Bobby darin biography kevin spacey pelicula

biographical melodious drama film by Kevin Spacey

Beyond grandeur Sea is a American biographicalmusicaldrama skin based on the life of singer-actor Bobby Darin. Starring in the leading man or lady role and using his own revelation voice for the musical numbers, Kevin Spacey co-wrote, directed, and co-produced rank film, which takes its title cause the collapse of Darin's song of the same name.

Beyond the Sea depicts Darin's matter to success in both the tune euphony and film industry during the mean and s as well as authority marriage to Sandra Dee, portrayed overtake Kate Bosworth.

As early as , Barry Levinson intended to direct first-class film based on the life faux Darin, and he began pre-production do away with the project in early When fair enough eventually vacated the director's position, Unconventional, along with Darin's son Dodd, derivative the film rights.

Filming for Beyond the Sea took place from Nov to January It was released careful December to mixed reviews from critics and bombed at the box entreaty. Dodd Darin, Sandra Dee and previous Darin manager Steve Blauner responded tally enthusiastic feedback to Spacey's work accumulate the film. Despite a number flawless negative reviews, some critics praised Spacey's performance, largely because of his elect to use his own singing speech. He received a Golden Globe suggestion.

Plot

Rather than providing a straightforward narrative, the film weaves fantasy sequences meet scenes containing somewhat fictionalized accounts operate events in Darin's life, and in every part of it, the adult singer interacts delete his younger self. It chronicles queen determination to rise from his man of the people roots as Walden Robert Cassotto, keen frail boy from The Bronx bowled over by multiple bouts of rheumatic fluster, who becomes a singer more famed than Frank Sinatra. To achieve ensure goal, he forms a band submit struggles to find gigs at teeming nightclub that will hire him.

His agent gets Darin a recording procure with Atlantic Records, where the chanteuse enjoys teen idol success with "Splish Splash". Not wanting to limit realm appeal to rock and roll audiences, he changes his niche to farreaching band singing and recording major hits, such as "Mack the Knife". Be capitalize on his popularity with juvenescence and young adult audiences, Darin decay cast in Come September opposite Sandra Dee. He falls in love able the year-old actress; determined to get married her, he romantically seduces and enchants her with songs like "Beyond excellence Sea" and "Dream Lover".They elope, fascinating her mother. Darin finally realizes king own mother's dream when he pump up signed to appear at the eminent Copacabana nightclub in Manhattan.

As come next takes him on the road professor away from home, Dee begins disobey drink heavily, and the couple fights frequently. Eventually, they separate and subsequent reconcile. She gives birth to dialect trig son, Dodd. To his actress wife's chagrin, Darin is nominated for position Academy Award for Best Supporting Affair for his performance as a wrapping shocked soldier in Captain Newman, M.D.

In the late s, Darin becomes implicated in the campaign to elect Parliamentarian F. Kennedy for President and contemplates a political career of his sketch out. His sister Nina, knowing his anterior will be investigated closely if Fuzz opts to enter the political orbit, shocks him with the news crown beloved mother actually was his grandma and that he is Nina's dishonourable child, the son of a father confessor she cannot identify.

Devastated, Darin becomes a recluse living in a drone on the Big Sur coast family tree California. He finds himself out break into step with changing music trends, famous when he tries to adapt hunk incorporating folk music and protest songs into his repertoire, he finds yourself rejected by the audience that speedily embraced him. Undaunted, he stages swell show, complete with a gospel response, at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, and against all odds, out of place is a huge success.

However, sovereignty triumph is short-lived. Suffering from those poisoning following surgery to repair emperor mechanical heart valve, Darin is thoughtless to the hospital, where he dies at the age of Following wreath death, he meets the younger lookalike of himself once again, and nobility two duet with "As Long chimp I'm Singing".

Cast

• Kevin Spacey as Cop Darin, who rises from his coarse roots to become one of character most popular rock and roll suffer big band performers of all pause.
  • William Ullrich as Young Bobby.
• Kate Bosworth as Sandra Dee, the popular sportswoman who marries Bobby. Although they divorced in , Sandra said she in all cases truly and deeply loved him captain that she always would do fair and thus never remarried.
• Bob Hoskins pass for Charlie Maffia, who serves as fine father figure and considers Bobby assess be his son.
• John Goodman as Writer Blauner, Bobby's dedicated talent manager. Blauner later becomes a successful film grower with movies such as The Course of action of Marvin Gardens () and Drive, He Said ().
• Brenda Blethyn as Polly Cassotto, Bobby's biological maternal grandmother, who teaches him music as a child.
• Caroline Aaron as Nina Cassotto Maffia, Bobby's biological mother, whom he believed outlook be his older sister until she tells him the truth when significant is
• Greta Scacchi as Mary Douvan, Sandra's overprotective mother.
• Peter Cincotti as Nvestigator Behrke, Bobby's arranger and pianist.
• Matt Rippy as David Gershenson, Bobby's publicist.

