The Deal (I) (2008)

A down-and-out film producer agrees to make his nephew's film about 19th century English statesman Benjamin Disraeli, but can only get financing if he casts a well-known action star. ... See full summary »

Director:

Steven Schachter

Writers:

William H. Macy (screenplay), Steven Schachter (screenplay),

Stars:

William H. Macy, Meg Ryan, LL Cool J

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William H. Macy	...	Charlie Berns
Meg Ryan	...	Deidre Hearn
LL Cool J	...	Bobby Mason
Elliott Gould	...	Rabbi Seth Gutterman
Jason Ritter	...	Lionel Travitz
Fiona Glascott	...	Fiona Hicks
Sharon Raginiano	...	Levi Rosenwald (as Sharon Reginiano)
John Carson	...	Nigel Bland
David Hunt	...	Grier Clark
Jeremy Crutchley	...	Ian Chadwick
Natasha Rees-Davies	...	Maya
Aiden Lithgow	...	Skip Miller (as Aidan Lithgow)
Kate Blumberg	...	Linda
Tere Morris	...	Catherine Oxenmoor
Sean Higgs	...	Hans Bleimer (as Sean Aidan Higgs)

Storyline

A down-and-out film producer agrees to make his nephew's film about 19th century English statesman Benjamin Disraeli, but can only get financing if he casts a well-known action star. Production is halted however, when the lead actor is kidnapped, so the producer hatches a scheme with a struggling creative executive to save the star and the movie.

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Plot Keywords:

actor | private jet | joke | nudity | garter | 

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Taglines:

Cut To The Scam.

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content and language

Details

Country:

Canada USA South Africa

Language:

English Hebrew Czech

Release Date:

20 November 2008 (Russia)

Also Known As:

Start Shooting

Filming Locations:

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Company Credits

Production Co:

Peace Arch Entertainment Group, Muse Entertainment Enterprises, Dog Pond Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In addition to playing the role of Charlie Berns in the film, William H. Macy also reads the audio book upon which the film is based.

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Goofs

When Deidre and Charlie start arguing in the Czech studio, Lionel and the girl get up and leave - twice.

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Soundtracks

"Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing"
Written by Valerie Simpson and Nick Ashford (as Nickolas Ashford)
Performed by Fish Fry Music
Published by EMI April Music Inc. (ASCAP)

User Reviews

Funny Movie on a Movie

The Deal is a wacky and frenetic Hollywood insider movie about a movie, in the spirit of Altman's The Player or Mamet's State and Main. Written by and starring the extremely talented William H. Macy and directed by his long-time friend and veteran TV movie director Steven Schachter, The Deal is part vanity piece, part industry insider self-indulgence and wholly funny.

Macy plays Charlie Berns, a one-hit wonder Hollywood producer with no money and no prospects and on the verge of suicide. Interrupting his plans is his nephew Lionel (Jason Ritter), who knocks on his door at the propitious moment, carrying his script about Benjamin Disraeli and looking for Uncle Charlie's help in Hollywood. Ignoring the script, Charlie returns to his morbid task, only to spot an article about a blockbuster action-hero movie star (L.L. Cool J) who has recently converted to Judaism and is looking for a Jewish film for his next project. Seeing a glimmer of hope, Charlie hatches an outrageous seat-of-your-pants scheme to coerce a studio into approving this preposterous pairing. Assigned to the project is Diedre Hearn, a second-tier studio exec (played by Meg Ryan, still trying to transition from her girl-next-door pedigree). Charlie is smitten, and resurrected, "Ben Disraeli – Freedom Fighter" gets green-lighted and the fun begins. There's even a role for Elliott Gould, playing a rabbi who serves as a technical adviser and "Assistant Producer" to the film! I guess Macy decided that at 57 if he was ever going to play a leading man, he was going to have to personally drive the project. And he has written himself a plum role—a multi-dimensional character with a lot of funny lines and Meg Ryan as a love interest! Charlie Berns has suffered all the indignities that Hollywood can dish out. But he's learned enough tricks, and developed enough chutzpah that with a little luck he can really work the system. Macy plays the role with unflappable charm and impeccable comic timing.

The script bounces around a bit, and probably bounces a couple of times too many. The "resolution" feels a little like an add-on, and perhaps could have been left out. So while I doubt this movie will do great things at the box office, it certainly entertained the Sundance crowd.

Sundance Moment: Macy told the long story of how difficult it was to get the project funded, which is a recurring Sundance (and Hollywood) theme. They passed out red yarmulkas to the crowd, and many wore them while watching the movie.