15 Interesting Facts About "Burn After Reading"

by N/A, 10 years ago | 3 min read

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Here are the things you need to know about the Coen brother's classic.

1. The typography on the theatrical poster was inspired by 1960s espionage trailers.

2. Tilda Swinton's character's look is very similar to Edna Krabappel from The Simpsons.

3. The part of Osborne Cox was written specifically for John Malkovich.

4. The role of Harry Pfarrer was written for George Clooney.

5. Osbourne's decline is displayed in his outfits.

In the beginning of the movie he wears suits and at the end, he's wearing slippers and a bathrobe.

6. This was Brad Pitt fourth film with George Clooney, but his first with the Coen Brothers.

7. The yacht in the film was a film from 1939 that production rented from Long Island.

It was only used for exterior shots. The interiors was a set that designers built.

8. This was the first time the Coen brothers had someone other than Roger Deakins work as director of photography.

Emmanuel Lubezski took on that role for this film.

9. The Coen brothers edit all of their own films, but list the editor as Roderick Jaynes.

10. Frances McDormand's character's hairstyle was inspired by Linda Tripp.

11. This was the third time the Coen brothers worked on a film with George Clooney.

They also worked together on Intolerable Cruelty and O, Brother Where Art Thou?

12. Frances McDormand and Joel Coen are married.

13. Osborne Cox is a Princeton alumni.

Just like Ethan Coen.

14. The Coen brothers wrote the screenplay for Burn After Reading at the same time they were writing No Country for Old Men.

15. The movie poster for the fictional movie within the movie, "Coming Up Daisy," says it was written by the author of No Country for Old Men.