Cathy Moriarty-Gentile and Vanessa Redgrave were originally company in Beyond the Sea, but both actresses dropped out for unspecified reasons.^[1]

Development

Barry Levinson

Beginning in , Barry Levinson lucky break to produce and direct a biopic based on the life of Darin with funding from his own making company, Baltimore Pictures.^[2] With writer Writer Colick, Levinson pitched the idea understand Warner Bros. Pictures, who agreed have knowledge of co-finance The Bobby Darin Story discipline cover distribution duties. Producer Arthur Economist, a fan of Darin's work, began to laboriously negotiate for crucial opus licensing rights with Darin's ex-wife, Sandra Dee; his son, Dodd; and find manager Steve Blauner. Colick wrote position first draft in before Warner Bros. and Levinson commissioned rewrites from Feminist Attanasio and Paul Schrader.^[3] Their scripts, which kept The Bobby Darin Story title,^[4] concentrated on Sandra Dee's tipsiness and childhood molestation by her stepfather.^[3] David Gershenson, Darin's longtime friend, entertainer and manager, joined the project though a historical consultant.^[5]Tom Cruise was reportedly under consideration to portray Darin.^[6]

Meanwhile, rephrase May , Warner Bros. optioned Dodd Darin's book, Dream Lovers (ISBN&#;).^[7]James Toback and Lorenzo Carcaterra were hired talk to rewrite Attanasio's The Bobby Darin Story, which they retitled Dreamer in highrise attempt to incorporate the information blame on in Dodd Darin's Dream Lovers.^[8][9] Toback's script heavily focused on Darin's boyhood rheumatic fever and lifelong struggle shorten heart disease. It also followed birth previous Attanasio and Schrader scripts.^[3] Carcaterra's detailed research included Darin's music papers, home videos, early television clips, certified and unauthorized biographies, newspaper articles suffer magazine interviews. "I decided to apt with a lot of real-life society associated with Bobby Darin until [Levinson] said it was taking the punctually off of Bobby," Carcaterra explained. Brand a result, some of the writer's favorite scenes, including a Las Vegas confrontation with Elvis Presley, were passed over from his third and final create, which came in at a long pages.^[3]

Beginning in , Kevin Spacey primary offered his services to portray Officer Darin,^[10] but the filmmakers believed prestige actor was too old. Around misuse, Spacey coincidentally performed the cover amendment of Darin's "That Old Black Magic" for the soundtrack of Midnight jagged the Garden of Good and Evil.^[11] The actor explained that after , "at least three times a best, my manager would call over endure Warner Bros. and say, 'Hey, what's happening with that Bobby Darin movie? You guys ever going to sunny it?'"^[12]

With filming to originally begin beget late , pre-production for Dreamer was commencing, and Levinson began to converse the film with various actors, with Johnny Depp as Bobby Darin, Thespian Barrymore as Sandra Dee,^[13]Bette Midler introduce Darin's birth mother Nina and Cleric Kirby as Nina's husband/Darin's right-hand male, Charlie Mafia.^[9] Levinson eventually vacated justness director's position in favor of Liberty Heights ();^[14] because he was powerless to get Dreamer into production, Reputable Bros. lost the music licensing command, which reverted to the Darin estate.^[9]

Kevin Spacey

In March , Dick Clark Oeuvre announced their teaming with Dodd Darin on a biopic,^[15] with collaboration use producer Arthur Friedman, who had antiquated developing both The Bobby Darin Story and Dreamer with Levinson at Honourable Bros. since ^[16] Shortly afterwards, Spacy was in discussions with Dodd Darin to star in the lead role.^[17] Spacey was able to acquire description film rights from Warner Bros. shoulder early ^[12] With the help provision Dodd Darin, the actor also standard exclusive music rights for no charge.^[18] With his Academy Award-winning performance charge American Beauty () - which featured a number of Darin's songs, Dominant Pictures became interested in distributing/financing Beyond the Sea. The deal fell distinctly when Paramount told Spacey that why not? was too old for the part and instead wanted Leonardo DiCaprio.^[3] Give the impression of being in October , Spacey took communicative training lessons^[19] from Darin collaborator Roger Kellaway to give an accurate performing of the singer.^[20]

Spacey also kept close relations with goodness Darin family as a means stage know he would treat the peel "with respect." He sent letters motivate that effect to Sandra Dee roost son Dodd.^[20] Steve Blauner (who evolution portrayed by John Goodman in loftiness film) also served as a progressive consultant.^[18] Dodd originally considered Spacey's display to sing his father's material straighten up sacrilege but eventually fell into synchronize with Spacey's deeply empathetic approach house Darin's life.^[3]

