Mission: Blacklist - The Movie Fansite: Film by Jean-Stephane Suavaire starring Robert Pattinson
"In a world of lies, only one man could see the truth"
Expect more info like this as the film continues to pick up distributors across regions. 
OT: If you have facebook, please follow us on networked blogs HERE
Catch me if you can
We originally planned to have our discussion group for Mission: Black List #1 start today but we postponed the series. Why? Because it seems like Mission: Black List #1 is as hard to find as Saddam Hussein.
When Robert Pattinson was initially announced to play Eric Maddox in the film, the book was readily available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and you could purchase the eBook for Kindle and iBooks. I was lucky to grab it right away for iBooks and ‘terp M snagged it at the library.
About a week later, the book was pulled from Kindle and iBooks and a new, hardcopy of the book was off the main retailers lists. If you visit Amazon or B&N, you’ll see it’s 3rd party sellers offering the book and most in used condition.
We contacted an independent bookstore that reached out to their distributor for more info. They were told the book has been pulled by the publisher indefinitely. That may sound the book is off the grid but the distributor explained that it could mean the book is pulled for a re-issue, a new edition and/or copyright adjustments.
Rob: I already have my copy
Since Pattinson became attached, there has been much attention to the film and book so it’s not hard to believe that the publishers want to re-issue the book. Possibly announcing the film? Waiting for the movie-tie in cover? Giving it a re-edit now that all eyes are on Mission: Black List #1? This is exciting and we’ll continue to watch for the re-release of the book.
We are going to start our discussion group by next month as well as do a script review after the discussion group series. The book and script have notable (clever) differences. If you are seeking to capture the book and join our discussion group, here are a few options for you to find the elusive book:
UK version
Good luck on your search! We will prevail and earn our seat at the bar. 
CNN Mexico did a report on Mission: Blacklist and Robert Pattinson. They commented on the script and said positive things about the actor taking on the role.
Video translation:
The Hollywood Reporter informs that Robert Pattinson will be one of the stars of a movie that will tell about a definite chapter in the USA intervention in Iraq, one of Pattinson’s most recent films: Cosmopolis, directed by David Cronenberg will be in competition in the Cannes film festival in France. But returning to the other project, my partner has more information.
Woman: That’s right, this project, Mission: Blacklist #1 is giving the star of the Twilight Saga the opportunity to leave his image of a romantic vampire and play the role of one of the men responsible for the capture of the ex-president of Iraq, Saddam Hussein. We are accompanied by Lysa Rivera, welcome Lysa.
Even though the last Twilight movie isn’t in theaters yet, Pattinson is securing his next projects, especially after a big phenomenon like Twilight, what do you think about this new project?Lysa: Well, like you mentioned, this movie is a very strong psychological thriller, according to the notes I have, based on the tellings of one of the soldiers that was participating in the capture of one of the cruelest men in modern history. A long time ago, Robert was looking for other parts that would help him draw outside of what he was doing with the Twilight franchise. We’ve seen him in ‘Water For Elephants’ with Reese Witherspoon, where he played her love interest and it was a drama directed towards love, but the set design and costumes let us know it was an ambitious film and Pattinson did a good job in it. But when he had to go back to Twilight, he commented to the media that he wanted to continue along the lines he had set as an actor with different roles, so that he could be taken more seriously and have a bigger future in his career. Mission: Blacklist is a very strong script by Erik Jendresen and it will present not only political themes, but also very harsh dialogues where we will be able to see how this young actor takes it to screen, it’s a challenge for him and we’ll have to pay attention.
Man: We will be paying attention, and I think that his movie in Cannes by David Cronenberg, which is also in competition for the Golden Palm, and that’s so important, will show us another side of Pattinson and he probably won’t go through what is happening to Daniel Radcliffe, who is still demonstrating that he’s more than Harry Potter, and I think he has the talent to do it.
Translation: Source
The Cannes Film Festival has begun and Mission: Blacklist is among the list of most talked about films to buy from distributors.
Deadline reported on the ‘Hot Film Titles for US Buyers’ and it’s no surprise that MB made the cut.
An excerpt:
Domestic distributors will have a wide variety of choices at Cannes this year, from completed films in competition, to packages that have begun production or are only at the script stage with loose commitments from filmmakers and stars. Most of the buyers I spoke to claim they are in no rush to bid up the joint, but the pace of buying usually depends on several variables.
Will Harvey be buying? Last year, Harvey Weinstein, coming off a Best Picture win for The King’s Speech, reloaded with awards caliber films that included eventual Best Picture winner The Artist, as well as The Iron Lady, Lawless (which is in competition) and the Paul Thomas Anderson-directed The Master. TWC preempted the festival buying the Dustin Hoffman-directed Quartet already. The Weinstein Company comes in with a full slate for 2012, as do distributors like Fox Searchlight, Sony Pictures Classics and Focus Features. But all are looking for 2013 product. Some other variables: will CBS Films, which made the big buy of last Toronto with Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, be aggressive here? They certainly took a step in that direction acquiring Ends of the Earth just before the festival began. FilmDistrict is back after restaffing its executive roster after the exits of Bob and Jeanne Berney; will Peter Schlessel’s division be as hungry for product as last year, when it acquired Looper? And how will upstart distributors like Mickey Liddell’s LD Entertainment factor into the mix as that company looks to fill the pipeline? The final variable will be the element of surprise: after unveiling their intention to make Inside Llewyn Davis with no domestic distributor, will Joel and Ethan Coen walk away from Cannes with a deal?
