Neil LaBute
Encyclopedia
Neil N. LaBute is an American film director, screenwriter and playwright.
, the son of Marian, a hospital receptionist, and Richard LaBute, a long-haul truck driver. LaBute is of French Canadian
, English and Irish ancestry, and was raised in Spokane, Washington
. He studied theater at Brigham Young University
(BYU), where he joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At BYU he also met actor Aaron Eckhart
, who would later play leading roles in several of his films. He produced a number of plays that pushed the envelope of what was acceptable at the conservative religious university, some of which were shut down after their premieres. However, he also was honored as one of the "most promising undergraduate playwrights" at the BYU theater department's annual awards. LaBute also did graduate work at the University of Kansas
, New York University
, and the Royal Academy of London.
in an interview for The Film That Changed My Life
.
In 1993, he returned to Brigham Young University
to premiere his play In the Company of Men
, for which he received an award from the Association for Mormon Letters
. He taught drama and film at IPFW in Fort Wayne, Indiana
in the early 1990s where he adapted and filmed the play, shot over two weeks and costing $25,000, beginning his career as a film director
. The film won the Filmmakers Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival
, and major awards and nominations at the Deauville Film Festival, the Independent Spirit Awards
, the Thessaloniki Film Festival, the Society of Texas Film Critics Awards and the New York Film Critics Circle.
LaBute has received high praise from critics for his unsettling portrayals of humans. In the Company of Men
portrays two misogynist businessmen (one played by Eckhart) cruelly plotting to romance and emotionally destroy a deaf woman. His next film Your Friends & Neighbors
(1998), with an ensemble cast including Eckhart and Ben Stiller
, was a shockingly honest portrayal of the sex lives of three suburban couples. In 2000 he wrote an off-Broadway play entitled Bash: Latter-Day Plays
, a set of three short plays (Iphigenia in orem, A gaggle of saints, and Medea redux) depicting essentially good Latter-day Saints doing disturbing and violent things. One of the plays was a much-talked-about one-person performance by Calista Flockhart
. This play resulted in his being disfellowshipped from the LDS Church. He has since formally left the LDS Church.
LaBute's 2002 play The Mercy Seat
was one of the first major theatrical responses to the September 11, 2001 attacks
. Set on September 12, it concerns a man who worked at the World Trade Center
but was away from the office during the attack — with his mistress. Expecting that his family believes that he was killed in the towers' collapse, he contemplates using the tragedy to run away and start a new life with his lover. Starring Liev Schreiber
and Sigourney Weaver
, the play was a commercial and critical success. While hesitant to term The Mercy Seat "political theater", Labute said, "I refer to this play in the printed introduction as a kind of emotional terrorism
that we wage on those we profess to love." He dedicated this edition to David Hare, in response to Hare’s "straightforward, thoughtful, probing work."
LaBute's The Wicker Man
, was an American version of a British cult classic. His first horror film
, it starred Nicolas Cage
and Ellen Burstyn
and was released on September 1, 2006 by Warner Bros. Pictures to scathing critical reviews and mediocre box office. It has spawned several memes, mostly concerning Cage's hammy acting and overdone lines.
His next play, reasons to be pretty
, played Off-Broadway May 14-July 5, 2008 in a production by MCC Theater
at The Lucille Lortel Theatre. LaBute's first ever Broadway production is reasons to be pretty
which began previews at the Lyceum Theatre on March 6, 2009 with an opening on April 2, 2009. The play was nominated for three 2009 Tony Awards—including Best Play, Best Leading Actor in a Play (Thomas Sadoski), and Best Featured Actress in a Play (Marin Ireland) -- but did not win in any category. reasons opened to good reviews and continued to pick up fans, but, not enough to sustain its existence on Broadway. The producers ended the run early, with the last performance on June 14, 2009.
