Baz the Great! - A Baz Luhrmann Fansite

Luhrmann's comments in his recent interview with New York Magazine have been causing much speculation across the internet. However, The Daily Telegraph yesterday reported the following, advising that Bazmark Films has said, "The Great Gatsby will commence preproduction in Sydney in late May as planned."

Sydney is just great for Gatsby remake

Confusion reigned this week over Baz Luhrmann's reboot of American classic The Great Gatsby after his unusual interview with a US magazine. Asked why he chose to shoot in Sydney, not New York where the original book is set, Luhrmann said: "I'm not doing Gatsby right now for this reason. Because despite what might be out there, I have made no comment about anything." That surprised the State Government's Department of Industry and Investment, which stated the film will begin shooting in August with their full support. A hasty call to Luhrmann's Bazmark Films yesterday reassured "The Great Gatsby will commence preproduction in Sydney in late May as planned."

Bradley Cooper as Tom Buchanan?

The New York Times has posted an interesting interview with US movie star, Bradley Cooper. At the end of the interview, Cooper talked about how he would love to play the as yet uncast role of Tom Buchanan in Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby. He admits he has not been contacted by Luhrmann, but you can't blame him for trying to get Bazmark's attention! :)

Mr. Cooper became most animated, though, discussing the role he was hoping to land in Baz Luhrmann’s coming 'Great Gatsby' adaptation: Gatsby’s cocky, blueblood rival, Tom Buchanan.

"To me, he’s the best character in the book. He’s so complicated," Mr. Cooper said. "He's xenophobic, he’s an alcoholic, but he also understands some profound stuff about class. Whoever plays it has to take a gentle hand, because it could so easily be stock, where he’s a rich jerk you don’t identify with at all."

He paused, dialing down his enthusiasm. "I don’t even know if I’m on Luhrmann's radar," he said. "Maybe he’ll read this article after the role’s cast and say, 'Oh. Ha. Yeah, that guy was never going to get it.'"

12 March 2011

Luhrmann will direct 'Great Gatsby',
but 'not right now'

New York Magazine has today posted the below article, where the reporter actually spoke to Baz Luhrmann about The Great Gatsby. Over the past few weeks, there has been a lot of media reports and speculation about the movie, but no official statement from Luhrmann. As far as I know, this is the first time Luhrmann has spoken out about the film this year. It is a somewhat playful interview, with the reporter trying her best to get a straight answer. But Luhrmann handles the probing questions in typical Baz style, avoiding giving away too much information, but giving us just enough to keep us guessing what he'll do next!

Luhrmann has confirmed he is doing The Great Gatsby, but not right now. He also said, "Despite what might be out there, I have made no comment about anything. So until I say it, it's not said, you know." I have been repeating this fact from the beginning, throughout my news updates, as there has been no official statement about the film from Bazmark since 15 November 2010, when Luhrmann announced that Carey Mulligan had been cast as Daisy Buchanan on the Bazmark website.

I am therefore very glad that the following information has now come direct from Luhrmann. Of course, Luhrmann's evasiveness also means that fans need to continue to be patient. I will keep posting what is reported by the media right here on my site. However, as with any Luhrmann project, movie information is only really confirmed when he says it is! :)

Baz Luhrmann Says He’ll Direct The Great Gatsby, But ‘Not Right Now’

Like The Hobbit, another highly anticipated book adaptation from Down Under, the rumor mill has been working overtime on The Great Gatsby. It's going to star Carey Mulligan! And Leo DiCaprio and his BFF Tobey Maguire! Baz Luhrmann is going to direct it! No, wait, maybe he's not going to direct it! He's going to shoot it in 3-D! Seriously! And even though it's set in Long Island, he's going to shoot it in ... Australia! It was just our luck, then, that Luhrmann happened to be in attendance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's gala dinner in honor of Geoffrey Rush's turn in Gogol's Diary of a Madman. As with most Australians in this biz, Luhrmann and Rush go way back; Luhrmann had been part of a group of Australian artists who'd plunked down their own money to save the Belvoir Theater, where Rush originally played Madman's title character 22 years ago. Luhrmann's wife, Catherine Martin, had designed the sets back then (young Baz volunteered to paint them), just as she had done for the current production at BAM. A chatty Luhrmann was happy to discuss psycho-pharmaceuticals, loneliness, death, odd jobs, and pizza, but talked circles when we tried to get clarification on the Great Gatsby rumors. From a detailed analysis of his hints and winks, we're pretty sure he's directing the movie, and that his next one after this might be about food.

When's the last time you were in Brooklyn?
I was in Bushwick recently at a fantastic pizza restaurant I love out there. It's called ... [turns to wife] CM, what's that crazy great, awesome, brilliant pizza restaurant in Bushwick where we go to? Roberta's! Where they grow their own organics. It's just awesome and we have a great time and they grow all their stuff out of the back. And my kids go to school here and I really like the fact that they see where their food comes from.

