A Million Little Pieces is a name that you might have heard of, as the highly successful "memoir" was the subject of some controversy. The book was written by James Frey, and described his experience as a young man in a rehabilitation center. It sold tons of copies, but was eventually the subject of an investigation, with Frey being accused of literary forgery. Ultimately he admitted some of the events of the book were fictional, and now A Little Million Pieces is getting the movie treatment courtesy of Fifty Shades of Grey director Sam Taylor-Johnson.
Making A Little Million Pieces into a movie will no doubt re-spark the conversation around the book's contents, and it should be interesting to see how the fictional aspects of James Frey's stories are handled on the big screen. The first trailer for the movie version has just hit, check it out below.
Say what you want about the legacy of A Million Little Pieces, but the upcoming movie adaptation looks like an emotional and sensory experience. And that's just from the first trailer.
The trailer opens up on Quicksilver himself, Aaron Taylor-Johnson. His James Frey is being flown to a rehabilitation center, and he's not too pleased about it. Right from his first interaction with a flight attendant, the high stakes of James' addiction are made clear. He's in need of help, and his brother Bob (Charlie Hunnam, who coincidentally quit Fifty Shades) insists that he attend a 12 step outpatient program.
A Million Little Pieces is clearly about James Frey's experience struggling with his substance abuse issues, but there's a full cast of fellow addicts who will get their chance to tell their story. Chief among them is Billy Bob Thornton's Leonard, who appears to be a mentor of sorts for James during his stay. Leonard is also the subject of his own book by Frey, titled My Friend Leonard.
Once Billy Bob Thornton enters the trailer, we're treated to plenty of footage of the Oscar winner as Leonard. He takes over narration for the remainder of the trailer, helping to guide James through the difficulties of recovery. He's antagonistic at times, but it seems that Leonard always has the protagonist's best interest in hand. Juliette Lewis also helps round out the cast as Joanne.
A Million Little Pieces clearly is going to be an emotional and realistic portrayal of addiction, and what it's like at an inpatient facility. But there is a fantastic element teased in the trailer as well. First, James' food is shown shrinking on his plate. But soon his surroundings are transforming, no doubt highlighting his emotional state at that moment. So the movie clearly won't be just a straight forward narrative, and director Sam Taylor-Johnson is taking some creative risks with the upcoming project, which is sure to excite fans of the original Fifty Shades.
A Million Little Pieces will hit premiere September 10, 2018, but it doesn't have a wide release date yet. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