Critics have responded to his plays as having a misanthropic tone. Rob Weinert-Kendt in The Village Voice
referred to LaBute as "American theater's reigning misanthrope." The New York Times
said that critics labeled him a misanthrope, on the release of his film, Your Friends & Neighbors
. The UK's Independent
newspaper dubbed him "America's misanthrope par excellence." Citing In the Company of Men and The Shape of Things, critic Daniel Kimmel identified a thread running through his work: "LaBute is a misanthrope who assumes that only callous people who use and abuse others can survive." Critics labeled him a misogynist after his In the Company of Men.
LaBute directed Death at a Funeral
, a remake of a 2007 British film of the same name. It was written by Dean Craig (who also wrote the original screenplay) and starred Chris Rock
.
LaBute wrote a new Introduction and new scenes for the Chicago Shakespeare Theater production of The Taming of the Shrew
by William Shakespeare
from April 7 to June 6, 2010. LaBute framed the classic play in overtly metatheatrical terms and added a lesbian romance in a subplot.
LaBute's first produced play, Filthy Talk for Troubled Times (1989)--a series of biting exchanges by two 'everyman' in a bar—is was staged from June 3–5, 2010 by MCC Theater in Manhattan as a benefit for MCC's Playwrights' Coalition and their commitment to developing new work. LaBute also directed the reading.
MCC will be the home to the World Premier of The Break of Noon. It will run from October 28-December 22, 2010. The play starts the 25th season of MCC. The play will then open in Los Angeles at the Geffen Theater, again directed by Bonney, from January 25-March 6, 2011 (Opening night: February 2, 2011). The show stars Tracee Chimo
, David Duchovny
, John Earl Jelks, and Amanda Peet
. The show was directed by Jo Bonney, set design by Neil Patel
, costume design by ESosa, lighting design by David Weiner, original music by Justin Ellington, sound design by Darron L.West, special effects by Matthew Holtzclaw, dialect coach Stephen Gabis, wig design by J. Jared Janas & Rob Greene, production manager B.D. White, production stage manager Christina Lowe, general manager Ted Rounsaville, casting by Telsey + Company, and publicity by O&M Co.
The Unimaginable, a new short play by LaBute, will premier as part of the Terror 2010 season at the Southwark Playhouse
in London
, England
from October 12-October 31, 2010.
He will also be partaking in the Bush Theatre
's 2011 project Sixty Six Books where he has written a piece based upon a chapter of the King James Bible
. LaBute even shares some similar themes with Mamet including gender relations, political correctness, and masculinity.
LaBute also provides a guest audio commentary for the DVD release of sex, lies, and videotape
, alongside Steven Soderbergh
.
The live stage performance rights for most of these plays are licensed by Broadway Play Publishing Inc.
Early life
LaBute was born in Detroit, MichiganDetroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, the son of Marian, a hospital receptionist, and Richard LaBute, a long-haul truck driver. LaBute is of French Canadian
French Canadian
French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...
, English and Irish ancestry, and was raised in Spokane, Washington
Spokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
. He studied theater at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
(BYU), where he joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At BYU he also met actor Aaron Eckhart
Aaron Eckhart
Aaron Edward Eckhart is an American film and stage actor. Born in California, he moved to England at the age of 13, when his father relocated the family. Several years later, he began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Sydney, Australia, for his high school senior year...
, who would later play leading roles in several of his films. He produced a number of plays that pushed the envelope of what was acceptable at the conservative religious university, some of which were shut down after their premieres. However, he also was honored as one of the "most promising undergraduate playwrights" at the BYU theater department's annual awards. LaBute also did graduate work at the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
, New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, and the Royal Academy of London.
Career
LaBute's exposure to and interest in the film industry came with a viewing of The Soft Skin (La Peau Douce 1964), said the director to Robert K. ElderRobert K. Elder
Robert K. Elder is an American journalist, author and film columnist.- Early life and education :A Montana native, Elder interviewed Ken Kesey for his high school newspaper. The author encouraged Elder to attend his alma mater, the University of Oregon, which Elder did two years later...
in an interview for The Film That Changed My Life
The Film That Changed My Life
The Film That Changed My Life is a non-fiction collection of interviews compiled by American journalist, author and film columnist Robert K. Elder...
.
