Liman: 'Fair Game is a step up for me'

Doug Liman has said that Fair Game is the film he has been trying to make his entire career.

The director, whose work includes the first Jason Bourne movie, Mr & Mrs Smith and Jumper, revealed at his latest film's Cannes press conference that his earlier efforts have failed to produce films that are "entertaining and meaningful".

Liman said: "I've not succeeded so well in the past. For instance Bourne Identity was supposed to be a retelling of Iran-Contra, which my father ran the investigation on and the American people didn't pay attention to. I thought I'd couch it in a spy movie and Chris Cooper's going to play Oliver North and nobody got it."

The filmmaker also said that he was disappointed that his involvement in The O.C. didn't result in a TV show that tackled social issues.

"I thought I'd hook a bunch of teens in American then start dealing with serious issues like immigration reform and Fox said, 'No you're not, there's no way you're going to do that,'" he commented.

Of his Naomi Watts and Sean Penn-led political thriller Fair Game, Liman added: "This is a step up for me and, because I've failed in the past... Everybody did this film for either no money or the most minimal money. People were just so passionate about how we were going to tell this story."

> Click here to read our Cannes review of 'Fair Game'