They go to school in Bushwick?
No, they go uptown. I just like taking them different places. And most of my team are in Brooklyn. So I'm there a lot.

If you're here a lot and most of your team is in Brooklyn, why are you shooting The Great Gatsby in Australia?
That's a great question. I'm not doing Gatsby right now for this reason. Because despite what might be out there, I have made no comment about anything. So until I say it, it's not said, you know.

What does that mean?
What it means is, much like what goes on in any event, when you're in the middle of the work, there's all sorts of things you're doing, and, you know, when I'm really clear — I, right now, my only focus is absorbing — I've been studying Fitzgerald now for three years, and my only act now is to absorb the DNA of his world, his life, the world of the novel. That's why I have published on our website all the books we're reading. And I think before we all engage anyone, the first thing to do is to do your homework, read the books, and then let's talk.

Does that mean even the fact that you're making The Great Gatsby is misreported?
No, I'm making The Great Gatsby.

And the 3-D part?
Like I said, I'm in the middle of my own foolish-to-be-talking-about-anything-in-any-regard stage, before you truly have something to express. I'm in the middle of my own moment and my team's, and I'm just building culture. Building creative culture.

So all the rumors about casting and where it's going to be shot are just things people are saying?
That would be a really clever way of getting a confirmation or a denial, and I commend you highly!

Girl's gotta try.
You've got a long road ahead of you. I say, "Nice try."

And what do you think about the Long Island mansion, Lands End, rumored to be the inspiration for Daisy Buchanan's house in the novel, possibly getting razed?
I can comment on that. Well, even that I actually can't. Because I've got an idea.

Of how to save it?
I didn't say that.

Can you give me a general range in the world of ideas where this idea might fall?
Of course I had reaction to it, of which I cannot express, because I haven't formed my plan.

Okay, but there is some idea in the ether?
I had a strong reaction to it. [Bursts out laughing.]

Well, thanks for the Roberta's recommendation. You should do a movie about food.
Funny you should say that ... [raises eyebrows] Uh-uh. I didn't say anything!

6 March 2011

New 'Great Gatsby' Page

On 20 February 2011, it was widely reported that Baz Luhrmann signed off on a production deal with the New South Wales State Government to film The Great Gatsby in Sydney. Various other production details were revealed, including that the film would be shot in 3D.

There has been a lot of speculation regarding the choice to shoot the movie in 3D, but I recommend checking out a blog by Bleeding Cool that puts the use of 3D in a positive light - "3D is young enough (or, perhaps more properly, unexplored enough) that the many, many ways it could be used in [scenes] has yet to be properly explored. Sounds like Luhrmann’s our man to give the options a good thinking over."

Unfortunately, there still has been no official statement from Baz Luhrmann or his production company, Bazmark Inq, regarding production of The Great Gatsby. Bazmark's official website has not been updated, and there has been no news on their Facebook page. While we wait for official confirmation, I have created a new Great Gatsby page summarising the production details that have been reported so far. Click on the link on the right hand side of this page to check it out. And, as always, if you find any news that I have not featured on my website, feel free to e-mail me.

For the Record: Baz Luhrmann

As reported in my 5 February news update, Show at Barre in Los Angeles is currently showcasing For the Record: Baz Luhrmann, which celebrates the music of Baz Luhrmann's fantastic Red Curtain Trilogy. Theater Mania recently reported the below article, with details of cast members and songs that are celebrated in the production.

Tracie Thoms to Join Cast of For the Record: Baz Luhrmann

Tracie Thoms will appear in the March 5 performance of For the Record: Baz Luhrmann, running at Show at Barre. Directed by Shane Scheel and featuring musical direction by Chris Bratten, the production will continue through April 30. Thoms has appeared on Broadway in Rent and Drowning Crow. Among her film credits are Rent, Grindhouse: Death Proof, and The Devil Wears Prada. On television she has been seen in Cold Case, Wonderfalls, and As If.

The revue celebrates the music from Luhrmann's The Red Curtain Trilogy, which includes the movies Strictly Ballroom, Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge. Among the songs heard in these films and in the show are "Lovefool," "Kissing You," "When Doves Cry," "Love Is In The Air," "Time After Time," "Come What May," "Your Song," "Roxanne," "Children Of The Revolution," and "Rhythm Of The Night".

After her appearance on March 5, Thoms will join the ranks of the artists who perform in the show on a rotating basis. Also scheduled to appear in one or more performances of For the Record: Baz Lurhmann are Jenna Leigh Green, Arielle Jacobs, Kate Reinders, Dionne Gipson, Ben D. Goldberg, Nick Haskell, Sarah Jayne Jensen, Ginifer King, Derek, Klena, Steve Mazurek, John Charles Meyer, Michael Motroni, Tinuke Oyefule, Jason Paige, Darryl Semira, Margaret Spirito, Brooke Tansley, Talia Thiesfield, Jessica Keenan Wynn.

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