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February 29, 2012
February 27, 2012
Trailer Park: THE OTHER F WORD, Schillaci’s Top 10 of 2011, and director David Dilley
Check out my other column, This Week In Trailers, at SlashFilm.com and follow me on TWITTER under the name: Stipp
THE OTHER F WORD – DVD REVIEW
Documentaries like this just remind me how much older I’m getting every day.
It used to be that the world was young and our musical heroes would stay in some kind of stasis for ad infinitum but as time rolled on some of these rock gods became dads. Such is the premise for a documentary that explores how anarchists had to conform, to some degree, to rules and Barbie dolls.
Looking at the lives of guys like Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers, Fat Mike from NOFX and how they’ve had to capitulate, to some degree, to societal norms you realize that no one is immune to the pull of wanting more for those you bring into the world. While we see that none of them have lost the ethos of what made their music compelling, it’s bizarre to see a softer side to these tough men.
The film is really a portrait of an artist as a working father. The pulls of life at home and life of the road is wonderfully captured, albeit at the expense of the mothers who are noticeably absent from a story that really could have benefited from the perspective of the ladies who keep things going once these working dads go off to earn a paycheck. And that’s really the pull once you get past that these men reproduced. Some of them are in the twilight of their careers while their kids still need shoes, still need food, still need money coming through the door.
In some ways, the movie is an ode to fatherhood from unlikely dads. It’s worth any man’s time to see how life can twist in ways that are unexpected but that is completely natural in every way.
About the film:
This revealing and touching film asks what happens when a generation’s ultimate anti-authoritarians ““ punk rockers ““ become society’s ultimate authorities ““ dads. With a large chorus of punk rock’s leading men – Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea, Rise Against’s Tim McIlrath – THE OTHER F WORD follows Jim Lindberg, a 20-year veteran of the skate punk band Pennywise, on his hysterical and moving journey from belting his band’s anthem “F–k Authority,” to embracing his ultimately authoritarian role in mid-life: fatherhood.
Other dads featured in the film include skater Tony Hawk, Art Alexakis (Everclear), Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo), Tony Adolescent (The Adolescents), Fat Mike (NOFX), Lars Frederiksen (Rancid), and many others.
DVD FEATURES:
Feature length audio commentary with Jim Lindberg (Pennywise / The Black Pacific), Art Alexakis (Everclear), director Andrea Blaugrund Nevins, and producer Cristan Reilly
Outtakes – including Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo) and Dr. Drew
Acoustic performance outtakes of “Father of Mine” (Art Alexakis) and “Swing Life Away” (Tim McIlrath)
Post-screening Q&A at SXSW Film Festival premiere
Music videos by The Black Pacific: “Living With Ghosts” and “The System”
Original theatrical trailer
Top Ten of 2011 By Ray Schillaci
I had every intention of getting my best ten list out before the Oscar nominations, but I really wanted to be diligent and give serious consideration for all the films out there. All too often, small independents and early releases (Jan, Feb & March) get ignored and so many people miss the chance of seeing some great work. The Academy is no different; early releases and small independents are nearly invisible to them unless major studios back the films with big buck campaigns. Oscar has beaten me to the punch and they have recognized greatness, but I cannot help but feel they also missed the mark on several brilliant films. Below is some of the proof.
1. The Tree of Life ““ Possibly the best picture of the year. Only one other film comes close and that’s my number “2” choice. The Tree of Life transcends the ages and takes us places very few have ever gone before with a power that is both earth-shattering with its emotions and as soft as the wing of an angel brushing upon a newborn’s brow. Some may be turned off by director Terrence Malick’s story technique, but those who are more open-minded are in for a rare treat. Malick’s latest opus and reflection on life, grief and where we stand in the universe is by far the greatest achievement in the artist’s repertoire (Badlands, Day’s of Heaven, The Thin Red Line).
2. The Descendents ““ This could be the film to beat. Although not as ambitious as Malick’s film, Alexander Payne addresses many of the reflections of life on a much more laid back level which makes The Descendents far more accessible to an average audience. Director Payne delivers a beautiful poignant story of one man at odds with what life has dealt him and his family, and although living in near paradise and financially well off he is not immune to the adversity that life can throw at us. George Clooney delivers one of the most down to earth performances we’ve seen in years. The rest of the cast is wonderfully natural as well. Here is a film so bittersweet that it has us laughing, crying and being thought provoking in all of its 115 minutes. It is effortless in its storytelling and could easily win best adapted screenplay.
