Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

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Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
Directed by George Clooney
Produced by Andrew Lazar
Steven Soderbergh
George Clooney
Written by Chuck Barris (book),
Charlie Kaufman (screenplay)
Starring Drew Barrymore,
George Clooney,
Julia Roberts,
and Sam Rockwell
Music by Alex Wurman
Distributed by Miramax Films
Release date(s) December 27, 2002
Running time 113 min.
Language English
Budget $29,000,000
IMDb profile

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is a 2002 drama film directed by George Clooney. It is based on an autobiography by Chuck Barris of the same name (ISBN 0-7868-8808-3), adapted by Charlie Kaufman.

Contents

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The movie tells the life story of Chuck Barris, who was a game show host and, according to Barris's autobiography, a CIA hitman. Barris was largely responsible for the creation of several television game shows, including The Dating Game, The Gong Show, and The Newlywed Game. The movie portrays Barris's career as a television producer and host, along with his supposed life as an assassin who uses his visits to Europe as a chaperon for Dating Game prize winners as a cover for his murderous deeds. While portraying Barris's alleged CIA exploits in an almost comic-book style, the movie does not explicitly state his claims to be false. The movie includes interviews with a number of Barris's real-life friends and colleagues.

Spoilers end here.

[edit] Reception

The movie was generally well-received by critics, with Clooney's direction and Rockwell's lead performance widely praised. However, as Clooney himself stated, the film "bombed" at the box office, raking in a lackluster U.S. total gross of roughly $16 million, about half the cost of production. The movie did better overseas, bringing the combined domestic and foreign total to $33 million.

[edit] Trivia

  • Mike Myers, Ben Stiller, and John Cusack were, at one time or another, contenders for the role of Chuck Barris.
  • David Fincher was considered to direct the project.
  • The project was set to start shooting with Johnny Depp in the lead, George Clooney as Jim Byrd and Bryan Singer directing, but the project fell apart despite a heavy pre-production phase; sets were broken down in Canada, where the film was set to start shooting. Clooney took over and cast Sam Rockwell as Chuck Barris. Clooney initially had trouble getting the project off the ground with Miramax's approval, since Rockwell wasn't yet well known. Clooney pointed out that he had a strong cast, including not only Rockwell and himself, but also Drew Barrymore and Julia Roberts.
  • Brad Pitt and Matt Damon appear as game show contestants as a favor to their friend George Clooney.
  • When Sam Rockwell is leaving the CIA training course, he says goodbye to two of his new friends, "Jack" and "Lee". These are supposed to be Jack Ruby and Lee Harvey Oswald.
  • Julia Roberts and Drew Barrymore did the movie for free. Both wanted in on the project due to the great script. This allowed Clooney to get Rockwell as Barris.[citation needed]

[edit] Main cast

[edit] External links

Films directed by George Clooney
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind • Good Night, and Good Luck.
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