Director Wes Anderson, and stars Jason Schwartzman, Eric Anderson, and Bill Murray introducing "Fantastic Mr. Fox"
AFI FEST 2009 presented by Audi kicked off last night at Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood with the Opening Night Gala Screening of Fantastic Mr. Fox, directed by Wes Anderson and boasting an all star cast including George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Eric Anderson (Wes’ brother), Willem Dafoe, and Owen Wilson. The story centers around the Fox family (and they are literally foxes) and their peaceful existence until Mr. Fox (George Clooney) decides to return to his old ways as a chicken thief and in doing so he puts his family in harms way, as well as his surrounding animal neighbors. What is really amazing about this animated film is the use of handmade stop-motion techniques, making it possible to see the hairs on each animal move, bringing Roald Dahl’s characters to life. Also, the animation department clearly captured the essence of the actors when creating the characters on screen, for example Owen Wilson as Coach Skip who possessed not only Wilson’s trademark blonde locks, but also his dry delivery and satirical wit.
Actor/Comedian Bill Murray photo credit: Kevin Winter/Getty
As I chatted with several from the cast on the Red Carpet last night, I learned many interesting stories from the set. For instance, Anderson, who exclaimed to me, “I loved the ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ book (by Roald Dahl) as a child!” had the male cast members journey to a farm in Connecticut were they were made comfortable with nature and the inherent way of animals who burrow by actually having to dig in the dirt. Producer Allison Abbate revealed to me that there were “no girls allowed” on the farm and they boys “definitely horsed around.” I would imagine so, especially with George Clooney in the mix! In fact, Eric stated that Clooney was “very good at doing dishes at the house.” Hmmm. Also, Jason Schwartzman commented that while on the farm, he and the other guys “drank apple cider, ate apples, and dug in the ground. We were wild as boars!” The always amusing Bill Murray recounted his days on the farm and being extremely comfortable there, joking ” I may have been a farmer in a previous life?” When asked about his experience doing voices for animation verses on screen acting, Murray shot back, “My face is my ticket, let’s face it!” Also in attendance were AFI President and CEO Bob Gazzale, director Peter Bogdonavich, actress Julie Delpy, and writer/director/producer Judd Apatow who brought his 2 daughters along for a night at the movies.
Twentieth Century Fox’s Fantastic Mr. Fox opens in limited release on November 13th, 2009 and nationwide on November 25th, 2009.
"Fantastic Mr. Fox"