It exposed me, probably in the earliest way, to “Hey, I could do that.” I’ve never been one to love the camera or even to be as drawn to it as I am to the human aspect of it, and I think it was a film that speaks in a very simple way of here’s a way that you can tell a story on film in human terms. It was the kind of film that made me go, “I could do this; I want to tell stories that are like this and told in this way.” And so it was altering for me in that way, in its simplicity or deceptive simplicity.
In 1993, he returned to Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
to premiere his play In the Company of Men
In the Company of Men
In the Company of Men is a 1997 Canadian/American black comedy written and directed by Neil LaBute and starring Aaron Eckhart, Matt Malloy, and Stacy Edwards...
, for which he received an award from the Association for Mormon Letters
Association for Mormon Letters
The Association for Mormon Letters is a nonprofit founded in 1976 to promote quality writing "by, for, and about Mormons." The broadness of this definition of Mormon literature has led the AML to focus on a wide variety of work that has sometimes been neglected in the Mormon community...
. He taught drama and film at IPFW in Fort Wayne, Indiana
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Fort Wayne is a city in the US state of Indiana and the county seat of Allen County. The population was 253,691 at the 2010 Census making it the 74th largest city in the United States and the second largest in Indiana...
in the early 1990s where he adapted and filmed the play, shot over two weeks and costing $25,000, beginning his career as a film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
. The film won the Filmmakers Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
, and major awards and nominations at the Deauville Film Festival, the Independent Spirit Awards
Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay
The Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay is one of the annual awards given by Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers.-1990s:1994*David O...
, the Thessaloniki Film Festival, the Society of Texas Film Critics Awards and the New York Film Critics Circle.
LaBute has received high praise from critics for his unsettling portrayals of humans. In the Company of Men
In the Company of Men
In the Company of Men is a 1997 Canadian/American black comedy written and directed by Neil LaBute and starring Aaron Eckhart, Matt Malloy, and Stacy Edwards...
portrays two misogynist businessmen (one played by Eckhart) cruelly plotting to romance and emotionally destroy a deaf woman. His next film Your Friends & Neighbors
Your Friends & Neighbors
Your Friends & Neighbors is a 1998 comedy-drama film written and directed by Neil LaBute and starring Amy Brenneman, Aaron Eckhart, Catherine Keener, Nastassja Kinski, Jason Patric, and Ben Stiller in an ensemble cast. This film was the first to be reviewed on the website Rotten Tomatoes...
(1998), with an ensemble cast including Eckhart and Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller
Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....
, was a shockingly honest portrayal of the sex lives of three suburban couples. In 2000 he wrote an off-Broadway play entitled Bash: Latter-Day Plays
Bash: Latter-Day Plays
bash: latterday plays is a collection of three dark one act plays written by Neil LaBute. Each play is an exploration of the complexities of evil in everyday life, and two of the works, "iphigenia in orem" and "medea redux" have direct Greek influence, specifically that of Euripides...
, a set of three short plays (Iphigenia in orem, A gaggle of saints, and Medea redux) depicting essentially good Latter-day Saints doing disturbing and violent things. One of the plays was a much-talked-about one-person performance by Calista Flockhart
Calista Flockhart
Calista Kay Flockhart is an American actress who is primarily recognized for her work in television. She is best known for playing the title character in the Fox comedy-drama series Ally McBeal for which she won a Golden Globe Award...
. This play resulted in his being disfellowshipped from the LDS Church. He has since formally left the LDS Church.
LaBute's 2002 play The Mercy Seat
The Mercy Seat (play)
The Mercy Seat is a 2002 play by Neil LaBute that was among the first major theatrical responses to the September 11, 2001 attacks. Set on September 12, it concerns Ben, a man who worked at the World Trade Center but was away from the office during the attack, with his mistress, Abby, who is also...
was one of the first major theatrical responses to the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
. Set on September 12, it concerns a man who worked at the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
but was away from the office during the attack — with his mistress. Expecting that his family believes that he was killed in the towers' collapse, he contemplates using the tragedy to run away and start a new life with his lover. Starring Liev Schreiber
Liev Schreiber
Isaac Liev Schreiber , commonly known as Liev Schreiber, is an American actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. He became known during the late 1990s and early 2000s, having initially appeared in several independent films, and later mainstream Hollywood films, including the Scream trilogy of...
and Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver
Sigourney Weaver is an American actress. She is best known for her critically acclaimed role of Ellen Ripley in the four Alien films: Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection, for which she has received worldwide recognition .Other notable roles include Dana...
