Fast Food Nation Pushed Back to November

Writer-director Richard Linklater's "A Scanner Darkly" is topping out around $5 million; it cost $8 million. It is also unlikely that his fictional adaptation of Eric Schlosser's indendiary 2001 food industry expose "Fast Food Nation" will be a slam dunk in a very crowded fall market. Fox Searchlight is moving the movie, which should boast some appeal to hip college audiences, back from October 20 to a November 17 platform release. Participant Productions (An Inconvenient Truth, Good, Night and Good Luck) is executive producing, so they'll help with political outreach on the movie, which I saw in Cannes. While Linklater shows admirable integrity when it comes to the movie's realpolitik, the anecdotal storytelling lacks narrative punch. The sprawling ensemble cast is fine, but they come and go; there's nobody to hang on to. The closest thing to a lead is Greg Kinnear ("As Good As It Gets") who co-stars with Bobby Cannavale (“Will & Grace”), Kris Kristofferson ("Dreamer"), singer Avril Lavigne, Ethan Hawke ("Before Sunset"), Wilmer Valderrama (“That 70’s Show”) and Catalina Sandino Moreno ("Maria Full of Grace"). The way Linklater describes it, "Fast Food Nation" "is not a documentary, but a character study of the lives behind the facts and figures. I’m more interested in fiction than non-fiction. You get to the point through human storytelling.”

Comments

[Dan]

I'm confused. Who was the lead in Dazed and Confused, again?

[Anne Thompson]

Jason London, Matthew McConnaughey also in it

[Josh Boelter]

I though Wiley Wiggins was the really lead in Dazed and Confused.

A $3 million loss for A Scanner Darkly should still turn profitable once the DVD revenues come in, I think.

[Anne Thompson]

yes, I think Scanner Darkly will do real well on DVD. Wiley Wiggins is in there too--it's Linklater's usual ensemble deal.

[patrick]

just watched Fast Food Nation, it's an impactful flick to say the least... earlier today i passed up a sausage mcmuffin because of it. Evidently it is worth passing up fast food for more than health reasons.