you’re in control, the chaos will happen around you, not to you. ” bateman does maintain a certain directorial control, and true to caleb’s words, the family fang sometimes seems to be happening around him—in the vicinity of two good performances from bateman and kidman, rather than in concert with them. bateman’s instincts for restraint are probably spot - on in theory. the family fang, with its bizarre art projects and family melancholy, could easily become a quirk pageant. but the movie downplays its whimsicality so thoroughly that the real intrigue—the mystery of what has or hasn’t happened to the fang parents—gets pushed off, practically out of the movie. it’s not that the mystery isn’t resolved so much that the movie doesn’t seem all that concerned with its resolution, or its set - up, or a sense of discovery in general .
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while all the above points are comparatively minor, a more significant question is whether the film has adapted the overall mood and style of the novel. on one level, the film succeeds in capturing the dark dysfunction and black humour of many moments. the themes are carried onscreen and sometimes (as in the analysis of the purpose of the fangs' art) even more neatly extracted for the audience .
two siblings, baxter and annie fang (jason bateman and nicole kidman), return to their family home in search of their world famous parents (christopher walken and maryann plunkett) who have disappeared .
around the world «the family fang» scheduled worldwide dvd release dates: february 6, 2017 (uk), december 12, 2016 (south africa), march 8, 2017 (nz), march 8, 2017 (australia) .
the film includes about 150 disabled athletes and actors — the largest population of intellectual disabled people ever portrayed in a mainstream movie, farrelly said .
what’s most unfortunate is that the family fang leaves so many ideas on the table that would have made for a far more fascinating film, one befitting its unique premise. while exploring their family’s home, baxter and annie find a collection of their mother’s paintings, which have a henry darger quality to them. these works are extraordinary, and they speak to the promising career camille gave up for caleb. she comments that her husband would be furious if he discovered them, so camille keeps them hidden away. for some reason, the movie discards this narrative almost instantly. for all the care and effort the family fang expends on sketching a fleshed - out portrait of a miserable sociopath, it never extends the same courtesy to his biggest victim .
the titular family fang are performance artists that have become an indie sensation. some see their stunts as brilliant social commentary on life, while others see it as nothing more than hollow gags. regardless, the family has amassed great success, at least for performance artists. what they haven’t achieved is a healthy lifestyle, with the children growing up emotionally crippled .
the family fang stars bateman, nicole kidman, christopher walken, and maryann plunkett. growing up, the fang siblings were involved — or “used, ” depending on how you look at it — in their parents’ performance art. when the famous performance artists go missing, the brother and sister (bateman and kidman) begin to dig deeper into the past, trying to understand the exact effect their parents had on them .
for people who enjoyed wilson' s book, this faithful adaptation will be a welcome reminder of its
beautiful spontaneity ,
to quote from the fang manifesto. and for those unfamiliar with it, the film will provide reasons to seek it out .
things take another turn when the fang parents disappear under mysterious circumstances. foul play or fine art? only time will tell .
an interview with writer / director boots riley about his incendiary new film ,
sorry to bother you .
though a family drama on the surface, the family fang, based on kevin wilson’s 2011 novel, excels by using art as the lens to explore its characters. as a family of artists, each fang has their own troubled relationship to creativity. annie uses her acting career to distance herself from the fame of child a, yet she’s become pigeonholed by rom - com roles. at one point a director insists she does a topless scene, and while it’s mainly a sexist ploy from a sleazy filmmaker, annie does it to take control of her image, no longer living as her parent’s prop .
like most families in this world, “the family fang” is dysfunctional and slightly disappointing, but it proves without a shadow of a doubt that bateman is improving nicely as a director. anyone who saw “bad words” had perfectly good reason to question his skills, seeing as how toothless and unfortunately unfunny that movie is. thanks to “the family fang, ” however, we can all forget about shabby beginnings and get excited again about his future as a director. [ b ]
the family fang particularly succeeds as a showcase for walken, who is skilled at bringing to life men of unbending will. his most famous scene as an actor is perhaps a moment from michael cimino’s great the deer hunter, in which he plays a vietnam soldier, nick, with a taste for russian roulette. his head wrapped in a red bandage, nick barely blinks as he repeatedly pulls the trigger. every moment of his in the family fang is that scene, both his characters unflinching as they are compelled forward, as if by unseen forces. decades later, walken has perfected that haunted look of determination, and in bateman’s film, the actor’s gaze turns monstrous. walken, now 73, is too often typecast based on his trademark speech patterns, and the family fang is a reminder of what a remarkable actor he can be. it’s a return to form .
