The trailer for Angelina Jolie's next film, starring herself and hubby Brad Pitt, is out — and it's dark. Written and directed by Jolie (here credited as Angelina Jolie Pitt) and set in the 1970s, By the Sea follows a married couple who visit a French seaside town and use their hotel room as a stage to work out their relationship drama.
As you likely know, the pair got together when they co-starred in Mr. & Mrs. Smith back in 2005. That film is action-packed, marked by stunts, gunfire, and showy explosions. By the Sea appears to be the exact opposite: a moody, melancholy vehicle for the couple to show off their acting chops.
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The trailer offers very little dialog, serving as a brooding visual introduction to the characters. Jolie's character, Vanessa, is a dancer, and Pitt plays a writer named Roland. "Are we ever gonna talk about it?" are the first words we hear from Roland. Vanessa responds with, "You know my reason." The parting shot shows him exiting the hotel room while she lays, seemingly passed out, in the fetal position on the floor.
Stylistically, Jolie taps into a retro European aesthetic reminiscent of the quiet but visually indulgent cinematography of Federico Fellini or François Truffaut. In a press release, Universal Pictures describes the film as about a couple in "apparent crisis" who "come to terms with unresolved issues in their own lives." Apparently though rather violent means.
By the Sea arrives in theaters November 13.