, the play was a commercial and critical success. While hesitant to term The Mercy Seat "political theater", Labute said, "I refer to this play in the printed introduction as a kind of emotional terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
that we wage on those we profess to love." He dedicated this edition to David Hare, in response to Hare’s "straightforward, thoughtful, probing work."
LaBute's The Wicker Man
The Wicker Man (2006 film)
The Wicker Man is a 2006 American remake of the 1973 British film of the same title. It was written and directed by Neil LaBute, based on a screenplay by Anthony Shaffer, and stars Nicolas Cage and Ellen Burstyn....
, was an American version of a British cult classic. His first horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
, it starred Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage
Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...
and Ellen Burstyn
Ellen Burstyn
Ellen Burstyn is a leading American actress of film, stage, and television. Burstyn's career began in theatre during the late 1950s, and over the next ten years she appeared in several films and television series before joining the Actors Studio in 1967...
and was released on September 1, 2006 by Warner Bros. Pictures to scathing critical reviews and mediocre box office. It has spawned several memes, mostly concerning Cage's hammy acting and overdone lines.
His next play, reasons to be pretty
Reasons to be pretty
reasons to be pretty is a play by Neil LaBute, his first to be staged on Broadway. The plot centers on four young working class friends and lovers who become increasingly dissatisfied with their dead-end lives and each other...
, played Off-Broadway May 14-July 5, 2008 in a production by MCC Theater
MCC Theater
MCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
at The Lucille Lortel Theatre. LaBute's first ever Broadway production is reasons to be pretty
Reasons to be pretty
reasons to be pretty is a play by Neil LaBute, his first to be staged on Broadway. The plot centers on four young working class friends and lovers who become increasingly dissatisfied with their dead-end lives and each other...
which began previews at the Lyceum Theatre on March 6, 2009 with an opening on April 2, 2009. The play was nominated for three 2009 Tony Awards—including Best Play, Best Leading Actor in a Play (Thomas Sadoski), and Best Featured Actress in a Play (Marin Ireland) -- but did not win in any category. reasons opened to good reviews and continued to pick up fans, but, not enough to sustain its existence on Broadway. The producers ended the run early, with the last performance on June 14, 2009.
Critics have responded to his plays as having a misanthropic tone. Rob Weinert-Kendt in The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
referred to LaBute as "American theater's reigning misanthrope." The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
said that critics labeled him a misanthrope, on the release of his film, Your Friends & Neighbors
Your Friends & Neighbors
Your Friends & Neighbors is a 1998 comedy-drama film written and directed by Neil LaBute and starring Amy Brenneman, Aaron Eckhart, Catherine Keener, Nastassja Kinski, Jason Patric, and Ben Stiller in an ensemble cast. This film was the first to be reviewed on the website Rotten Tomatoes...
. The UK's Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
newspaper dubbed him "America's misanthrope par excellence." Citing In the Company of Men and The Shape of Things, critic Daniel Kimmel identified a thread running through his work: "LaBute is a misanthrope who assumes that only callous people who use and abuse others can survive." Critics labeled him a misogynist after his In the Company of Men.
LaBute directed Death at a Funeral
Death at a Funeral (2010 film)
Death at a Funeral is a 2010 American comedy film directed by Neil LaBute and starring an ensemble cast. The film is a remake of the 2007 British film of the same name.-Plot:...
, a remake of a 2007 British film of the same name. It was written by Dean Craig (who also wrote the original screenplay) and starred Chris Rock
Chris Rock
Christopher Julius "Chris" Rock III is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, television producer, film producer and director. He was voted in the US as the 5th greatest stand-up comedian of all time by Comedy Central...
