“To go from being a waiter to making a film with my best mates is just amazing.”
– Nick Frost
Due to the success of Shaun of the Dead, co-stars Nick Frost and Simon Pegg are now international movie stars. The DVD has recently been released in America and it’s loaded with cool extras like audio commentary, casting tapes, Simon Pegg’s video diary and Edgar & Simon’s pitch to the studio. I got a chance to talk to both Pegg and Frost in New York City.
“Although I am a recovering alcoholic and drug addict I still feel that drugs should be legalized.”
– Greg Behrendt
Comedian Greg Behrendt has had a banner year. His book with Liz Tuccillo, He’s Just Not That Into You: The No-Excuses Truth to Understanding Guys, has sold almost 2 million copies, his standup act is popular enough to sell out large venues and the sitcom he worked on, Committed, is doing well. Behrendt kickstarted his career working with Un-Cabaret, honing his unique voice through standup.
“I often feel like my Los Angeles is never represented accurately onscreen.”
– Alex Kurtzman
This is one of the only times I’ve spoken to Alex Kurtzman by himself. He’s usually part of the screenwriting duo of Orci and Kurtzman. He and his partner Bob have written films like Transformers, Star Trek and Cowboys & Aliens. The duo also co-created TV’s Fringe. Forbes Magazine called them “Hollywood’s Secret Weapons” and considers them “the force behind $3 billion in box office.”
Not only was I getting Kurtzman solo, but he made time for me at a moment I couldn’t believe. He had just returned from a nationwide tour promoting his new movie, People Like Us, and as soon as he got home from the airport he called me. I know what it feels like to travel. I would not be coherent after a flight and a drive. I guess that’s why I’m not a screenwriter.
People Like Us is also Kurtzman’s directorial debut. It is the personal story of a debt-ridden investor (Chris Pine) who grudgingly returns home for his father’s funeral. When the will is read, he learns he has a sister (Elizabeth Banks) and nephew, whom he meets but doesn’t quite fully introduce himself to.
If you thought talking robots or space aliens were hard to explain, here’s a situation that would take a Hollywood mastermind to sort out. Luckily Kurtzman was on the case. He couldn’t keep his original title, which was Welcome to People, but Kurtzman explained how he dealt with a human drama. After we asked about all the other big movies he’s writing and producing, Kurtzman left us with some screenwriting theory advice too.
“The message of Deep Throat was different strokes for different folks.”
– Randy Barbato And Fenton Bailey
I first saw Deep Throat about 15 years ago on grainy bootleg VHS tape [remember those?]. At the time I thought that Cinemax Friday Nights after Dark were more scandalous and titillating. However Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbatos documentary Inside Deep Throat schooled me just as it will school everyone else who forgot or never knew what an impact the seminal porno film had on this country. Through brand new interviews with director Gerard Damiano, Norman Mailer, Harry Reems and archive footage of Linda Lovelace we find out just why Deep Throat polarized America and ended up grossing over $600 million.
“It’s very expensive to make a film in Britain because the exchange rate is so terrible. Dollars are worthless in the UK.”
– Danny Boyle
Danny Boyle is near and dear to the heart of probably every SuicideGirl and member. If not for his debut film noir Shallow Grave or the film that broke him through, Trainspotting, then definitely for the horror film, 28 Days Later. That film gave a pure shot of adrenaline into the heart of the zombie picture. His latest picture, Millions, might surprise casual fans. But Boyle nuts know that the man can tackle any genre and come up with a wonderfully inventive picture.
Millions tells the tale of a three person family; a practical nine year old called Anthony, his religious seven year old brother Damian, who sees saints around every corner, and their father who is the superintendent of a new housing development in Manchester. When a suitcase full of money falls out of the sky at Damian’s feet, it sets the boys on the adventure of a lifetime that leads them to realize that true wealth has nothing to do with money.
“Just because its a big genre picture you should still put a lot of layers to those characters.”
– Sigourney Weaver
After 30 years in Hollywood Sigourney Weaver has created a filmography that would be the envy of any young ingénue. From Alien to Ghostbusters to three Academy nominations, this beautiful actor has created some of the compelling characters ever.
Her latest is Sandy Travis in Imaginary Heroes, which was written and directed by 25 year old Dan Harris. The film follows one year in the lives of the Travis family. After a terrible tragedy, the family pretty much falls to pieces. Teenage son Tim [Emile Hirsch] sleepwalks through life, mother Sandy [Sigourney Weaver] finds escape in smoking pot, and father Ben [Jeff Daniels] goes into shut-down mode, disconnecting from his family
“You must not forget that all the people in the movie are perpetrators and are bad.”
– Oliver Hirschbiegel
Downfall: Hitler and the End of the Third Reich is a very difficult but important film. The plot of the movie has Traudl Junge [Alexandra Maria Lara], the final stenographer for Adolf Hitler [Bruno Ganz], telling the story of the Nazi dictator’s final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of WWII. Downfall has been nominated for Academy Award for Best Foreign Film.
Oliver Hirschbiegel is the brilliant director of Downfall who first made an impression on US soil with the psychological horror film Das Experiment which was partially based on the Stanford Prison Experiment. Before making that feature he created Kommissar Rex and directed dozens of television movies. With Downfall he tackles another very high pressure situation which has become his trademark.
