I’m kind of surprised I haven’t seen more interest in Ben Stiller‘s next directorial effort, THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY. Though it is more of a reimagining of the musical from 1947 (derived from James Thurber’s short story) that starred Danny Kaye, Virginia Mayo, and Boris Karloff.
Stiller elaborated on his current vision of the material, and his attachment to a precious version from years back, “This version is more different than similar to the original,” Stiller said, noting he’d be asked years ago star in a different incarnation of the remake. “That’s what appealed. The 2005 version was just an updated version that wasn’t a musical. All it was ever going to be was ‘not as good as the original’. We were aiming for something indefinable, a movie that left you with a feeling at the end. I’ve never made a movie like that, and it’s a really hard target to hit. It’s hard to put into words.”
The film stars Stiller as, “A timid magazine photo manager who lives life vicariously through daydreams embarks on a true-life adventure when a negative goes missing.” Kristen Wiig co-stars as Cheryl, the object of his affection who Mitty (Stiller) pursues through his daydreams. New photos from the film show both the adventure and the humdrum life.
Believe it or not, Stiller’s efforts are being praised as the next LIFE OF PI with a little FORREST GUMP, THE APARTMENT, and IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE for good measure. When Empire Magazine caught 13-minutes of footage last month they were blown away by the sequences that were shown.
THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY starring Ben Stiller, Kristen Wiig, Adam Scott, Patton Oswalt, Shirley MacLaine, Kathryn Hahn, Sean Penn will release in theaters on December 25, 2013.