Paul Giamatti as former Soviet leader Nikita Krushchev? Sign me up! Actually, I've been signed up to see K Blows Top, the upcoming HBO film since we first learned about it a couple of years ago, even though we haven't really heard anything about it since. Fortunately, the wheels are still turning and HBO has made a smart choice for director, snagging Jay Roach for the job.
It's crazy to think that the guy who gave us Austin Powers and Meet the Parents has become the top choice for politically charged films but that's certainly the case with Roach. He's worked with HBO on two such movies in the past, Game Change and Recount, and also has the electoral comedy The Campaign coming up next month. K Blows Top is based on Peter Carlson's book, chronicling Krushchev's 1959 visit to the United States. It was...weird, to say the least, and turned into a media circus. It was right at the height of the Cold War, for one thing, but Krushchev seemed more interested in American agricultural development and making a trip to Disneyland.
There still isn't any word when this will roll but this is definitely a step in the right direction. Does anybody do better political movies than HBO at this point? [THR]