a brother and sister return to their family home in search of their world famous parents who have disappeared .
reviewed at toronto film festival (special presentations), sept. 14, 2015. running time: 106 min .
wang bing keeps things short with this affecting, unsettling portrait of a woman in the last stages of alzheimer’s. wang records fang xiuying’s final days receiving palliative care at home in rural china, after being released from a hospital where treatment eventually proved ineffective. in the cramped downstairs lounge where fang resides, we observe the family bicker about her condition, second - guess her feelings, question her sentience and mourn her impending loss. this is not a sentimental film, but more a stark, honest and reflective one .
“it’s a very striking piece of filmmaking, ” said oscilloscope exec andrew carlin. “piero messina is a protege of paulo sorrentino…which is obvious when you see the film. juliette binoche and lou de laâge are great. the film encapsulates what we want to see when we go to the movies. ”
while we can debate the larger tonal changes, overall it will be hard for fans of fang to fault this movie for leaving the book too far behind .
jason bateman proves that' bad words' was no fluke with this sharp and affecting dysfunctional - family portrait .
based on kevin wilson’s tragicomic novel, the film stars bateman and kidman as baxter and annie fang, the adult children of two celebrated new york performance artists (played by christopher walken and maryann plunkett) who made a career staging elaborate pranks and often enlisted their kids to help out .
kidman and bateman make a potent team in a provocative film that questions the limits of art in a world that forgets to be human. rolling stone
oscilloscope’s l’attesa (the wait) boasts the attention to aesthetic evident in paolo sorrentino’s the great beauty. not coincidentally, l’attesa’s filmmaker, piero messina, served as sorrentino’s assistant director on the oscar - winning film .
kidman optioned the dark, family dramedy for a movie through her production company, blossom films. the film — directed by jason bateman and starring bateman and kidman along with christopher walken and maryann plunkett — opens friday in theaters and will also be available through on demand, itunes and amazon .
if leo tolstoy once claimed in anna karenina that “every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, ” that’s because he never watched an independent film. the “dysfunctional family drama” is such well - trod territory at this point that the pat familiarity of the genre is difficult for filmmakers to transcend. jason bateman, who has mounted his second directorial feature with an adaptation of kevin wilson’s darkly comic novel, the family fang, starred in one of these last year. this is where i leave you co - starred a group of likable actors — including tina fey, adam driver, and corey stoll — playing siblings who unearth dark secrets and learn difficult lessons, just in time for a group photo .
based on kevin wilson’s novel, the family fang was adapated by david lindsay - abaire and follows adult siblings baxter (jason bateman) and annie (nicole kidman), who scarred from an unconventional upbringing, return to their family home. when their parents (christopher walken and maryann plunkett) — performance artists famous for elaborate public hoaxes— go missing under troubling circumstances, baxter and annie investigate .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice, telling a story of startling cruelty. what a space it opens…
united states distributed by starz media «the family fang» in the united states theaters released on april 29, 2016 and has grossed over $ 263k worldwide; dvd and blu - ray release date was set for july 5, 2016. available for rent from netflix and redbox from july 5, 2016 .
the film also makes annie present whenever buster talks about his new story - in - progress, the children’s pit (in the book, he sends her chapters to read). the camera lingers on kidman’s face as she absorbs his literary processing of their childhood. these moments demonstrate that the film has zeroed in on the story' s core focus on the relationship between brother and sister and their attempt to pull each other through a dark time. this is the story of their coming together as family while detaching from the parents who fail to fully empathize with them as human beings .
though best known to most audiences for his comic performances in “arrested development” and movies like “juno” and “horrible bosses, ” jason bateman has been quietly expanding his repertoire in recent years — both in front of the camera and behind it. his directorial debut “bad words” was released two years ago, he showed a darker side in “the gift” and is now back with “ the family fang, ” his sophomore effort as director. indiewire has obtained a series of exclusive new images from the film .
start digital will open the family fang exclusively at the angelika in new york this weekend. next friday, the title will head to about another 40 markets, reaching around 50 markets by may 13. the feature will also be on - demand beginning may 6. added heller: “we’re also hoping for a strong performance at the angelika this weekend, which should open the door to additional engagements. ”
when it comes to art, how far is too far? for annie and baxter fang’s performance artist parents, there were no limits .