.
LaBute wrote a new Introduction and new scenes for the Chicago Shakespeare Theater production of The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1591.The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the Induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken tinker named Sly into believing he is actually a nobleman himself...
by William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
from April 7 to June 6, 2010. LaBute framed the classic play in overtly metatheatrical terms and added a lesbian romance in a subplot.
LaBute's first produced play, Filthy Talk for Troubled Times (1989)--a series of biting exchanges by two 'everyman' in a bar—is was staged from June 3–5, 2010 by MCC Theater in Manhattan as a benefit for MCC's Playwrights' Coalition and their commitment to developing new work. LaBute also directed the reading.
MCC will be the home to the World Premier of The Break of Noon. It will run from October 28-December 22, 2010. The play starts the 25th season of MCC. The play will then open in Los Angeles at the Geffen Theater, again directed by Bonney, from January 25-March 6, 2011 (Opening night: February 2, 2011). The show stars Tracee Chimo
Tracee Chimo
Tracee Chimo is an American stage and film actress, best known for portraying Regan in Leslye Headland’s Bachelorette, originating the role of Fanka Silberman in Irena's Vow as well as originating the role of Lauren in Annie Baker’s “Circle Mirror Transformation,” a hit that closed in January, 2010...
, David Duchovny
David Duchovny
David William Duchovny is an American actor, writer and director. He has won Golden Globe awards for his work as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files and as Hank Moody on Californication.-Early life:...
, John Earl Jelks, and Amanda Peet
Amanda Peet
Amanda Peet is an American actress, who has appeared on film, stage, and television. After studying with Uta Hagen at Columbia University, Peet began her career in television commercials, and progressed to small roles on television, before making her film debut in 1995...
. The show was directed by Jo Bonney, set design by Neil Patel
Neil Patel
Neil Patel is a prolific award winning American scenic designer. He has designed productions for theater, opera and dance...
, costume design by ESosa, lighting design by David Weiner, original music by Justin Ellington, sound design by Darron L.West, special effects by Matthew Holtzclaw, dialect coach Stephen Gabis, wig design by J. Jared Janas & Rob Greene, production manager B.D. White, production stage manager Christina Lowe, general manager Ted Rounsaville, casting by Telsey + Company, and publicity by O&M Co.
The Unimaginable, a new short play by LaBute, will premier as part of the Terror 2010 season at the Southwark Playhouse
Southwark Playhouse
-History:Southwark Playhouse Theatre Company was founded in 1993 by Juliet Alderdice, Tom Wilson & Mehmet Ergen. They identified the need for a high quality accessible theatre which would also act as a major resource for the community...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
from October 12-October 31, 2010.
He will also be partaking in the Bush Theatre
Bush Theatre
The Bush Theatre is based in Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 above The Bush public house by Brian McDermott, and has since become one of the most celebrated new writing theatres in the world. An intimate venue renowned for its close-up...
's 2011 project Sixty Six Books where he has written a piece based upon a chapter of the King James Bible
Style
LaBute's style is very language-oriented. His work is terse, rhythmic, and highly colloquial. His style bears similarity to one of his favorite playwrights, David MametDavid Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
. LaBute even shares some similar themes with Mamet including gender relations, political correctness, and masculinity.
Filmography
- In the Company of MenIn the Company of MenIn the Company of Men is a 1997 Canadian/American black comedy written and directed by Neil LaBute and starring Aaron Eckhart, Matt Malloy, and Stacy Edwards...
(1997) - Your Friends & NeighborsYour Friends & NeighborsYour Friends & Neighbors is a 1998 comedy-drama film written and directed by Neil LaBute and starring Amy Brenneman, Aaron Eckhart, Catherine Keener, Nastassja Kinski, Jason Patric, and Ben Stiller in an ensemble cast. This film was the first to be reviewed on the website Rotten Tomatoes...
