Hey, look! Noah Baumbach is doing one of those “last movie star” movies with George Clooney! It’s got all of the things the people want: ennui, reflection, boomer devil-may-care theatrics, Adam Sandler (ok, this one’s not a joke), and inside-baseball Hollywood humor. Yes, folks, Jay Kelly sounds like it’s not gonna change anybody’s mind about Noah Baumbach — either you’re with him in the post-Frances Ha “adult cinema for adults” autofiction era or you’re just wishing that Wolfs had been successful enough to keep Clooney away from projects like this.
Check out the trailer that Netflix dropped for it earlier on Tuesday, and try to convince yourself why you shouldn’t just watch 8 1/2 again. Also, if you’re angry about the tone of this piece, remember: we only roast the ones we love. Or do we?
Peep it:
Here’s a synopsis for Jay Kelly from the program for this year’s New York Film Festival:
“In his most captivating film role in years, George Clooney is cast—fittingly—as the last great movie star. Jay Kelly is at a crisis point: uninspired by his work, reeling from the loss of his mentor, and tormented by a run-in with a haunting figure from his past, he does the unthinkable, backing out of a big new production at the 11th hour in order to run off to Europe and catch up with his college-bound daughter in France before attending a career tribute in Italy. Unable to entirely shed his Hollywood skin, he finds himself trailed by his entourage, including his long-suffering manager (played by a marvelously fragile Adam Sandler). At once introspective and raucous, the stellar character study ‘Jay Kelly’ peeks at Hollywood narcissism with curiosity rather than judgment. Noah Baumbach (‘Marriage Story,’ NYFF57 Centerpiece) and co-writer Emily Mortimer walk a delicate balance between industry parody and heartfelt sentiment, moving in and out of Jay’s past and present, fantasy and reality, probing the professional, familial, and moral life of a man for whom ‘all my memories are movies’—and who may be harboring more regrets than he cares to admit. A Netflix release.”
Jay Kelly will have its world premiere at Venice next month before travelling across the Atlantic for NYFF (and, based on the verbiage on the site, either TIFF or Telluride before that). It’ll hit theaters on November 14 and will then be available to stream on Netflix on December 5. Hey, it’ll probably be good! It’s got Sandman in it, how bad can it be?