3. Hugo ““ Martin Scorsese has delivered pure art in a children’s tale that continually fascinates and warms our heart. He has somehow encompassed his love for film and nurtured it with a fond tale of humanity and humility regarding an orphan boy surviving in a train station, its inhabitants and a toy peddler’s secret. It is both a simple and complex tale. Director Scorsese walks a wonderful high wire act with a story that touches the mind as well as the heart.
4. Midnight in Paris ““ Put aside that this is the best Woody Allen film in the last ten years. Very few can match the man’s genius for storytelling and superb dialogue in any given year. With “Midnight in Paris,” Allen has delivered one of the greatest comic/cosmic fantasies and yet he remains down-to-earth in the end while winning us over with his vision of Paris, France, past and present. Owen Wilson gives a wonderfully subtle performance as our surrogate Allen-type character who visits Paris with his fetching fiancée, Rachel McAdams only to accidentally time travel and fall in love with a past that is not quite up to nostalgic expectations in the long run. The setting alone is meticulously recreated and Woody Allen’s original screenplay towers over all others for Oscar. Add this one to the pantheon of Woody Allen classics; Annie Hall, Manhattan and Hannah and her Sisters.
5. The Artist ““ I struggle with this one. Michel Hazanavicius’ movie is a student of films dream. But it does owe a lot to other great films of the past and their soundtracks. It’s hard not to have sour grapes over the (so-called) ingenuity when two of our most famous humorists, Mel Brooks (Silent Movie, “˜76) and Steve Martin (Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid, “˜82) delivered similar works that were merely discarded at the time as a neat little gimmick. Now all of Hollywood seems to be enlightened and clamoring to award the French director on his “silent movie” fairy tale of a Hollywood silent film star’s fall with the introduction of talkies. Actually, this idea was also addressed in the American classic, “Singing in the Rain”. In defense to this ode of love to film and Hollywood, “The Artist” and its cast has a unique charm that can easily win one over. Also, the entire production has been expertly crafted. From the cinematography, art direction, editing, costumes and the original score that was intricately weaved around the love theme from Alfred Hitchcock’s “Vertigo,” the film has ended up with 10 Oscar nominations. It is an inventively entertaining movie, but not the best film of the year. The dialogue could have been stronger.
6. The Help ““ A film that nearly wears its heart on its sleeve, but carefully avoids any hint of being maudlin. Instead, it is thought-provoking, informative and quite humorous tale told through the eyes of maids in a Southern town during the civil rights movement. All the performances are spot on and judging from the recognition by the Hollywood Foreign Press and others some of the actors could very well go on to win an Oscar.
7. Drive ““ Is Nicholas Winding Refn the Rodney Dangerfield of directors? Can this guy, his cast and crew get any respect from the Academy? After wowing so many with “Bronson” and being a film festival darling, Refn delivers the coolest movie of 2011 and breathes new life into a story so many have done before. This sleek vehicular thriller reminds us of the top-notch classics from Peter Yates’ “Bullitt” to William Friedkin’s “To Live and Die in L.A.” The movie could have easily been another “Transporter,” but in Refn’s skilled hands “Drive” shifts its way into a classic cerebral fable that takes our breath away with one of the best ensemble casts of the year. Albert Brooks was not overlooked for an Academy nomination, he was robbed.
8. Rare Exports ““ As mentioned; so many attempted to capture the old Spielberg magic, including the maestro himself and fell terribly flat this year. This Norwegian entry not only recaptures that magic, but gives it a dark spin worthy of a classic Brothers Grimm tale involving the discovery of the “real” Santa Clause and the dangers behind him. It is by far the most original film I have seen since Tim Burton’s, “Nightmare before Christmas” and for that alone it should be on any top ten list.
9. I Saw the Devil ““ Think of the first time you saw “Taxi Driver” or “Raging Bull” and the powerful blow that fell on you with not only the raw emotion but the sheer audacity and artistry of the way the story was weaved together ““ that is “I Saw the Devil” in a nutshell. The tale of authority going beyond the call of duty and exacting revenge on the most evil person imaginable is harsh, brutal and magnificent all at once.
10. Thespians ““ Sure, there are other documentaries that are crying out to be heard, but I feel a special need to throw this very worthy film into the ten best lists. Without thespians, there would be no theater and frankly, no film either. It is an important film for the future of performing arts and an immensely entertaining one as well. Warren Skeels has brought to light the real world of high school teens participating in the Thespian Society and how it touches and changes so many lives. This is required and enjoyable viewing for all ages.
