Clinton, McCartney Attend 'Rock' Preview

(MENAFN- Arab Times) Open Road Films' new comedy "Rock the Kasbah," starring Bill Murray, Kate Hudson and Bruce Willis, debuted at the United Artist Theater in East Hampton, NY, on Friday night for a special sneak preview. The screening - presented by the Peggy Siegel Company and hosted by famed singer Jimmy Buffett and his wife Jane - was a crowd pleaser. Guests raved about Murray's funny yet heartfelt performance as a washed-up rock manager.

But it was the post-screening after party at the Blue Parrot Bar & Grill that drew the most buzz. A star-studded guest list that included Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, John Mellencamp, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani and president Bill Clinton joined the film's cast and Open Road's Tom Ortenberg and Jason Cassidy to celebrate the pic and enjoy a casual nightcap. All eyes were on Clinton. The 42nd president of the United States received the most attention and selfie requests from the partygoers. Even the musicians and actors seemed to be starstruck.

"It's very exciting that the president is here," Murray told Variety at the party. "It's an honor to meet him and get to talk to him."

Murray greeted Clinton with a firm handshake and shared a lighthearted conversation. The two posed for photos and then Willis and his wife Emma introduced themselves to the president. Clinton made his way to the Blue Parrot's outdoor dinning area where McCartney, Springsteen and Buffett stood in a circle socializing among a crowd of partygoers. Clinton joined in on the conversation with the prolific musicians and briefly chatted. Meanwhile, Mellencamp was in a corner socializing with some friends and Bon Jovi worked the room, conversing with all the guests.

Throughout the star-stuffed evening, Variety caught up with the cast of "Rock the Kasbah." Oscar-winning director Barry Levinson helms the film written by Murray's longtime pal Mitch Glazer. The movie is inspired by true events from an Afghan reality television show competition similar to "American Idol" and based on one woman who had the courage to sing in public despite facing death threats and being ostracized by her family and friends. With a $15 million budget, the film was made in 28 days and shot in Morocco with temperatures over 110 degrees.

Humor

"I wrote this story specially for Bill and I've pretty much written for him my whole life," said Glazer, who first wrote "Scrooged" for Murray in 1987. "We are dear friends and I wanted to write something that would show Bill's humor and heart and all the things that he can do. That was the goal. Whether I did that or not is up to other people."

Murray - who declined to talk about his gig in the new "Ghostbusters" reboot by saying, "I'm not supposed to tell anyone about it" - was drawn to "Rock the Kasbah's" storyline.

"I liked that it's not a political or a military story. It's much more of a human story," said Murray. "I was interested in the story from the beginning. We spent years getting it made and I liked the way it turned out. All the actors are so good. I think this is as good as anyone in this film has ever been. Kate Hudson, Bruce and Zooey are amazing in this movie. Everyone did their very best and it just jumped up the level. Every day we out-shot the script. That's cool."

Willis, who plays an on-edge mercenary, took on the supporting role in order to act with Murray.

"I only worked five days on the film and one of the main reasons I chose the part is to work with Bill Murray," said Willis, dressed down in jeans and Nike sneakers. "I got to bounce off of Billy Murray, which made shooting in the desert a ball. I never really liked deserts, but he made it fun. He makes me laugh and he's a comic genius. He's a funny guy on-and-off the screen. I'd love to work with him again."

Murray plays the down-on-his-luck Richie Lanz € a sort of aged version of the sleazy rock manager he portrayed back in the '70s on Saturday Night Live named Jerry Aldini. Murray also drew inspiration for the role from Van Morrison's real-life tour manager, whom the actor described during his recent surprise Comic-Con visit as a "pathological liar " a wonderful guy."

In the film, Lanz stumbles into the role of talent scout for the Afghan version of American Idol (called Afghan Star). As seen above, he goes on a globetrotting hunt that leads him to a string of offbeat characters played by the likes of Zooey Deschanel, Bruce Willis, Kate Hudson, and Danny McBride. Lanz finally unearths Salima (played by newcomer Leem Lubany), his singing ingÈnue.

From what we've seen from Kasbah so far, the film evokes both the legendary 1987 bomb Ishtar (which later gained a dedicated cult following) and Almost Famous € for which Kasbah star Hudson earned an Oscar nomination and which also featured Deschanel in a supporting part.

"Rock the Kasbah" opens Oct 23 nationwide.

Pop prince Justin Timberlake has teamed up with director Jonathan Demme for a film about Timberlake's 20/20 Experience World Tour.

According to a report by Entertainment Weekly, Demme shot Timberlake's final stop on the 134-date tour on Jan 2 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

"It's very emotional, very exciting," Demme told EW. "It's a space age music film!"

He added, "There's tremendous dancing in this piece. (Timberlake has) got an extraordinary band called the Tennessee Kids. Huge horn section, two lead guitars, two drummers, eight dancers, four exquisite background singers. And we caught them on their last performance."

Timberlake, whom Demme calls "a funky Fred Astaire," has had his share of film experience, appearing in such films as "The Social Network," "Inside Llewyn Davis," "Friends With Benefits" and "Runner Runner," among others. Timberlake's "20/20 Experience" double album dropped in two parts in 2013. David Fincher directed the music video for the album's lead single, "Suit & Tie."

Demme is no stranger to capturing musical performances on film. In addition to directing Meryl Streep in the rock-focused "Ricki and the Flash," Demme produced and directed a trio of Neil Young concert docs, another for Kenny Chesney and a Bruce Springsteen music video. The independently financed film has yet to name a title or a distributor.