Synecdoche, New York

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article or section contains information about one or more scheduled or expected films.
The content will change as the film's release approaches and more information becomes available.

Synecdoche, New York
Promotional poster for Synecdoche, New York.
Directed by	Charlie Kaufman
Produced by	Anthony Bregman Spike Jonze Charlie Kaufman
Written by	Charlie Kaufman
Starring	Philip Seymour Hoffman Catherine Keener Michelle Williams Samantha Morton Hope Davis Emily Watson Dianne Weist Tom Noonan
Language	English
IMDb profile

Synecdoche, New York is an upcoming film written and directed by Charlie Kaufman, in his directorial debut. It premiered in competition Friday, May 23rd at the 2008 61st Annual Cannes Film Festival.^[1]

1 Title
2 Summary
3 Details
4 Cast
5 Notes
6 External links

[edit] Title

The title is a play on Schenectady, New York, where some of the story takes place, with synecdoche, which reflects a trope of the film. ^[2] The title also refers to the fact that the main character builds a replica of New York in a warehouse for his play.

[edit] Summary

Caden, the main character, is a theatre director. After the inception of his new play, he discovers that his various autonomic functions are shutting down one at a time. The movie goes into themes such as the nature of family, of home, and of male-female relationships, all while blurring the nature of reality and representation in a nature consistent with the earlier work of Charlie Kaufman.^[3]

[edit] Details

The film was originally set to be directed by Spike Jonze who instead chose to direct Where the Wild Things Are.^[4] Not much is known about the story other than it focuses on a playwright and his relationships with various women throughout his life. The film also will have questions about reality, similar to Kaufman's earlier screenplays Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

The movie has been described by Kaufman as being "creepy" but not a traditional horror movie.^[5]

[edit] Cast

The confirmed cast is Philip Seymour Hoffman as the playwright Caden, Catherine Keener as his first wife Adele, Michelle Williams as his second wife Claire, Samantha Morton as his mistress Hazel, and Jennifer Jason Leigh as Keener's best friend Maria.^[6]