Paul Zybszewski’s original screenplay for After the Sunset was discovered by producers Beau Flynn and Tripp Vinson, highly-respected for producing such critically-acclaimed movies as Tigerland and Requiem For A Dream. The script was purchased by New Line Cinema and the producers hired Australian screenwriter Craig Rosenberg for a re-write. Both the studio and the producers agreed from the start that their first choice for the role of master thief Max Burdett was none other than Pierce Brosnan, the actor best known around the world as ‘James Bond, Agent 007.’
Producer Beau Flynn remembers, “when we were visualizing the character of Max, we thought about Pierce, but figured it was a long shot, that we would never get him. When Pierce expressed interest, we went in with guns blazing and told him why he was the only actor to play Max Burdett. From that point on the whole film took shape.”
Recalls Pierce Brosnan, “when my agents sent me a bag of twelve scripts that fit a certain time period in my availability, After the Sunset was the one that really appealed to me. I love heist movies– this is the third one I’ve done (following The Heist in 1989 and The Thomas Crown Affair in 1999), and I thought this had the possibility of being a solid ensemble piece.”
Salma Hayek, Oscar-nominated for her performance in Frida, was the next to join the cast. Producer Beau Flynn offers, “We wanted someone who could really give Max a hard time and see right through him. Salma Hayek is very direct, and it felt like the energy between her and Pierce would be something very special. When we talked with Pierce about who could play Lola, we brought up Salma’s name and he responded right away. We are fortunate that she loved the script and was really excited to work with Pierce as well.”
Hayek admits, “I’ve always been a fan of Pierce and wanted to work with him for a long time. He’s a very talented actor, and in this movie, his character is very relaxed, spontaneous, sometimes even goofy. You will see him with his messy hair, a little beard – he looks so handsome. It suits him!”
Brosnan returns the compliment. “Salma is one of cinema’s most beautiful women – an incredibly gifted woman,” he says. “We’ve not really seen her like this before – playing a leading lady in a ‘popcorn’ movie. That’s exciting for her and for all of us to watch.”
Next to join the project was director Brett Ratner, the young filmmaker whose five movies – the two highly successful Rush Hour films, Red Dragon, Family Man, and Money Talks – have grossed nearly a billion dollars worldwide at the box office. Ratner acknowledges, “Pierce was on the movie before I came aboard, but I was excited because I had wanted to do a James Bond film with him. As a matter of fact, he was one of the people who called me and said ‘I want you to do this movie.’”
Regarding his attraction to the movie, Ratner offers “I love caper films. There are so many great films in this genre, but what makes After the Sunset different is that it’s a heist movie that has a combination of great relationships, heart and comedy.
There’s the adversarial buddy relationship between Max and Stan a la Midnight Run, the romantic relationship between Max and Lola, who are both thieves, and the relationship between Stan and Sophie (played by Naomie Harris), which all makes for a quite interesting and exciting mix of cat and mouse.”
Another reason behind Ratner’s decision to sign on was the new challenges it presented him. “I’ve never done a movie like this and that was my attraction,” he says. “It’s a mixture of many genres. You’re walking the line between action, drama,humor and heart. It’s a heist movie that delivers on every level.”
The director hopes that “audiences might even forget about the heist and be really concerned about the relationships at the core of these characters. I’m hoping that by the end of this film, people walk out smiling having been entertained, but that they’ll really fall in love with these characters.”
Pierce Brosnan reveals, “this was a project I really liked, so when Brett Ratner’s name came up, he is somebody I admired – someone I actually wanted to direct a James Bond movie. With him on board, suddenly we had a piece that just went up another ten flights!”
With director Ratner at the helm, After The Sunset moved forward into the next phase: casting the remaining roles. “One of Brett’s really strong points is casting,” says producer Beau Flynn. “He’ll watch fifty auditions and never settle until he’s found the perfect actor.”
Ratner explains, “in every role, no matter what the size, I try to make the characters important. Each character has to have something special or it’s not worth having. I like those roles where actors read the part and go, ‘I want to do this! I want to play this!’ I then shape the role with the writers for that particular actor.”
With leads Pierce Brosnan and Salma Hayek set, Woody Harrelson was cast in the key role of Max’s nemesis, FBI agent Stanley P. Lloyd. Regarding the casting of Harrelson, who as of late has been performing on the stage instead of in front of the camera, producer Flynn enthuses, “it’s real inspired casting to have Woody Harrelson in the role of Stan. He brings a style of organic comedy and plays it straight and real. You really will believe he is an FBI agent who has one quest in life, and that is to track down Max Burdett.”
Don Cheadle, who marks his third collaboration with Director Ratner (after Family Man and Rush Hour 2) joined the cast in the villainous role of Henry Mooré, the Detroit gangster gone Bahamian. Brett Ratner reveals, “when I got the script, I knew Don Cheadle had to play the part of Henry Mooré. I knew he would breathe life in to the character. It was originally written as a Bahamian gangster, but Don came up with the idea of making him a guy from Detroit who moved to the Bahamas because he saw an opportunity to provide some of the locals with things they don’t have access to.”
Cheadle quickly signed on for the key-supporting role. The actor deadpans, “Brett has a lot of secrets on me, so I have to come back or he lets them out. If I wanted them out, I’d tell him to go ahead, make the movie without me, and I’ll stay home.”
Next to be cast was the role of Sophie, the Bahamian cop who hooks up with Stan in his pursuit of Max. British actress Naomie Harris, who was seen last year by American audiences in Danny Boyle’s horror thriller 28 Days Later, landed the coveted part.
Director Ratner recalls, “it’s just like when I did Family Man. So many great actresses auditioned and Tea Leoni just stole that part; Naomie Harris did the same here! The one thing that got her the role was the chemistry she has with Woody Harrelson. You’re going to see it on the screen.”