Special Mention:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 ““ Okay, it’s no Lord of the Rings, but the ending to this highly successful franchise was a fitting climax that thrilled most fans and proved to be a well crafted fantasy filled with heart and soul.
Cyrus ““ one of the best voices for independent films since Harold and Maude. It is audacious in its storytelling with honest acting provided by a very gifted cast. Once again, John C. Riley bares his soul as a social inept sad sack being pushed back into the dating scene via his ex-wife only to find the (al)most perfect mate on his first and hilarious outing. The one hitch is the woman in question, Marisa Tomei (cute as ever), has a very dysfunctional and near obsessive relationship with her son that should have moved out on his own years ago. The man(ipulating)/boy is played by Jonah Hill, the fuse to John C. Riley’s fireworks. It’s an unsettling, disturbing and downright hysterical.
Beyond “Suspicion”: Interview with Director, David Dilley By Ray Schillaci
While at the Phoenix Film Festival 2011 I touted director, David Dilley’s crime thriller that was delicately laced with a “good taut human drama” entitled, “Suspicion”. Dilley’s film has received a release date and audiences will finally have a chance to see on the big screen an intense look into the last days of a nearly rehabilitated second rate mobster struggling with his humanity, mortality and how his decisions affect all those around him. There will be inevitable comparisons to “Pulp Fiction” and “The Sopranos” with its multi-layered story and its insightful look into the underworld and those that dabble with them, but, Dilley’s film stands on its own as an intriguing slice of the criminal life.
I had a chance to sit down with Dilley and discuss his film, the two lead actors that deliver very realistic performances and supporting actor, Carlos Larkin who chills us with his rendition of a cold blooded underworld figure. Dilley is fascinating and has a deep love for storytelling and film as an art form. His view on the world of independent filmmaking and major studio films is very entertaining, but he does not pit one against the other. He is more saddened by the missed opportunities of the majors (like me).
We both agree it’s an industry far more driven by dollars than art. We also touched on SOPA and PIPA, the legislation the major studios are pushing for, veiled under a concern to save jobs in Hollywood. We both agreed this is only a clever ruse, as Dilley put it, “to maximize revenue”. If the majors and the government were interested in saving American film industry jobs, they could easily start by placing a halt on the mass exodus of runaway production. The majors have consistently sought tax incentives in Canada, Mexico and even Romania leaving thousands of American film industry workers jobless. So, how does SOPA or PIPA help them? It doesn’t. Before continuing on with the interesting dialogue, I realized I had to hone us in on the purpose of our meeting; discussing the release of “Suspicion”.
Ray Schillaci: Congratulations on your release date. For the benefit of all those other independent filmmakers out there; it’s been nearly a year since the Phoenix Film Festival, what has happened since then to get where you are now?
DILLEY: After the Phoenix Film Festival we screened it at Big Bear (Big Bear Lake Int’l Film Festival). We took the Jury Prize there. We were acquired for distribution mid-December and then a couple of weeks after that Harkins called me and said they wanted to give me a theatrical release. That limited theatrical release is March 2nd through the 9th and then around April 17th the movie will be available through Netflix, cable, VOD, streaming and all that stuff.
RS: How many film festivals did you play?
DILLEY: Just two.
RS: Just the two, Phoenix and Big Bear?
DILLEY: Yea, no need to do anything else.
RS: Wow. Just there are people out there that do a lot of film festivals”¦
DILLEY: So, when I made “Suspicion,” I was like”¦a lot of like true independent movies, those movies are made because they’re very geared toward film festivals. They have that look, the feel, like it’s a road trip, that kind of movie. With “Suspicion” I wanted to be like, this is a real movie. Life does not end when the film festival circuit ends, it’s going to have a lot of mass appeal. So just as long as we get into a couple of film festivals I’ll be happy, but it was never my intention for it to live in the festival world. My intention was to make a good story driven movie and if you do that, I think a lot of people will like it and a lot of people will see it.
RS: Talking with you, I understand where you’re coming from but I think when this goes to print you could raise the ire of some indie filmmakers and film festivals. Do you want to clarify what you mean by “Suspicion” being “a real movie” and you’re thought on film festivals?
