Musicals and Clint Eastwood are not always a natural fit, as anyone who's seen Paint Your Wagon will attest. But Jersey Boys is another story, since the director won't be called upon to sing as much. And besides, the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons involves a heck of a lot of male bonding and tussling, as well as underworld connections that should be right up his alley. Here's the first trailer for the film, and a new poster.
Adapted from the hugely successful stage show, **Jersey **Boys follows the ups and downs of what would become the Four Seasons. Onstage, it's a story told through four sections themed around each of the seasons of the year, and narrated by each member of the band in turn. Tommy DeVito, Bob Gaudio, Nick Massi and Franki Castelluccio (aka Valli) all take their turn to discuss their rise, fall and rise again. On screen, that has been transformed into the guys talking to camera to explain their side of events.
Eastwood has recruited relative unknowns for the band members, with John Lloyd Young, Erich Bergen, Michael Lomenda and Vincent Piazza taking the leads, but he has Christopher Walken in for support, with a script that has seen work from John Logan and the musical's creators, Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It'll walk like a man into our cinemas on June 20.