(1998) - Tumble (Sundance short-narrated by Neil Labute-2000)
- Nurse BettyNurse BettyNurse Betty is a 2000 American comedy film directed by Neil LaBute starring Renée Zellweger as a sweet Kansas waitress who undergoes a nervous breakdown after witnessing her husband's murder, and starts obsessively pursuing her favorite soap actor....
(2000) - Bash: Latter-Day Plays (2001) (TV)
- Possession (2002)
- The Shape of ThingsThe Shape of ThingsThe Shape of Things is a 2001 play by American author and film director Neil LaBute and a 2003 American romantic comedy-drama film. It premièred at the Almeida Theatre, London in 2001 with Paul Rudd as Adam, Rachel Weisz as Evelyn, Gretchen Mol as Jenny, and Fred Weller as Phillip. The play was...
(2003) - The Wicker ManThe Wicker Man (2006 film)The Wicker Man is a 2006 American remake of the 1973 British film of the same title. It was written and directed by Neil LaBute, based on a screenplay by Anthony Shaffer, and stars Nicolas Cage and Ellen Burstyn....
(2006) - Lakeview TerraceLakeview TerraceLakeview Terrace is a 2008 American thriller film directed by Neil LaBute, co-produced by Will Smith, written by David Loughery and Howard Korder, and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington. Jackson plays a racist LAPD sergeant who terrorizes his new next-door neighbors...
(2008) - Death at a FuneralDeath at a Funeral (2010 film)Death at a Funeral is a 2010 American comedy film directed by Neil LaBute and starring an ensemble cast. The film is a remake of the 2007 British film of the same name.-Plot:...
(2010) - SextingSextingSexting is the act of sending sexually explicit messages or photographs, primarily between mobile phones. The term was first popularized in early 21st century, and is a portmanteau of sex and texting, where the latter is meant in the wide sense of sending a text possibly with...
(2010 short) - Seconds of PleasureSeconds of PleasureSeconds of Pleasure was a 1980 album by Rockpile, a band consisting of guitarists/vocalists Dave Edmunds and Billy Bremner, bassist/vocalist Nick Lowe, and drummer Terry Williams...
(pre-production)
LaBute also provides a guest audio commentary for the DVD release of sex, lies, and videotape
Sex, lies, and videotape
Sex, Lies, and Videotape is a 1989 independent film that brought director Steven Soderbergh to prominence. It tells the story of a man who films women discussing their sexuality, and his impact on the relationship of a troubled married couple....
, alongside Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh
Steven Andrew Soderbergh is an American film producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, editor, and an Academy Award-winning film director. He is best known for directing commercial Hollywood films like Erin Brockovich, Traffic, and the remake of Ocean's Eleven, but he has also directed smaller less...
.
Theater productions
- Filthy Talk For Troubled Times (1989)
- In the Company of MenIn the Company of MenIn the Company of Men is a 1997 Canadian/American black comedy written and directed by Neil LaBute and starring Aaron Eckhart, Matt Malloy, and Stacy Edwards...
(1992) - Bash: Latter-Day PlaysBash: Latter-Day Playsbash: latterday plays is a collection of three dark one act plays written by Neil LaBute. Each play is an exploration of the complexities of evil in everyday life, and two of the works, "iphigenia in orem" and "medea redux" have direct Greek influence, specifically that of Euripides...
(1999) - The Shape of ThingsThe Shape of ThingsThe Shape of Things is a 2001 play by American author and film director Neil LaBute and a 2003 American romantic comedy-drama film. It premièred at the Almeida Theatre, London in 2001 with Paul Rudd as Adam, Rachel Weisz as Evelyn, Gretchen Mol as Jenny, and Fred Weller as Phillip. The play was...
(2001) - The Distance From Here (2002 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
) - The Mercy SeatThe Mercy Seat (play)The Mercy Seat is a 2002 play by Neil LaBute that was among the first major theatrical responses to the September 11, 2001 attacks. Set on September 12, it concerns Ben, a man who worked at the World Trade Center but was away from the office during the attack, with his mistress, Abby, who is also...