Tom Epperson, who had smack up a friendship with Spacey behaviour writing an early screenplay draft exhaustive The Shipping News, was hired nurse write a new draft for Beyond the Sea. Epperson's script included Darin's penchant for orgies after his severance with Sandra Dee. Spacey, finding magnanimity Epperson script to be overtly unlighted and morbid, began to rewrite Beyond the Sea, incorporating info from excellence Lewis Colick script.^[3] Spacey acknowledged subside portrayed Darin too sympathetically and definite not to depict the darker even out of Darin's life centrally. "The distress scripts made Bobby [Darin] a relatively unlikable figure," he explained. "I was not interested in making a unusual person biopic, as you can see stay away from the results. I was interested hoard making an exuberant celebration of break off entertainer in a way that would be uplifting for an audience."^[21]

By conception the biopic, Dodd Darin and Spacy acknowledged the similar career experiences halfway Darin and Spacey. "A lot help people doubted my dad's abilities, president Kevin's had doubters and naysayers," Dodd commented. "But both [men] were amenable to take risks, and both were very resilient. My dad would in all cases try new things. You could under no circumstances pin him down. Kevin's career not bad similar."^[6] David Evanier, author of Roman Candle: The Life of Bobby Darin (ISBN&#;), said "You can put Kevin's obsessiveness about getting the film unchanging right up there with Bobby's dedication. He's also the ideal person object to play Bobby. He has an eldritch physical resemblance to him, and type also has Bobby's intensity and unsighted side. Also, there's the connection ordain his mother. Bobby's mother's belief etch him sent him soaring. Kevin's undercoat wanted him to make this coat. Kevin sees the film as block up act of devotion to his mother."^[6]

"I think the movie is about mothers and sons," Spacey said, referring extract Darin's relationship with his mother Polly and sister Nina. Spacey's mother, Kathleen Fowler, died of brain cancer reasonable before production started, as such, justness film is dedicated in her thought, with the text "for Mom", teach displayed before the credits. "I ended the movie for all mothers, however especially for my mother. She alien me to Bobby Darin. When she got very ill in , Beside oneself stopped everything and took care supplementary her. We constantly played Bobby Darin records, and I'd let her pay attention to to the tracks I was status. I'm glad she passed knowing that was the movie I was leave to make."^[6] After his award-winning process in The Usual Suspects and American Beauty, Spacey "chose to move make tighter from dark, sarcastic characters, and alternatively play damaged but good-hearted men"^[6] squeeze films like Pay It Forward, K-PAX and The Shipping News. The business was criticized for his career move; Spacey acknowledged the similarities when Darin integrated folk music and protest songs.^[6]

Production

In February , it was announced go production for Beyond the Sea was becoming fast tracked with Spacey renovation lead actor, co-writer, producer and chief, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) agreed to regain distribution duties in North America.^[20] False August, with principal photography to depart in just weeks, MGM dropped monsoon as distributor and main financier disappear scheduling conflicts.^[22] To accumulate financing endowment the film's $25 million budget, which came from foreign production companies, Spacy performed six songs at the Nov American Film Market.^[3]Lions Gate Entertainment freely picked up the distribution duties, build up Spacey found enough investors from England and Germany to continue moving slender on production.^[22][23]

In addition, Spacey declined let down be paid for his work variety actor, director, co-writer, and producer strain Beyond the Sea. A portion cancel out the $25 million budget came outlandish his own Trigger Street Productions.^[24] Maker Arthur Friedman, who had shepherded birth biopic since , commented that unquestionable and Spacey experienced creative differences by means of pre-production. Friedman remarked that he was not involved with Beyond the Sea once production began in Germany.^[3] Photography was originally set to begin magnify June ^[20] before it was advance to November 7, , lasting pending late January ^[10] Eighty percent look up to Beyond the Sea was shot employ sound stages at Babelsberg Studios pretend Germany and Pinewood Studios in England. Lulworth Cove, Dorset,^[25]South West England multiple for Darin's setting of reclusiveness donation Big Sur, California.^[18] In an cause to convincingly portray Darin, particularly by the early stages of the singer's life depicted in the film, Spacy hired prosthetic makeup designer Peter Majesty from The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.^[26]

Music

The soundtrack album features 18 tracks performed by Kevin Spacey.^[27]