Another key role landed in the lap of Troy Garity, a recent Golden Globe nominee for his supporting role in Showtime’s “A Soldier Girl.” Garity, a personal friend of Ratner’s, quips, “we always said it would be fun to work together, so when Brett called me and said he had this nice supporting role, it was an opportunity too good to pass up. After my initial complaining, they bound and gagged me and shipped me down to paradise.”
Russell Hornsby, who many will recognize from his starring role on the ESPN original series “Playmakers,” was the last of the principal supporting roles to be cast. He plays Jean-Paul, the right-hand man to Cheadle’s Mooré.
Even in many of the cameo roles, Brett Ratner made certain those who were cast were perfect for the story. Chris Penn has a small, but telling, part in the movie. “The whole Chris Penn storyline is just great,” says Ratner. “He is playing one guy, but he is in disguise with different accents – I don’t want to give too much away – but in any role he plays, he brings 100% to it. He goes there, like Philip Seymour Hoffman.”
Pierce Brosnan, who believed in the script from the beginning, commends Ratner on his casting prowess. “Every actor I’ve seen on this has been very well-founded and wellcast for either look or sound, all ingredients of their being,” the actor says. “They make sense within the picture, and as a result, each scene gets elevated. That’s one of the talents of Brett Ratner. He has his own style of filmmaking. It’s not conventional and not by the book, necessarily. He lives, breathes, eats and dreams movies and has a passion for actors which is sincere, and that is contagious.”
Brosnan’s appreciation for director Ratner was shared by his fellow castmates and the other filmmakers. Producer Beau Flynn enthuses, “’passion’ is the main word that you think about with Brett – it’s overwhelming. I’ve never met anyone who has that type of passion. When he makes a commitment to something, it’s a done deal and his enthusiasm inspires everyone to make them more than they ever thought they could be. I believe that we will have a really great film to show for it because of Brett’s passion.”
Woody Harrelson offers, “Brett’s one of the most unique people I’ve ever met – he’s powerful, smart, he’s got a lot of savvy. In working with him, he really has an instinct about what is right. He’s young, but he’s had a lot of success, and I’m glad to be a part of it in this early stage.”
Salma Hayek continues, “Brett has a very magnetic personality. He also has a good eye and extraordinary instincts. I completely trust him because he makes you feel very safe.” She continues, “I don’t think he specifically goes for one thing. He gives himself all the possibilities and choices and wants to explore every avenue. It’s a lot of fun to play like that because you get to do all these different emotions or deliveries with the exact same scene or same words.”
With the majority of the script set on a tropical island in the Caribbean, the filmmakers decided to shoot in the Bahamas, the 700-island nation located off the coast of Florida. Basing their production out of Kerzner International’s enormous Atlantis resort in Nassau, cast and crew flew in from Los Angeles, Miami and New York to commence filming.
Filming in the Bahamas from the end of October 2003 until just before Christmas (additional interior shooting in Los Angeles was completed in early 2004) was challenging due to the unseasonably heavy rains which presented constant obstacles.
According to producer Beau Flynn, “it was definitely tricky but the crew was amazing and the cast were such great sports. Brett was relentless – he wouldn’t take no for an answer – even if it’s from God or from the weather system. It became about us turning lemons into lemonade almost every single day.”
With Pierce Brosnan in the lead, Salma Hayek as his partner in crime and the laid-back Woody Harrelson as their arch-nemesis, the combination of these three playing off of each other against the beautiful backdrop of the Bahamas promises to deliver an irresistible mix of action and fun for movie audiences.
Salma Hayek offers, “it’s definitely got adventure. It’s a heist movie – it’s sexy and it makes you want to go on vacation. It’s going to be one of those movies that everybody will like and have a good time with. It’s a movie for everyone!”
Woody Harrelson adds, “I’ve always been a lover of heist movies. To me, there is going to be a lot of twists and turns that you don’t expect, as well as a lot of humor. Plus, there’s always Salma Hayek and Naomie Harris adding the sexy element to it. And of course there’s Pierce. So it promises to be a really interesting, fun, exciting movie.”
“This business is about turning people on – always has been,” says Pierce Brosnan. “Hopefully, we will do that, the combination of us all – Brett, me, Salma, Woody, Don Cheadle and all the other really well-founded characters.”
The actor continues, “hopefully, when you’re watching this film, you’ll say ‘that was a good romp – I liked those characters, I believed those characters, I wanted to know what was going to happen next, I didn’t know where it was going. It surprised me and moved me.’”
Producer Beau Flynn remarks, “this film was inspired by a lot of different films – from classic films from the 1930s and 1940s, that Hepburn/Tracy kind of banter which is going on between Pierce and Salma in this movie. I think Brett Ratner has that vast knowledge to make this film really enjoyable, smart and unique.”
Director Ratner concludes, “this movie ends almost like a French film. It ends where you leave a lot up to the audience’s imagination of what could happen next. I’m looking forward to doing the sequel – After the Sunrise!
After the Sunset (2004)
Directed by: Brett Ratner
Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Woody Harrelson, Salma Hayek, Naomie Harris, Obba Babatunde, Don Cheadle, Chris Penn, Troy Garity, Mykelti Williamson, Robert Curtis Brown
Screenplay by: Paul Zbyszewski
Production Design by: Geoffrey Kirkland
Cinematography by: Dante Spinotti
Film Editing by: Mark Helfrich
Costume Design by: Rita Ryack
Set Decoration by: Jennifer Williams
Art Direction by: Steve Arnold
Music by: Lalo Schifrin
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexuality, violence and language.
Distributed by: New Line Cinema
Release Date: November 12, 2004
Views: 164
