Yuku free message boards

2008 Press Releases

Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky and Angelina Jolie, Actress and Humanitarian Visit Baghdad to Discuss Humanitarian Efforts

February 7, 2008

Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky and Angelina Jolie traveled to Iraq February 7, 2008 to discuss U.S. humanitarian relief efforts for Internally Displaced Persons and conflict victims. They met with key Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and Ministry of Displacement and Migration Abd al-Samad Sultan. They also met with United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Special Representative Steffan De Mistura, discussing the United Nations response to refugee-related issues in the region. Together, both held meetings with locally employed staff at the U.S. Embassy and internally displaced persons, discussing specific cases and needs.

Ms. Jolie was in the region six months ago on a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) mission addressing these issues. On her return to the United States, she met with representatives of the Department of State, the National Security Council, and the Department of Homeland Security to discuss shared concerns about Internally Displaced Persons. This trip is a follow-up mission to support and implement joint solutions to assist Iraqi's displaced population.

"I am concerned as a humanitarian, of course, but I am also concerned as an American about the desperation and aggression that can come from years of neglect and displacement," Ms. Jolie said.

While in Baghdad, Under Secretary Dobriansky and Ms. Jolie met with Charge d'Affaires Patricia A. Butenis and General David H. Petraeus. They also shared a meal with members of the Multi-National Forces-Iraq and U.S. Foreign Service Officers.

Ms. Jolie expressed her strong support and gratitude for the dedication of U.S. troops and Foreign Service Officers. "I was glad to have the opportunity to come to Baghdad and thank them face-to-face," she said.

http://iraq.usembassy.gov/pr_02072008.html

From a great interview with the Coen brothers

Built from the actors up

IF anyone needs further evidence that the brothers Coen continue to think outside the box (office), consider how they arrived at "Burn After Reading."

"We wrote down a bunch of actors we wanted to work with," says Ethan: " 'What kind of story would these people be in?' "

They wrote parts for Clooney, Pitt, McDormand and John Malkovich, all of whom are in the film along with Tilda Swinton. But those roles aren't exactly star turns.

"All the characters in 'Burn After Reading' are numskulls," says Joel, "which Malkovich had no problem with; Clooney has never had a problem with . . . " Both laugh. "Brad was initially taken aback. He's very funny in the movie. He grew to love it as much as George does. Each character is dumber than the next. But they're all lovable.

"The original idea was sort of a spy story and does still have the residue of that, in that Malkovich's character is an analyst at the CIA who is fired in the first scene and starts writing a memoir. His story intersects with Fran and Brad, who are, respectively, the assistant manager and trainer at a gym in suburban Washington. So it's about the CIA and physical fitness."

And what of the long-rumored but as-yet only mythical "Hail Caesar"? They allow it would star Clooney as a matinee idol making a biblical epic, then go on to poke at their supposed leading man.

" 'Hail Caesar' is a movie that George Clooney keeps announcing to the press every couple of years, and it doesn't even exist as a script; it's only an idea," says Joel. "We kind of teased George with the opportunity to play another numskull. He was totally up for it. Part of the 'Numskull Trilogy' with George [with 'O Brother, Where Art Thou?' and 'Intolerable Cruelty'].

"After we finished shooting 'Burn After Reading,' I think on the last day, George said, 'OK, that's it, I've played my last idiot.' So we said, 'I guess you won't be working with us again.' " They laugh for a while.

Putting the dimwits in the drawer for now, the Coens' next actual project, union unrest allowing, is expected to be "A Serious Man."

"That's about a Jewish community in the Midwest in 1967, which is sort of reflective of the place we grew up in," says Joel. ". . . That's a hard movie to kind of synopsize."

They laugh again, raising suspicion, and Joel pronounces, "It's a 'domestic drama.' "

The thought of what a Coen brothers domestic drama would look like might intrigue or worry fans, considering their history of bold genre-bending with mixed results. But that they continue to make pretty much whatever they want, wordless World War II epics notwithstanding, is heartening. They're buoyed by the current creative environment, in which unconventional movies they admire, such as "Margot at the Wedding," "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" and "There Will Be Blood," receive significant support.

"Any time you see great stuff, it's heartening," says Joel. "It makes me feel much better about the state of the industry and the possibilities that exist out there both for seeing more stuff like that from other people, and being able to do interesting work yourself. I actually think it's an indication of how healthy the business is."

"In a totally selfish way," adds Ethan, "forgetting about them, that there's an audience for that -- that Julian [Schnabel] gets money for a blinking movie about a blinking guy's locked-in syndrome, that's kind of great, you know?"

"Because it can be very depressing," says Joel, "when you start to feel like the only things that get made are sequels to action pictures which have established a huge potential for box office, or adaptations of comic books or things like that. Not to say that some of those aren't really interesting, great movies too, but that's the stock-in-trade of Hollywood. And it's good that, despite that, the business is bigger than that."

http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/cl-ca-coens10feb10,0,7275394.story