Here are the titles most often mentioned by distributors:
…
MISSION: BLACKLIST–Director, Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire. Cast, Robert Pattinson. A young man tries to trap Saddam Hussein.
Mission: Blacklist is still working on financing but it’s already being mentioned about in film circles alongside other upcoming military-based flicks.
Quick excerpt from Film School Rejects:
True-life American military tales are gunning for a real resurgence lately – what with Ben Affleck’s Argo, Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty, and the Robert Pattinson-starring Mission: Blacklist – and it looks like that means we’re not safe from a 3D take on such projects. A morning press release out of the Cannes Film Festival (oh, and heads up, get ready for a metric ton of these in the coming days) reveals that Freedom Films and Paradox Entertainment have made a deal to produce the “epic action pic Thunder Run,” based on the book “Thunder Run – The Armored Strike to Capture Baghdad.”
The article isn’t about the film but it was cool to see it name-dropped so soon among other credible filmmakers. Curiosity continues to grow from the film blogger circuit and we’ll see what the response is like the further along we go. A few showed genuine intrigue when the sales poster circulated.
The only thing I’m not a big fan of here is the title and the use of the colon. Unless you are inviting some kind or any kind of confusion with the Mission: Impossible why do this? Otherwise, Mission: Blacklist sounds interesting as we get a first look at a sales poster for the film, which will surely be floating around the Cannes marketplace next week looking for some money.
Here’s the fancy new sales poster for Robert Pattinson’s new movie, Mission: Blacklist which will be doing the rounds next week when Cannes 2012 kicks off in an attempt to find funding (I’m sure it won’t take long!). It features RPatz staring at us seductively and I rather like it!
It comes from the folks over at Rope of Silicon who make the very good point that adding the colon to the title makes it appear very much in the same vein as the Mission: Impossible franchise. Who knows why the Embankment Films would go down that road but I’m sure we’ll find out in due course.
AltFilmGuide made note that the colon originated from the book and not a filmmakers choice:
I thought Osama bin Laden was the world’s most wanted man, but never mind. Mission: Blacklist is based on (or perhaps merely “inspired by”) factual events. Maddox offered his version of the story in his and Davin Seay’s book Mission: Black List #1: The Inside Story of the Search for Saddam Hussein — As Told by the Soldier Who Masterminded His Capture. (Note that the Mission: Impossible-like colon could already be found in the book’s title. It’s not something made up for the movie version.)
The film is also up on IMDb. It doesn’t have much filled in but the sales poster is up. Click HERE to check it out.
If you are still looking for the book, try this site, IndieBound. You can plug in your zip code and they’ll find indie bookstores near you that carry the book online or in the store. Click HERE to visit.
Lastly, we’re now accepting affiliates. If you’re interested, click HERE to grab our button and send us yours!
A recent article in Variety about new sales agents heading to Cannes, briefly mentioned the Mission: Blacklist team going to the festival. An excerpt:
Marc Schipper, chief operating officer for Exclusive Media, says that with the six majors making fewer and fewer non-tentpole titles, a fallow space exists for the indie sector.
“I think it’s symptomatic of a broader trend, which bodes well for economy (both broader and indie film),” he adds. “There’s a lot of private wealth looking for a home.”
Preferred Content is using Embankment at Cannes for sales of its recently announced military thriller “Mission: Blacklist,” starring Robert Pattinson. Ross M. Dinerstein, managing partner of Preferred Content, is producing alongside Erik Jendresen and Kevin Waller.
Let the Games begin.
A little more info about Preferred Content:
Founded in January 2010 by former CAA agent Kevin Iwashina and independent producer Ross Dinerstein, Preferred Content is a film, television and digital production, sales and finance company. Its production expertise lies in the independent financing of film and television content. Its sales efforts have resulted in it being one of the premiere brokers of worldwide rights for film, television, DVD and digital distribution. Its finance expertise allows it to represent corporations, privately held companies and high net worth individuals needing counsel in the area of film finance and distribution.
And Embankment:
We are a bespoke company, combining licensing, sales and distribution with high quality marketing. Embankment enables filmmakers to structure the financing of their films with financiers and international distributors.
Mission: Black List director, Jean-Stephane Sauvaire, shared his thoughts in this video on the industry today as well as advice for future filmmakers.
YouTube video summary:
French film director Jean-Stephane Sauvaire talks briefly about the industry of modern cinema and gives advice for the aspiring filmmaker.