the conversation between the relatives is cranked up to cacophonous levels. hardly a word seems audible as they speak over one another. these are common family squabbles mainly, but when the topic turns to the old woman on the bed, the camera often lingers on her face. how much can she perceive? we strain to observe signs of recognition. in one scene, fang’s eyes moisten and a tear navigates down her cheek. wang bing seems to be indicating a possible conclusion, and as the noise depreciates, mrs fang fades away. she was only 68 .
jason bateman should focus on character films as he clearly has the talent and the eye as the director. this dysfunctional family film is not going to play for everyone and you can already see the mixed audience review. this is a well acted and cast film, these artsy style films are better for the audiences that are tired of blockbuster borefests. i enjoy slow burning emotional films and this is right up there with some of the great quirky films. kidman adds strong weight next to bateman and is in a career best form, it' s just a shame that this will miss mainstream appeal. great film and another fine bateman director appearance, cannot wait to see where he goes next .
exclusive: nicole kidman will reunite with her rabbit hole scribe david lindsay - abaire on the family fang, the adaptation of the kevin wilson bestseller that kidman will star in and produce. kidman won a best actress oscar nomination for rabbit hole, which lindsay - abaire adapted from his pulitzer - winning play about a husband and wife grieving the loss of their child .
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some of that detail was on display when wilson and his wife, poet and sewanee review managing editor leigh anne couch, visited the set during filming in nyack, n. y. , last summer. the producers rented an old house to film in, removed every bit of the owners’ belongings, and created the fang house with meticulous care. they hung old wallpaper, brought in ’70s - era furniture, and filled the rooms with fang - appropriate provisions, down to the tiniest details, including the magazines on the coffee table, whether they would actually appear in the film or not. “they kept asking ‘is it how you imagined it from the book? ’” wilson says. “and i was like ‘no, it’s so much better. ’ i didn’t have that level of imagination when i was thinking about the house. ”
the premise and poster of the family fang promise a dynasty of twee eccentrics with maladjusted children, like the tenenbaums, or the bluths of arrested development. but though the fangs share the latter' s jason bateman, here directing as well as once more playing the put - upon son, this is a different failed family, and they strike a different tone onscreen: one more principled and intimate than mannered or mocking. they' re a clan of performance artists whose public spectacles puncture the very idea of how families are supposed to behave, now reckoning with the long - term consequences of such a life - consuming craft .
the irony isn' t lost on the stars, both also involved with fang (opens friday in new york, expands nationwide and available on demand may 6) behind the scenes — bateman as director, kidman as producer. the movie introduces middle - aged siblings annie, an actress in a slump, and baxter, a struggling writer ,
at the point that they' re finally able to see past their parents' veneer ,
says bateman, 47, grabbing a quick bite with kidman before fang' s premiere at tribeca film festival .
bateman and kidman are great as a brother and sister trying to help each other figure out and deal with the individual flaws in themselves even as they face a bigger monster: the flaws in their family. that the family are performance artists only adds taste to the mix. i only wish that chris walken' s character had more explanation, however well played .
exclusive: jason bateman, who made an auspicious feature directorial debut with the toronto festival smash bad words, next will direct nicole kidman in the family fang, the adaptation of the kevin wilson bestseller. bateman will also star in the film. the script is by david lindsay - abaire, who adapted his pulitzer prize - winning play rabbit hole as a vehicle that got kidman an oscar nomination. olympus pictures’ leslie urdang and dean vanech will produce with blossom films partners kidman and per saari, aggregate films partners bateman and jim garavente, and qed international ’s bill block .
the film becomes another hot afm title for qed, which also will sell the takashi miike - directed the outsider with tom hardy; the david ayer - directed wwii film fury with brad pitt; sabotage with arnold schwarzenegger; the barry levinson - directed rock the kasbah with bill murray; the richard gere - starrer franny; fading gigolo with john turturro and woody allen; the zac efron - imogen poots - starrer that awkward moment, and the mac carter - directed supernatural thriller haunt with jacki weaver. caa reps bateman .