DILLEY: Definitely. I am not putting down independent movies or film festivals. When I made “Suspicion” I wanted it to be a mainstream movie. It’s an ultra-low budget, independent movie, sure, but I wanted it to stand out in comparison to other “indie movies”. There are many indie movies that lean towards the concept of two characters taking a road trip to Mexico or a group of twenty-somethings sit around and talk about their relationship problems (generalizing). So with “Suspicion” I didn’t want to do that. I didn’t want to show another indie movie that we’ve all grown accustomed to.
The hope was, if I looked at the mafia and presented it in an original way, and then a lot of people would appreciate it. Let me add, film festivals are wonderful, they really are. And, what’s even more wonderful than going to one is winning a jury prize for best feature film as we did at Big Bear.
RS: So, if I’m getting what you are saying right; when you mentioned that you wanted your film to be a “real movie,” what you had hoped for was that “Suspicion” would appeal to an arthouse audience as well as a mainstream one. Similar to Nicholas Winding Refn’s “Drive”?
DILLEY: That’s right.
RS: Not that I’m comparing the two films. They are very different in story and style. “Suspicion” is your first feature and it is a far cry in subject matter from your short film, “The Diner” back in 2009. What made you tackle such a story and did you have influences?
DILLEY: I’m a guy. I like mafia movies. So that was my desire to do that. I had some people ask me, “Why a mafia movie as your first film?” Because most directors will make a romantic comedy or that kind of stuff. I think at the end of the day, I just don’t like romantic comedies. I like story driven movies and I’ve always liked mafia movies. Why not make my first movie a mafia movie?
Influences; I’ve seen a lot of mafia films. I’ve seen a lot of films in general and my philosophy is whatever type of movie that you’re doing, show that movie in a unique angle. If you just approach a mafia film, like every other mafia film out there, you’re never going to give your audience anything new. And, you should do that with whatever you do. I know with a lot of mafia films what works and what’s been overused. I didn’t want to prescribe to that. I wanted to show a different story that’s in a genre that’s over a hundred years old and if I can’t do that, then I will not make the movie because I don’t want to waste anybody’s time.
RS: The chemistry between your two leads, Brad Blaisdell and Suzanne May is very natural. How long did it take to find those two and realize they were the actors for those important roles?
DILLEY: First with Suzanne; I worked on a film with her called “Gentleman Broncos”. I worked on that film with her in 2008 and she and I are friends. She was actually in the short I did, “The Diner”. We had an open casting call and I told her about the film. I told her she should come out an audition for it. She did and she killed it and that’s where I picked up Suzanne for the Alicia role. Her audition was spot on. Brad we got through an open casting call and he did a really, really excellent job. But I was kind of concerned because I thought, okay I’ve seen Brad and I’ve seen Suzanne, but I haven’t seen them together yet. Then we had a couple of read throughs and I thought it was the right choice to make for both of them and it was just good stuff.
RS: I find it interesting that you went for very natural looking leads. You didn’t type cast. Brad, at first glance, does not look like the typical mafia guy we’re use to and Suzanne’s looks are played down. If this was studio casted you might have had a very Italian looking guy and possibly Megan Fox in tight shorts and a loose top. Did you intentionally go against type?
DILLEY: Right. My thing is when it comes to movies, I think the best kind of movies, for me personally, I don’t know what other people go for but you never know that. For me it’s like, when I watch a movie I’d rather, 9 times out 10, watch the movie and be like – these essentially are real people versus actors who are playing just a character. I think movies are a lot more powerful that way. When you see a movie and you’re like “wow,” that could be a real person that lives down the street versus some idiosyncrasy that no one would have. I think that kind of stuff is really overplayed. It has to be natural.
RS: So to reiterate, you casted against type.
DILLEY: Yea. I know why it’s done and all that stuff and for a lot of films it works, you know quite effectively. But I’d rather watch a movie that had real people than characters and that’s “Suspicion”.
RS: That reminds me; there were two films at the festival last year, one of them being yours, that had a little bit of a flavor of John Cassavetes. Did you ever see Cassavetes’ “Killing of a Chinese Bookie”?
DILLEY: No.
RS: The reason I ask is because you have that bit of naturalness, almost as if some scenes were improvised (I’m referring to this in a good way). Were you trying to go for something like that?
DILLEY: After we cast everyone in the film, I sat down with all my actors and said, this is the story, this is my script, this is how I see things, but that being said you (the cast) are “the actors”. You’re bringing these characters to life. So, you’re free to explore and do anything you want to do to make these characters more real. I was like, if something doesn’t work, we’ll adjust then. But until we get to that point just have fun with it.