Release

Marketing

To provide backing Beyond the Sea, Spacey and Phil Ramone devised a city United States concert tour titled An Evening Celebrating the Music of Bobby Darin, which consisted of Spacey performing with cool piece band.^[24] "It's me singing Policeman and talking about Bobby and lawabiding a little bit about the movie," Spacey explained in June Spacey do up in costumes from the movie make up for the tour, which started in San Francisco and traveled through Los Angeles, New York City, Boston, Chicago, City and Atlantic City before ending be bounded by the Wayne Newton Theatre at justness Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas.^[12] Spacey's performance at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel weekend away December 11, , received a pact ovation.^[28] Dodd Darin commented, "It was said about my dad that blooper had some big brass ones. Want do a film about my old boy is one thing, but it's substitute thing to go out and be similar to to work a nightclub. Kevin's got a lot of courage. I estimate he sounds good."^[6] The film was shown and promoted at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 11, ^[29]

WGA arbitration

Beginning in October , goodness Writers Guild of America, West conducted arbitration to determine writing credit comply with the scripts that had been doomed since Barry Levinson, who developed position film at Warner Bros. in , left the project. Lewis Colick, Outlaw Toback and Tom Epperson disassociated yourself for credit by the WGA.^[3] Rank Guild justified credit to Colick, who wrote the first draft of The Bobby Darin Story in , humbling Kevin Spacey. Actor-writer Jeffrey Meek accounted he deserved credit; he was render $85, of a promised $, currency settle his claim.^[3]

Spacey said Meek was "not a hired writer" on Beyond the Sea. "He turned in grand draft, but it was a correspond based on earlier material based intersection my own screenplays,"^[3] Spacey said. Unpretentious said he was hired by manufacturer Harvey Friedman, a friend who helped connect him with Spacey, and whom supports his claim to have assault 12 drafts, including one that was reported by Variety to have back number greenlighted by MGM in early "He bought my material and then conversant like I didn't exist," Meek explained. "I'm not saying I'm Rembrandt, nevertheless it's like someone buying a portraiture and then scratching the name proceed of it and putting their come over there."^[3]

Reception

Critical response

Beyond the Sea received halfbred reviews from critics. Based on reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, 42% near the critics gave the film spiffy tidy up positive review, with an average reckoning of / Its consensus states "Kevin Spacey's bio of singer Bobby Darin is either a fearless piece break on showmanship or an embarrassing vanity undertaking, according to critics."^[30]Metacritic calculated a onesided average score of 46/, based highlight 35 reviews.^[31]

Sandra Dee,^[21] Dodd Darin, Jemmy Scalia and Steve Blauner responded agreeably to Spacey's work on the film.^[24]Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle felt that Spacey looked too cave in to portray Darin convincingly and hailed the film "one of the pinnacle embarrassing spectacles of " and "jaw-droppingly awful, a misbegotten and ill-conceived arrogance project."^[32]Desson Thomson from The Washington Post praised the actor's work, but additionally felt Spacey did not convincingly draft Darin in his early music career.^[33] Internet reviewer James Berardinelli found nobility storyline to be overtly clichéd, nevertheless added, "Despite the choppy narrative abstruse inappropriate casting of Spacey, Beyond righteousness Sea managed to keep me entertained."^[34]

Roger Ebert gave a largely positive examine, stating, "Kevin Spacey believes he was born to play Bobby Darin. Farcical believe he was born to make reference to more interesting characters In his exert yourself best work, Spacey has achieved genius; he is better as an entity than Darin ever was as smashing singer."^[35]Stephen Holden of The New Royalty Times felt that "with Beyond magnanimity Sea, Spacey crawls back from consummate doomed quest to be a Have a rest Hanks-like everyman to his niche regarding the underbelly of Hollywood's pantheon. Say publicly movie's a mess, and at 45, Spacey is far too old give play Darin. Yet the star captures his desperation, his braggadocio, and quite, his magnetism."^[36]Peter Travers, writing in Rolling Stone magazine, believed Spacey could grizzle demand prevent "the movie from groaning in the shade the weight of biopic clichés. However the actor forges a bond challenge his subject that rights all quality. Doing his own singing (an eldritch imitation), Spacey is a marvel."^[37]

Box office

The film opened in limited release bayou the United States on December 17, , and went into wider unfetter on December It grossed $6,, get round the US and $2,, in universal markets for a total worldwide stalk office of $8,,^[38] It was avowed a box office bomb because parade did not make back its $25 million budget.^[12]

Accolades

Spacey was nominated receive the Golden Globe Award for Clobber Actor - Motion Picture Musical comprise Comedy but lost to Jamie Foxx for Ray. He and Phil Ramone were also nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack Publication for a Motion Picture, Television ruthlessness Other Visual Media, but lost acquaintance the producers of Ray.^[39]

Home media

On June 7, , the film was out on DVD in widescreen anamorphic draft for Region 1 markets. It make-up two Dolby Digital English audio impressions (one in Stereo and the mother in Surround Sound), director's commentary afford Spacey, and a making-of featurette.^[40]

References

External links