Sauvaire also spoke at length with The Filmlot during the promotion of his film, Johnny Mad Dog. The excerpts are mainly his views on filmmaking and you can see why Mission: Black List is a project he wanted to be attached to.
What ignited your interest in filmmaking?
Maybe it was just the desire to tell stories you’ve never seen before – to tell stories that we don’t want to see – in this case, child soldiers. No one wants to show this reality because it’s brutal; it’s quite difficult to watch. I think cinema has to show the things that we don’t always want to see. I think [cinema] doesn’t only have to be entertainment, but can also show the world as it actually is. For me, cinema has the power to not only show the reality of the world, but can sometimes change it.
…
Do you have any nuggets of wisdom from this last experience that you’d like to share with new filmmakers out there?
I’d say you have to be patient. It took five years to do this movie – from writing the script to the end – so you have to be dedicated and willing to sacrifice to do this job. It’s not a usual job, so it gives you a lot of happiness but it’s not so easy, and you have to sacrifice most things. Since twelve or thirteen, I dreamed about making movies… now I’m in my forties, so imagine all the time it takes to make the first feature film! It’s quite long. So the only thing is to always keep in mind what you want to do and to be patient. Anybody can make a movie if they’re patient… It’s just a question of time and patience. That’s the only advice I can give! (Laughs)
Click HERE to read the entire interview. He is speaking mainly about his work with Johnny Mad Dog but you still get a better impression of the director.
If you are interested in seeing Johnny Mad Dog, it is available in full on YouTube HERE.
UPDATE: The book is still difficult to find for many of you so we’re going to pause the book discussion book schedule. We’ll repost when we feel like readers have been able to acquire the book. If you have your book, feel free to read the story and bookmark parts that strike you. You’ll be ahead of the game and ready to discuss with others when it’s time.
UPDATE: The ebook has disappeared from Kindle and iBooks and was never available for the nook. If you are having a tough time finding the hard copy, you can purchase Capturing Saddam. That is the UK title but it is the same as the US version. Click HERE to purchase from Amazon.
Photo manipulation of Robert Pattinson reading Mission: Black List #1
“He says that you are the interrogator in the blue shirt.”
~Mission: Black List #1
Come with us to meet the man in the blue shirt! We’ll be starting our discussion group next Friday, May 18th and continue every Friday until the book is finished. You may have already read the story so you’re ahead of the game. If you haven’t read the story, you have time to buy the novel and come back next Friday when we discuss the following chapters:
- Prologue
- Chapter 1 – Night Ride
- Chapter 2 – Outside the Wire
- Chapter 3 – Interrogation 101
- Chapter 4 – Dogs of War
- Chapter 5 – The Routine
Sound like a plan?
Click HERE to buy from Amazon, HERE from Amazon UK, HERE from Barnes and Noble. The book is also available on iBooks and Kindle.
Premiere (FR) spoke with Robert Pattinson about Mission: Blacklist. The article is translated but you definitely can tell he’s excited to bring this story to film:
Robert Pattinson, who may surprise more than one in three weeks when Cosmopolis will be presented at Cannes, is not visibly stopping there. In a shift to “adult” movies the Twilight star will continue with Mission: Blacklist, the new film by Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire, the 2008 director of the impressive Johnny Mad Dog.
A thriller based on the book by Eric Maddox, the military interrogator who was the brains of the operation that led to the capture of Saddam Hussein in December 2003. Erik Jendresen, writer of the series Band of Brothers, was responsible for adapting. Shooting is scheduled to begin in the fall.
“We are going to scout locations in Iraq soon”
“As director, Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire, normally does not work with professional actors, I thought I had no hope of getting the part,” says Rob [to the journalist of Première].
“But we met several times and we got on really well together. Sauvaire has found a very exciting way of filming this. It’s strange, as it is a war film, but it’s shown mainly though the military interrogations done by Maddox. Language and the barriers it may create play a very important part. The focus is mainly on the real-life story of this military interrogator, Eric Maddox, who will soon come with us in Iraq to do a
series of location scoutings.”Rob goes on: “The director, Sauvaire, is really an astonishing person. He’s got a gift for meeting people. He thus met and spent some time talking with the Iraqi Minister for Culture, quite by chance. He also bumped into a guy who was one of the former leaders of the Hussein clan and who had been very close to Saddam. I asked Sauvaire, ‘But how do you do it to get to know a guy like that ?’ and it turned out that Sauvaire had just bumped across the guy in a bar in Paris!”
After Johnny Mad Dog, an ultra-violent film which immersed the viewer directly into the day to day life of African child-soldiers, and which was shot in Liberia, Sauvaire seems to have found an ideal theme for his explosive vision.
“Johnny Mad Dog was an extremely strong film, which had all the value of a real documentary, while having a great cinematic quality”, says Rob, enthusing over the film. “I’m so eager to start working with Sauvaire on Mission: Blacklist. It’s going to be a f***ing great film.”
Click HERE to read the original.
Investigate with the ‘Terps