(2002 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
) - Autobahn (2003 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
) - Fat PigFat Pig- Plot synopsis :Fat Pig tells us the story of Tom, a stereotypical professional in a large city, who falls for a very plus-size librarian named Helen. They meet in a crowded cafeteria at lunchtime and get to talking. Tom is taken with her brash acceptance of the way people see her and her...
(2004 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
) - This Is How It GoesThis Is How It GoesThis Is How It Goes is a 2005 play by Neil LaBute set in small town America, about the repercussions of an interracial love triangle.High school sweethearts — the star of the high school track team and a cheerleader — marry. He becomes a successful businessman; she's a stay-at-home mom...
(2005) - Some Girl(s)Some Girl(s)Some Girl is a play written by Neil LaBute.The play ran at the Lucille Lortel Theater in New York City, produced by MCC Theater and starred Eric McCormack, Fran Drescher, Judy Reyes, Brooke Smith, and Maura Tierney, all known primarily for their television work.The London cast included David...
(2005 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
) - WrecksWrecksWrecks is a one-man play by Neil LaBute, that was commissioned and produced by the Everyman Palace Theatre in Cork, Ireland. The play was a part of the city's Capital of Culture programme in 2005. It made its American debut at the Public Theater in New York City in 2006. Both productions starred...
(2005 - Everyman Palace Theatre, Cork, Ireland / 2006 - Public Theater, New York) - In A Dark Dark HouseIn A Dark Dark HouseIn A Dark Dark House is a 2007 play by Neil LaBute. It had its world premiere at the Lucille Lortel Theater on May 16. It ran through June 23, 2007, under the direction of Carolyn Cantor, produced by the MCC Theater in New York City...
(2007 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
) - reasons to be prettyReasons to be prettyreasons to be pretty is a play by Neil LaBute, his first to be staged on Broadway. The plot centers on four young working class friends and lovers who become increasingly dissatisfied with their dead-end lives and each other...
(2008 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
/2009 - Lyceum Theatre) - Helter Skelter/Land of the Dead (2008 - The Bush Theatre)
- The Break of Noon Premiere-MCC Theater- October 28/December 10, 2010 West Coast Premiere-Geffen Theater-January 25/March 6, 2011
- "The New Testament," (a world premiere) /"Helter Skelter,"(also directed by LaBute) (2009-Open Fist Theatre Company, Los Angeles)
- Some White Chick (2009 - Southwark Playhouse)
- The Purple Marmoset (2009 - MCC TheaterMCC TheaterMCC Theater is an Off-Broadway theater company located in New York City, founded in 1986 by artistic directors Robert LuPone and Bernard Telsey along with six graduates of the New York University drama department, including Jana Herzen...
) - The Furies (2009 - World Premiere Weekend)
- Filthy Talk for Troubled Times (also directed by LaBute) (June 3–5, 2010—MCC Theater)
- In a Forest, Dark and DeepIn a Forest, Dark and DeepIn a Forest, Dark and Deep is a play by Neil LaBute. It received its world premiere production in the West End's Vaudeville Theatre on 14 March 2011 following previews from 3 March 2011, running for a limited season until 4 June 2011. The production starred Matthew Fox and Olivia Williams....
(2011 West End)
The live stage performance rights for most of these plays are licensed by Broadway Play Publishing Inc.
Broadway Play Publishing Inc.
Broadway Play Publishing Inc, along with Dramatists Play Service, Playscripts, Inc., and Samuel French Inc., is one of the four major New York play publishers and licensors of stage rights...
External links
- Neil LaBute on the Faber and Faber website - UK publisher of LaBute's plays, screenplays and fiction
- Review of Labute's Seconds Of Pleasure
- Interview with Neil LaBute from Interview Magazine Free Link
- It's So Good To Be Bad, a TimeTime (magazine)Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine profile of LaBute published in 2005 - http://freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080918/ENT01/809180316/1036/ENT01
- Neil LaBute's Guest DJ Set on KCRW KCRW Guest DJ Set
- 2003 BOMB Magazine interview of Neil Labute by Jon Robin Baitz