With the Venice Film Festival gearing up, we have been getting some good looks at films that will premiere there this year. One of the more exciting titles to hit Venice will be She’s Funny That Way, starring Owen Wilson, Imogen Poots, and Jennifer Aniston. It’s the first feature film that Peter Bogdanovich has directed in over a decade, which in itself should be cause for some anticipation.
She’s Funny That Way has Owen Wilson taking on a part that was originally written for the late John Ritter. The actor plays a Broadway producer who attempts to talk a call girl (Poots) into changing her life. This is in the “screwball comedy” vein, though, so do not expect any serious delineation of the sex trade. This one is probably going to be played entirely for laughs. Jennifer Aniston is on hand to play Wilson’s therapist, part of a large cast that also includes Will Forte and Tatum O’Neal. The script was originally written back in 1998 and was intended for Ritter and Cybil Shepherd. Times have obviously changed, but one wonders how much the script had to conform both to the new millennium and the shift in casting.
Bogdanovich getting back into the theatrical filmmaking world is the real story here, though, and it’s interesting that he chose a script he wrote back in 1998 as his next step. He’s worked in television a good bit since his last feature film The Cat’s Meow, directing an episode of The Sopranos and a documentary about Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. She’s Funny That Way sounds just a bit like something Woody Allen would come up with, but I’m sure that Bogdanovich will put his own unique spin on things.
She’s Funny That Way will premiere at Venice, screening Out of Competition. You can check out some images from the film below.