And, so like when you’re watching the film and you’ll see like they are not just sitting down and talking, especially Brad. Sometimes he is fidgeting and that kind of stuff and it just goes back to what I was saying that he just feels like more of a real person rather than a character. You would do that if you were talking with somebody. You would have some sort of movement. Yea, sometimes things were improvised and I would look at it and say, yea that’ll work.
RS: Like the little dance?
DILLEY: Yea. Brad has been on Broadway and off-Broadway and he can dance. In that scene, you know they are getting high and he’s an old hippie at heart and so he’s just dancing around in his apartment. Brad and I spoke about that dance for all of two seconds. He’s like, “I don’t think it’s choreographed.” And, I agreed. I told him, “You’re high and you’re 60, 61 and you have a 23 year-old girl, very attractive, very smart woman in your house, But at the same time there is nothing going on between the two of you. Even though you are a 61 year-old man, you might be like, yea I really wish something would happen, but there’s no way it ever would. So obviously you’re delighted to be around this person and you guys are high and you just reflect all that.
I think the only direction I gave him in that scene was like; you’re kinda like the dancing elephant in the room. You’re this big mafia guy and you want to have fun, but when you’re dancing, you’re kind of making a fool of yourself. It’s fun though.
RS: It’s a very nice, light moment and it’s funny because after I viewed the film again I realized I neglected to mention James Khoury’s haunting score. Please extend my apologies to him. His music really sets the tone from beginning to end. Did you have an idea right away, when you were doing the film, what kind of score would drive this film?
DILLEY: No, I mean the way I operate is I like giving people as little as direction as possible. I think that there’s a tendency in Hollywood that people, the directors especially, a lot of them micro-manage and so I think when you do that, like you’re not”¦if you’re hiring this person as your cinematographer, you’re hiring this person because you know that this person is really good at what they do, one. And two; they are a lot better at what they do than you can be at their job.
If you’re hiring these people to do whatever roles whether it is your composer, your cinematographer or your actors, you should give those people as much freedom as possible. Obviously, talk to them about what the movie is, the tone and all that stuff, but in terms of like being intrusive you shouldn’t do that.So, I sat down with James and told him this is obviously a mafia film, it’s dark and he had read the script. I asked him to give me some things that I can work with. Give me all the music on stems that way we can adjust and he agreed. There was some stuff we had to take out because it was a little bit too much, but that’s just how it works.
RS: It wasn’t grandiose and there was nothing that screamed out Italian about it. It was a very nice score. The first time I saw your film, you know what really struck me was a stand-out performance and I probably harp on it too much”¦
DILLEY: That’s good.
RS: That was Carlos Larkin. Tell me; was his audition a slam dunk? Where did you find him? As I’ve mentioned before, the guy resembles a young Peter Fonda and sounds like a cross between Nick Nolte and Kris Kristofferson. But when I met him, he was nothing of the sort.
DILLEY: Yeah, I know. So, my really good friend, Alex McCullough, helped me produce the film and Alex knew Carlos. They had worked on a couple of projects before and he was like, would you mind if this person auditioned? I said, no problem, absolutely. He came in for the open casting call and he read it and I looked at the tapes and I wasn’t sold. I talked to Alex and he was like, what do you mean? And, I told him I didn’t know. It seemed like he played it too nice and I told him to record himself again and let me see it. The second tape he sent in, he essentially invented that voice, that’s in the movie which is really cool. I was like, YEA. He says in the audition tape that he’s thinking like a Kris Kristofferson kind of thing. I’m watching this tape and it works!
RS: That was funny, because when I met him and I told Carlos exactly how I felt that he kind of channeled a combination of Kris Kristofferson and Nick Nolte, he was surprised that I was the first person to catch that.
DILLEY: It was just funny; he does a lot of voice work and that kind of stuff. He’s a number of characters on the World of Warcraft. I think he’s working on something else, but he really can’t talk about it because he signed an NDA agreement that’s two or three hundred pages, probably. He did a really good job. It was like what I said before; you should be as natural as possible. For me, at least, my favorite movies are when you watch a movie and say, this is a real person versus a character. I think really good actors can do that. That’s what makes movies so powerful for me. It’s like you’re telling a story, but you’re telling it with real people doing it. Carlos did an amazing job with that.
RS: As I mentioned before, you walked this tightrope with human drama and crime thriller. How hard was that? Did you ever find yourself shifting more towards one or the other?
