Telluride Film Festival: Bennett Miller Describes What Attracted Him To 'Foxcatcher' Project

Bennett Miller's soon-to-be-released film Foxcatcher has been shown at the Telluride Film Festival in Colorado and the director has discussed what aspects of the story first attracted him to the project.

Steve Carell (L) and Channing Tatum (R) star in Foxcatcher.

Foxcatcher is based on the true story of John du Pont, an extremely wealthy and eccentric individual who became obsessed with wrestling during the late 1980s and early 90s. Du Pont created a training camp for wrestlers and forged a strong friendship with two brothers, wrestling World and Olympic champions Dave and Mark Schultz. Sadly, du Pont's friendship led to obsession as his mental state declined, and he is currently serving time in prison for shooting Dave in 1996. The film is based on Mark's biography.

Steve Carell (Little Miss Sunshine) leads a small but star studded cast and portrays du Pont. Channing Tatum (Magic Mike) stars as Mark Schultz whilst Mark Ruffalo (Begin Again) appears as his brother Dave. Vanessa Redgrave (The Butler) plays Jean du Pont, mother of John, and Sienna Miller (The Edge of Love) features as Nancy Schultz, Dave's wife.

Watch: Foxcatcher Movie Trailer On Contactmusic.

Foxcatcher has been highly praised by critics ahead of its release.

Although the film's themes are very dark, Miller was keen to discuss how there was something comic to du Pont's character and the eccentricities others were prepared to put up with because of his wealth. As Hitfix reports, at a Q&A session after the Foxcatcher screening, Bennett said: "Immediately there was something about it that seemed very funny to me, but I knew that the outcome of it was terrible. The notion that this person with this incredible wealth and this incredible ancestry would pursue this venture and bring these wrestlers onto the estate so he could be their coach, something he knew nothing about, is absurd. It's a set-up for an absurdist comedy."

The film's star Carell has also echoed Miller's sentiment, stating when he first saw the script that "it was an incredible story, and so sad, but so complex and detailed." Channing Tatum also described his initial response to the project and explained how Miller had approached him for the role of Mark when he had just begun his career. Tatum explained how, at the time, he did not fully understand the script or what Miller had in mind. He stated "I had just sort of started. I couldn't get past all the pain and the darkness of it, but thank God I didn't get it then, because I don't think I would have learned to understand it in the way I have now."

Foxcatcher is released in the US on 14th November 2014 and 9th January 2015 in the UK.

Foxcatcher is released in November in the US and in January in the UK.