There's a new poster for the Robert Duvall / Bill Murray starrer **Get Low up at Collider (alongside one for crime thriller Animal Kingdom).
Blue sky, whispering grass, a grizzled Duvall with a comedy wild-man beard, Murray giving his best hangdog expression, and "a true tall tale" as the tagline. All fine and dandy. But compare and contrast with this previous version from last year, and we could be talking about a different film. It's dark, grim, serious. There's fire on it. We're told "every secret dies somewhere". Them's the vagaries of marketing.
Which is the most representative of the actual movie? Tough call. The film's based on the true story of cantankerous Tennessee hermit Felix "Bush" Breazeale (Duvall), who in 1938 decided to throw his own wake so that he could be there to enjoy it, attracting thousands of attendees. The trailer that went online in the spring suggested that blue-sky's whimsy has the right tone. But that trailer also hints that the film gets darker later, with Breazeale perhaps having more sinister ideas than just dancing at his funeral party.
All will become clear shortly. Get Low, the debut feature as director for cinematographer Aaron Schneider, stars Sissy Spacek and Lucas Black alongside Duvall and Murray, and is out in the US later this month. No UK release date yet.