‘Rock the Kasbah’ Trailer: Bill Murray Is Lost in Afghanistanslation
Bill Murray loves getting lost.
His characters in recent years are almost all wayward travelers, men who’ve strayed from the path either figuratively or literally. In the upcoming comedy Rock the Kasbah, his Richie Lanz stumbles into Afghanistan, where he becomes a talent scout for the country’s version of American Idol. There he discovers a new incredible talent — who is forbidden from singing. Can he convince her to use her gift?
Yes, it definitely seems like he can, at least according to the trailer above, which gives away a lot of the movie’s story. Here’s a bit more on Murray’s character from Yahoo! Movies:
Murray plays the down-on-his-luck Richie Lanz — a sort of aged version of the sleazy rock manager he portrayed back in the '70s on Saturday Night Live named Jerry Aldini. Murray also drew inspiration for the role from Van Morrison’s real-life tour manager, whom the actor described during his recent surprise Comic-Con visit as a ‘pathological liar ... a wonderful guy.’
The rest of the cast is pretty wonderful too; Zooey Deschanel, Kate Hudson, Danny McBride, and Bruce Willis (possibly playing his character from G.I. Joe: Retaliation). Plus you’ve got director Barry Levinson (Wag the Dog, Bugsy) and writer Mitch Glazer (Scrooged). All in all, a pretty strong creative team, with Murray at its center, who’s done great work playing these sorts of lost souls. Rock the Kasbah opens in theaters on October 23.