Ang Lee to direct satirical Iraq war film

Ang Lee will direct a new film based on "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk," a satirical novel about the Iraq war by Ben Fountain, the studios announced recently.

A razor-sharp satire set in Texas during the US war in Iraq, it explores the gaping national disconnect between the war at home and the war abroad. In the film, 19-year-old private Billy Lynn and his fellow soldiers in Bravo Company survive a harrowing Iraq battle, captured by news cameras. They are brought home by the US administration for a promotional tour, culminating in the spectacular halftime show of a Thanksgiving Day football game, all while facing an imminent return to the war. Almost the entire movie takes place during the day of the event, with flashes back to the underlying events and Billy's heroism.

The book is the Winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction. Karl Marlantes, bestselling author of Matterhorn, even branded it as "'The Catch-22' of the Iraq War."

Jeff Robinov's Fosun-backed Studio 8, together with Chinese film company Bona Film Group, is partnering with Tom Rothman's TriStar and Film4 on the project, which will begin the main shooting in the middle of April and casting is now underway, the announcement said.

Since last year, Bona Film Group has been working closely with its strategic partner Fosun to explore resources in the entertainment industry as they roll out their international strategy to grow a significant presence in Hollywood.

"Having the opportunity to work on Ang Lee's next film and being the only partner in China speaks to our strong film production and distribution capabilities. It also marks a very important first step for Bona in gaining international recognition," Yu Dong, founder, chairman and CEO of Bona Film Group, said. "We look forward to participating in more Hollywood mainstream films while bringing high-quality foreign films to the domestic market."

Lee, who shot his last film, "Life of Pi" in 3D, will further push the technological envelope with the new film. The studios said Lee will use the Sony F65 camera to shoot in native 3D, high resolution, and with an ultra-high frame rate in order to heighten the audience's participation in the soldiers' experience on the battlefield and on the home front.

"Ang is pushing the envelope even beyond what we achieved in 'Life of Pi,'" Tom Rothman, the chairman of TriStar, said. "Innovation is key to getting audiences out to cinemas now, but such advances often take a brave village."

"Ang Lee's vision for this remarkable story is incredibly exciting to all of the partners involved and perfectly captures the types of filmmaker-driven movies we want to make at Studio 8," Robinov also commented.

"Halftime Walk" will be produced by Marc Platt, Ink Factory's Stephen Cornwell, Rhodri Thomas and Simon Cornwell, as well as Ang Lee. It is being made in association with Film4, which developed the original draft of the script with Simon Beaufoy, screen writer of the award-winning "Slumdog Millionaire." Current screenplay revisions are being carried out by Jean-Christopher Castelli.

Sony Pictures Entertainment will distribute the film worldwide, except for Greater China, which Bona Find Group Ltd. will handle. Film 4 will have the UK television rights.