It looks like Jason Reitman‘s career is taking a turn in a different direction with his upcoming drama Labor Day. Up until this point all of his films had comedic elements to them, yes, even Young Adult. However Labor Day looks to be a dead serious drama, with a heavy/tense atmosphere and possibly featuring some thriller elements. Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin play the lead roles. Eric Steelberg, cinematographer extraordinaire is once again on board and Reitman himself is back to writing and hoping to be nominated for best adapted screenplay. As a matter of fact the film will open in limited release on December 25th, 2013 just to make sure it eligible for Oscars, but most people will be able to see it only on January 31st, 2014.

The film is about a Adele (Kate Winslet), a single mother and her son (Gattlin Griffith), who help out a wounded mysterious man (Josh Brolin). Turns out Brolin’s character is wanted by the police and so it seems that Adele and her son will find themselves in a tricky situation. The supporting cast includes Tobey Maguire, Clark Gregg, James Van Der Beek and Brooke Smith. On a personal note I must say that even though I’m quite the Jason Reitman fan and this trailer looks good, I’m a bit skeptical about the end result. In theory I’m all for director’s branching out and trying new things, but deep down I guess there’s a certain comfort, similar to brand consistency and knowing what to expect. I’m sure it will turn out fine though, but I am worried that there hasn’t been more buzz or people talking about Labor Day so far. Then again, people mostly ignored Young Adult and that was a masterpiece, so…