Originally set to be released by Sony this past January 25th, then bumped over to their arthouse arm, Sony Pictures Classics and then selected as the opening film of the Un Certain Regard program at the Cannes Film Festival in May, Gus Van Sant‘s “Restless” has had a bit of a bumpy ride to the big screen. Now set to hit theaters this fall, a new trailer for the film has landed and you couldn’t find a quirkier movie this side of a bad Wes Anderson knockoff.
The film stars Mia Wasikowska, Henry Hopper, Schuyler Fisk and Ryo Kase and centers on the story of a terminally ill teenage girl (Wasikowska) who falls for a boy (Hopper) who likes to attend funerals and whose best friend just happens to be the ghost of a Japanese kamikaze pilot from WWII (Kase). We caught up with the film at Cannes and it was easily one of our biggest disappointments of the festival and one of the worst movies we saw. As the trailer attests, this is Van Sant in full on Mainstream Mode but even then, but it’s so anonymously directed we’re not sure why he bothered. While there could’ve been a tender movie about life and death and coming-of-age, Van Sant doesn’t miss a single moment to pile-drive every emotional beat by slathering the film in an indie rock soundtrack with Sufjan Stevens, Iron & Wine and even Nico‘s “These Days” making sure you know when to cry. And this is on top of a never ending series of quirks that fill the film: Death! Ghosts! Beautiful vintage clothing! Pixie girl haircuts! Brooding adolescence! If you are thirteen and have never heard of “Harold & Maude” you might dig this, but for everyone else, it will be overly familiar and warmed over.
So yeah, needless to say, this writer didn’t care for it and this newest trailer was only a reminder of its worse traits. But hey, maybe we were just cranky, jet-lagged and a little bummed we couldn’t snag a seat in the theater next to Rachel McAdams. Check out the trailer for yourself below along with a new poster for the film. “Restless” hits theaters on September 16th.