this year i saw the device used with almost comic blatancy in the worthless thriller “ misconduct. ” and it pops up again here in
the family fang ,
and proves completely unnecessary. the movie opens with a sequence made to look as if it was shot on video tape, a documentary of a little kid holding up a bank in the 1970s. there’s a twist, and it has to do with the very nature of the family cited in the title, and that twist is the first and really only effective bit of manipulation in the entire film. the “archive” footage would have made a pretty compelling opening to the movie in and of itself. instead, the movie then cuts to a depressed - looking nicole kidman in a dark room watching the footage on television, popping out the cassette, and leaving the room, as the camera pans to a corkboard festooned with maps and news articles about the disappearance of a pair of once - prominent conceptual and performance artists. and then … flashback time .
at this point in her life and career, 48 - year - old nashville - based actress nicole kidman is in search of strong roles into which she can sink her creative teeth. she recognized the opportunity to do just that in sewanee, tenn. , author kevin wilson’s new york times best - selling novel “the family fang. ”
read more: starz acquires jason bateman’s biting dramedy ‘the family fang’ for 2016 release bateman stars alongside nicole kidman as the son of two artists (christopher walken and maryann plunkett) whose performative lifestyle has created a familial rift. reception has been warm so far, with critics praising bateman’s ability to handle thorny subject matter without resorting to histrionics .
as part of the deal, starz digital will handle the dramedy’s digital, on - demand, and theatrical rollout. starz’s anchor bay division will oversee the home video roll out following its theatrical run, and the film’s television premiere will take place on the starz premium cable network .
the screenplay was written by david lindsay - abaire (“rabbit hole”). the film has been financed by red crown productions, the company behind “beasts of no nation. ” it was produced by red crown’s daniela taplin lundberg and riva marker, blossom’s kidman and per saari, olympus pictures’ leslie urdang and dean vanech and aggregate film’s bateman and jim garavente. the film is executive produced by red crown’s daniel crown, matthew salloway and christina papagjika of west madison entertainment and anne o’shea of minerva productions. kidman and saari through their blossom films optioned the book and developed the script along with olympus pictures’ urdang and vanech .
as a viewer, wilson is interested to see how the story plays on the big screen. “what movies have over books is the specificity of detail, ” he says. “with fiction, you can write eight pages on what a character looks like, and as hard as you try, you’re still dependent in some ways on the imagination of the reader. with film, the characters look exactly the way you want them to look, so you get the wonderful level of detail that makes film so interesting. ”
in a pre - cannes move, christopher walken has joined jason bateman and nicole kidman in the comedy “the family fang. ” red crown’s daniela taplin lundberg and riva marker are producing, alongside olympus pictures’ leslie urdang and dean vanech, blossom films partners kidman and per saari and aggregate films partners bateman and jim garavente. qed international’s bill [ … ]
one device used to spell things out for the audience is documentary footage spliced into the film. it shows two critics debating on the artistic merit of the family fang, helpfully telling the audience how to interpret the art. it also shows interviews with the parents who bluntly explain their lackluster parenting skills, just to ensure to the audience that it was their (arguably unintentional) neglect that damaged their children. caleb even states point blank that he hated the idea of having children, fearing they would ruin his art. in his eyes, his life was over, that is until he discovered he could incorporate them into his art. it’s a surprise he didn’t look into the camera and say “i’m the reason my children are messed up! ”
exclusive: blossom films partners nicole kidman and per saari are reuniting with their rabbit hole co - producers at olympus films to option screen rights to the bestselling kevin wilson novel the family fang. they will develop the project as a starring vehicle for kidman, who got a best actress nomination for rabbit hole. olympus partners leslie urdang and dean vanech will produce with kidman and saari .
the basic story is the same: almost from birth, annie fang (nicole kidman) and baxter fang (bateman) have been players in the disruptive performance art of their eccentric parents, caleb (christopher walken) and camille (maryann plunkett). as adults, actress annie and writer baxter try to distance themselves from the family chaos but find their lives mired in drama and dysfunction. when caleb and camille disappear, in what is either a grand artistic gesture or a tragic death, the younger fangs question if they were ever more than artistic props to their single - minded parents .
