Ari Aster’s Next Film ‘Disappointment Blvd.’ Secures All-Star Cast
Ari Aster has established himself over the last few years as a rising filmmaker to keep an eye on, after delivering a string of successful and provocative works. From feature length horror films like Hereditary and Midsommar to his AFI thesis film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons, the writer-director has demonstrated a consistent ability to shock and disturb while also bringing audiences through emotionally deep stories all layered with a distinctive sense of icy dark humor. Aster is once again teaming up with A24 and Lars Knudsen, who produced his prior features, to make his latest, Disappointment Blvd.
Plot details are scarce, but the film is said to be an “intimate, decades-spanning portrait of one of the most successful entrepreneurs of all time.” While this sounds more like a conventional drama than Aster’s previous horror-thriller material, it has also been described by parties involved as a “nightmare comedy”, so it is safe to say audiences should expect the unexpected from the inventive filmmaker. That said, he has always had a talent for drama, as both Hereditary and Midsommar are carried by their well written characters and interesting interpersonal conflicts more so than their horror elements. It has also been suggested that the final film will be four hours long. This is unlikely to come to fruition, as A24 will want to cut it down to secure more theater showings, but Midsommar’s full length was over three hours, and the full version experienced modest success in theaters as fans of the theatrical cut returned for more.
As pre-production continues, it has been announced that a multitude of stars have signed on to the project, including Joaquin Phoenix, Patti LuPone, Nathan Lane, and Amy Ryan, with Phoenix billed as the lead. The casting is already an auspicious sign for the film as both Phoenix and LuPone are notoriously picky about the scripts they sign on to do and have a high bar of quality that productions must clear to secure their involvement. In addition, this would likely be Phoenix’s first feature appearance since winning an Academy Award for his performance in Joker. I am personally interested to see what Nathan Lane will be up to in this one, as the Broadway veteran has long been a genius at comedy and one would hope his sensibilities mesh with whatever madness Aster is trying bring to the screen here.
For Aster, A24, and Disappointment Blvd., all signs seem to be positive so far. One can only hope that the final product will live up the many talents of those in front of and behind the camera.
