"Mr. Nelson - your music always made me move forward when I wanted to give up." Quiver Distr. has debuted the official US trailer for a funky German indie film titled Willie and Me, the feature directorial debut of German actress Eva Hassmann. It's written by, produced by, directed by, and stars Hassmann - clearly a personal passion project based on her own love for Willie Nelson and her culture shock of coming to America. Trapped in a stagnant marriage, German housewife Greta finds solace in Willie Nelson's music. When Nelson announces his farewell concert, she embarks on a journey to Las Vegas, leaving her husband behind, rediscovering her past. Hassmann plays Greta, with a fun supporting cast including Willie Nelson (of course!), Peter Bogdanovich, Darby Stanchfield, Blaine Gray, and Thure Riefenstein. Looks a bit rough around the edges, but that scrappy indie charm is what makes this so amusing.
- 1/15/2024
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Exclusive: Quiver Distribution has acquired North American rights to Willie and Me, a comedy marking the feature directorial debut of L.A.-based German actress Eva Hassmann, who stars opposite 12-time Grammy winner Willie Nelson and the late Peter Bogdanovich. Marking the latter’s final screen performance, the film written by Hassmann is slated for release in theaters and on demand on February 9, 2024.
Pic tells the story of Greta Weingarten (Hassmann), a housewife trapped in a stagnant marriage. One evening while serving dinner to her successful but bland husband, Greta hears a radio announcement about Willie Nelson’s farewell concert, and through his music, she’s transported back to her disjointed childhood. Greta is suddenly overwhelmed by the need to see Nelson and will do whatever it takes to be at his last concert in Las Vegas. She takes off on her journey, leaving behind the husband and comfortable life she knows.
Pic tells the story of Greta Weingarten (Hassmann), a housewife trapped in a stagnant marriage. One evening while serving dinner to her successful but bland husband, Greta hears a radio announcement about Willie Nelson’s farewell concert, and through his music, she’s transported back to her disjointed childhood. Greta is suddenly overwhelmed by the need to see Nelson and will do whatever it takes to be at his last concert in Las Vegas. She takes off on her journey, leaving behind the husband and comfortable life she knows.
- 10/11/2023
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
German actress Eva Hassmann has crafted an engaging showcase for herself with her debut feature as a writer, producer, director and star. Serving as the opening night film of the Oldenburg International Film Festival, Willie and Me is the sort of ramshackle road movie they hardly make any more. Checking your credibility at the door is the best way to experience the film, which serves as Hassmann’s love letter to both Willie Nelson and herself (America, not so much), and features cameo turns by Nelson and the late Peter Bogdanovich in his last screen appearance.
Opening with a flashback set in 1993 depicting how, as a teenager, Greta coped with her troubled mother by listening to Willie’s music, the film flashes forward to the present, when she’s now married and desperate to attend Nelson’s farewell concert in Las Vegas (as if Willie’s ever going to stop). To that end,...
Opening with a flashback set in 1993 depicting how, as a teenager, Greta coped with her troubled mother by listening to Willie’s music, the film flashes forward to the present, when she’s now married and desperate to attend Nelson’s farewell concert in Las Vegas (as if Willie’s ever going to stop). To that end,...
- 9/15/2023
- by Frank Scheck
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Willie and Me, a road movie dramedy featuring country music legend WIllie Nelson, will open this year’s Oldenburg Film Festival, one of Europe’s most acclaimed indie cinema events.
The feature directorial debut of L.A.-based German actress Eva Hassmann, who also wrote and stars, the film follows a frustrated housewife (Hassmann) who leaves her old life behind to go on a crazy journey to try and see Willie Nelson’s farewell concert in Las Vegas.
Nelson, who has turned up in cameos in films such as Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, The Dukes of Hazard and Wag the Dog, plays a dual role in the film and also contributed songs for the Willie and Me soundtrack.
The independently produced movie also features the last onscreen performance by iconic actor-director Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show, The Sopranos), who helped Hassmann develop the script.
“[Hassmann] is confident and carefree,...
The feature directorial debut of L.A.-based German actress Eva Hassmann, who also wrote and stars, the film follows a frustrated housewife (Hassmann) who leaves her old life behind to go on a crazy journey to try and see Willie Nelson’s farewell concert in Las Vegas.
Nelson, who has turned up in cameos in films such as Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, The Dukes of Hazard and Wag the Dog, plays a dual role in the film and also contributed songs for the Willie and Me soundtrack.
The independently produced movie also features the last onscreen performance by iconic actor-director Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show, The Sopranos), who helped Hassmann develop the script.
“[Hassmann] is confident and carefree,...
- 8/11/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
If you’re Peter Bogdanovich, a) hello, and b) reuniting with the lead of your most beloved work — when your last theatrical feature was a forgotten effort from 2001, to boot — isn’t such a bad move. According to Moviehole, Bogdanovich will do just that; he’s writing and directing One Lucky Moon, which is set to star The Last Picture Show‘s Cybill Shepherd. Just her involvement would be enough at the moment, but she’s not the only one on board — the film also has Willie Nelson, Burt Reynolds, Eva Hassmann, and Tom Petty attached.
Produced by Luck Films, a new venture of Nelson‘s, the film centers on “a small town that’s outfitted as a Westworld-style amusement park – complete with staged shoot-outs, bank robberies and all sorts of pay-for-the-privilege cowboy adventures.” I don’t know what story lies in that basic conceit — unless you simply remake Westworld...
Produced by Luck Films, a new venture of Nelson‘s, the film centers on “a small town that’s outfitted as a Westworld-style amusement park – complete with staged shoot-outs, bank robberies and all sorts of pay-for-the-privilege cowboy adventures.” I don’t know what story lies in that basic conceit — unless you simply remake Westworld...
- 1/20/2012
- by jpraup@gmail.com (thefilmstage.com)
- The Film Stage
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