“the family fang” is based on a novel by kevin wilson, which i haven’t read but i suspect is a good read. the story is tantalizing enough to make for an enriching read. it doesn’t translate well to screen, with david lindsay - abaire’s screenplay being too on the nose. everything is spelled out for the audience, with the characters constantly professing their emotional problems to the world. this doesn’t come across as natural, but forced upon the characters in order to fully explain to the audience what the purpose is. it shows a severe lack of confidence in both the material and the intelligence of the viewer .
nicole kidman stars alongside director jason bateman in this adaptation of kevin wilson' s novel about a family of performance artists drawn into a murder mystery .
the list of limited releases isn' t very long, but there are several films that look interesting. of these, the man who knew infinity is the film i want to see the most. the reviews are not great, but i' m a math nerd. more ...
most of the small - scale omissions or adjustments from novel to screen are sensible updates due to the time constraints of feature film compared to literature. that said, there are several intriguing differences that bookworms will notice .
what happens soon after leaves baxter and annie with even more unanswered questions as the film glides almost imperceptibly into melancholy contemplation, echoed in carter burwell' s exquisite score. a key childhood recap of a romeo and juliet production from their school years shows the decisive moment in which the children began to take issue with their parents' use of them as art projects, with little thought as to how the public exposure of those pranks made them feel. as specifically quirky as the fang family unit is, there' s universality in the exploration of both the good and bad ways that children are shaped by their parents, and the struggle to retain what' s useful as they forge their individual identities .
in the present, annie and baxter come together when their parents go missing. annie thinks they’re faking it for publicity, much needed since their careers faltered when annie and baxter left the act. baxter resists – he wants to believe even his unorthodox parents wouldn’t be hurtful enough to convince their kids and the world that they’re dead. as annie and baxter play detective in a case involving their own lives, the family fang emerges as a comedy with disturbing undercurrents. kidman and bateman make a potent team in a provocative film that questions the limits of art in a world that forgets to be human. the result is funny, touching and vital .
“the movie plays great, ” said ifc films president jonathan sehring at the film’s nyc premiere wednesday night. “it’s an audience movie with two major stars and one who is up and coming. jeremy irons is ‘art house catnip’ as [ my colleague john vanco ] would say. [ irons and patel ] both are very supportive of the movie. it’s a unique film that captures genius, and spirituality. ” ifc films is expecting “educated audiences” including mathematicians, silicon valley - oriented groups and others who enjoy cerebral storytelling to find appeal in the man who knew infinity. the company first saw the title at last year’s toronto international film festival where it had its world premiere .
quick answer: on most plot points, the family fang is a faithful adaptation of the source novel by kevin wilson. but readers will spot some minor differences: buster' s name is changed. annie' s love life is omitted. caleb has become the primary villain, while camille is more passive. more significantly, the tone is not an exact fit with the book. still, most fans will be satisfied that key story details are preserved .
heller said the family fang ’s core audience will be in the 35 - 54 range with a “good split, ” though skewing female. the feature had a high - profile u. s. premiere at the recent tribeca film festival, bringing out cast who gave it a push ahead of its theatrical rollout this weekend. bateman appeared on the today show and did other studio appearances. the title is also being featured in magazine spreads in both long - lead press as well as weekly and dailies. “it’s a good grown - up movie, which is evident in the theaters we’re playing, ” said heller. “we’ll have a quick vod window, which will help us grab a broader audience for the movie. ”
the movie has combined art student bonnie and high school teacher mr. delano into one character. in the book, bonnie is an art student who works with the fangs on certain happenings that are not pictured in the film. she then shows up later as the legal wife to caleb in his new (fake) identity. mr. delano is the teacher who conspires with caleb and camille to cast annie and buster as romeo and juliet in their high school play. the film instead creates the character of miss delano (linda emond), the teacher who shows up later as caleb’s wife .
it all started with a cup of coffee. after receiving word of kidman’s interest in the family fang, wilson met the nashville - based actress at a coffee shop there and was immediately struck not only by her superstar presence, but by her intelligence and determination to get the film made. “she had read the book really closely and she had these ideas of what the book was doing thematically that i found really interesting, ” wilson says. “what she really cared about was picking apart the work and figuring out how she could do something with it. the minute i met her, i thought, ‘oh, she knows what she’s doing. if it’s going to get made, she’ll get it made. ’”
the fang family unit is really, really strange. as seen in the opening sequence, they’re pranksters who practice experimental public performance art. the first one we see, to give you an idea, is a young boy walking into a bank with a gun and adorably holding up the place for all the lollipops. a cop, upon seeing the gun, runs to stop him. the gun goes off, the bullet misses the cop, but hits an innocent female bystander, who just happened to be there with her daughter. the emotional scene between these four principal actors is interrupted when the boy breaks character to taste the woman’s blood. an older lady puts it perfectly; “what the fuck is this? ”
“i wanted this movie out there, ” said peter farrelly, who co - produced the film with his brother, bobby. “it’s very funny, but i also saw the potential for changing people’s perceptions of people with intellectual disabilities. ”
the family fang is about a couple of performance artists who routinely sucked their kids into taking part in a variety of bizarre events. when the full - grown children return home in a state of crisis, they are unwittingly enlisted to help in the execution of a daring and mysterious final performance by their parents, who are hellbent on achieving the act of a lifetime. their kids harbor more than a little resentment and blame the performance art for how badly their own lives have turned out .
while annie and baxter still attempt to overcome their drinking and pill - popping in the film, the book’s ability to enter their heads emphasizes their need to self - medicate at a more absorbing, immersive level. in the film, we hear annie and buster talk about their addictions more than we feel included in that mind - altered experience. moreover, in the book their sardonic humor about their bad habits feeds into the absurd, comedic environment, whereas the movie' s mentions of drinks and pills feel more earnest, weighty and worried .
from left to right: christopher walken, maryann plunkett, jason bateman and nicole kidman play caleb, camille, baxter (no longer
buster
), and annie fang .
it’s disappointing, then, that the film becomes less idiosyncratic as it goes along, giving into convention in its final stretches. during the first half hour, you won’t have the slightest clue where the family fang is going, but after a while, it becomes very clear what road this winnebago is headed down. when caleb and camille vanish after what appears to be a bloody homicide, the siblings go off on a trip to locate them. annie believes their disappearance was staged as yet another performance. baxter isn’t sure. their quest, as you might have guessed, forces the siblings to unearth dark secrets and learn difficult lessons. you want baxter and annie to find the closure they’re looking for, but perhaps group therapy should be on their own dime, not the audience’s .
what makes “the family fang” such an intriguing, original story is its layered approach to dissecting the definition of art and the creative process. it keeps its heart firmly beating between the bond of two siblings. the fangs become famous for their performance art, inspiring thesis papers, and – in an early highlight – a discussion between two critics (the village voice vs. artforum) on what value their art holds. snippets of an incomplete documentary show caleb discussing his thoughts about art as something that must be alive, that life itself must be treated as art, while something like photography is dead. annie’s acting and baxter’s creative writing process segue into the film’s themes in revelatory ways, and a few key moments from their past has some hard - hitting stuff to say about the dangers of sacrificing one’s family for the sake of art. when it’s all said and done, there’s plenty of food for thought left for discussion, and wherever your opinion lies, that’s never be a bad thing .
in the book, annie’s and buster’s anger toward their parents is more evenly directed at both figures. in the film, caleb is demonized as the primary villain. camille forcefully objects when caleb suggests that he did not want the children except to use them in his art. when revealing caleb’s sexual relationship with the other woman, camille appears more fragile and hurt. in general, she shows more emotion and seems to object more to caleb' s plots. while a reader of the book could intrepret the couple’s dynamics along those lines, this reading would be more subjective based on subtler cues. the imbalance in their relationship is more extreme in the film .
walpole and producing partner rebecca o’flanagan decided to make the film in spanish, but although they had contacts throughout the industry through their previous projects, most were skeptical an irish filmmaking team would be able to tell a cuban story in spanish. “rebecca and i decided maybe we could just make it form what we could raise from the irish film board and [ other ] irish sources, ” said walpole. “no international marketplace wanted to give us money. we are incredibly lucky we live in ireland where it’s possible to get something funded when the marketplace says, ‘no. ’ so we went to the irish film board and [ received funds ] from them along with irish tv and others. ” the script went through several drafts to properly convey o’halloran’s english script in spanish.
the family fang is a 2015 american comedy-drama film directed by jason bateman and written by david lindsay-abaire , based on the 2011 novel of the same name by kevin wilson . the film stars bateman , nicole kidman and christopher walken . the film was released on april 29 , 2016 , by starz digital . 
the family fang is a 2015 american comedy-drama film directed by jason bateman and written by david lindsay-abaire, based on the 2011 novel of the same name by kevin wilson. the film stars bateman, nicole kidman and christopher walken. the film was released on april 29, 2016, by starz digital.
the family fang is a 2015 american comedy-drama film directed by jason bateman and written by david lindsay-abaire, based on the 2011 novel of the same name by kevin wilson. the film stars bateman, nicole kidman and christopher walken. the film was released on april 29, 2016, by starz digital.