DILLEY: No, because I wrote the script. I knew what the story was going to be, but I didn’t just want it to be a mafia film. You have to give your audience a new story. If you’re doing a mafia movie and mafia movies are as old as cinema, they’ve been around for over a century, so every type of mafia film has already been done. So if you don’t do it from a unique angle you are going to lose your audience. So it was not that difficult because I knew what kind of story I wanted to do going into it.
RS: Why the Arizona location when so many films of this kind take place in New York, New Jersey and Chicago? Was it the sense of relocation for criminals, since they have been known to be sent this way?
DILLEY: I’m from Arizona. My family moved out here when I was 9 and I consider myself a native. Phoenix is the 5th or 6th largest city in the United States. So, there is going to be an element of organized crime here. There always has been, there always will be. I t would have been really cool to film in New York. I’m not going to lie. It would have been really cool to film in Chicago. But it’s like; it goes back to telling an original story. Not all mafia movies have to be in Chicago or have to be in New York. There’s organized crime everywhere and there is also evidence of that in Phoenix. In the late 70s, early 80s journalists, honestly would turn their car on and like “Casino,” their car would explode. These people had put bombs under their cars. There is history here with that.
RS: Did you have any talks with any persons of interest”¦you know where I’m going with this?
DILLEY: (laughs) Yea. So funny thing is I had done a good amount of research and when we screened at Big Bear there was these people that were obviously retired. They had been retired for a number of years and one of the guys had seen the film introduced me to his friend and his friend use to be “involved,” in that line of work and he was like, “Haven’t seen it yet. I hope you didn’t mess it up” This is after we won the Jury Prize. The winners were going to screen their movies again. After he had seen it he was like, yea, I know a lot of people like that, and a lot of people like Daryl. That was just coincidental and really cool.
RS: So just with research alone you had your finger on that pulse.
DILLEY: Yes. Like I said before, mafia movies have been around for well over a century and you’ve watched a lot of them and you’re like if I’m going to do this I’m going to approach it from a unique angle and at the same time I have to do real research. Like what would happen. One of the things I found was a lot of people say you’re in the mafia until death. That’s not true. The mafia is and always has been an economic enterprise. If you’re involved in that line of work and you can’t do it anymore for whatever reason there are a number of people that will gladly take over that work load for you because it’s an economic endeavor. There wasn’t anything with Daryl where it was like; oh I left the family now I’m going to get killed. What happens in the movie is because of his relationship to this mafia boss but it never directly deals with how you dare leave the family.
S: Many filmmakers have a tendency to get pigeonholed in a genre, but I think that would be hard to do with you since you’ve shown that you can handle drama as well as the down-and-dirty of a thriller. What do you see on the horizon? Do you have a desire to branch out in other genres?
DILLEY: Yes. I’m hopefully directing another movie in September or October. It’s a legal political type thriller. I have some meetings in the next two months. We’ll see if this movie materializes or not. But I have a good feeling it will. I always want to tell good story driven movies regardless whatever genre that is. I’m going to hopefully be able to do that.
RS: How does a filmmaker like you gain funding for such a project like “Suspicion” with its very independent film feel?
DILLEY: Obviously it’s not studio financed. You can’t go to a bank. It’s just like anything else, any sort of business now. A bank will not give you a loan unless you have some very serious collateral. So you end up talking to people you know that might want to do this. They might agree to finance it or a part of it and then you end up asking them if they know anybody else. That’s how independent movies get made nowadays and I think that’s how it should be.
RS: You live here in Arizona. How does that work for you with the buzz of the Industry primarily in L.A.?
DILLEY: I lived in Los Angeles for three years. When I was in Los Angeles I really wasn’t living there because I was working every place else. For the three years I worked, I was probably only living there for maybe five months. You don’t really have to be in L.A. as long as you have a good network and you always stay busy. If you do need to go to L.A. it’s a one hour flight (from Phoenix) or it’s about 5 to 6 hours by car. I go out to L.A. quite a bit for meetings and that kind of stuff. I think Phoenix is very uniquely positioned that you’re obviously outside of L.A. but you’re close enough you can come back for meetings and such. I don’t know. I think it’s very easy to get wrapped up in the whole scene in Los Angeles and a lot of people that move out there might have the best intentions in the world but very soon they get wrapped up in the lifestyle, the nightlife and everything else and then they’re not able to make movies. I like living in Phoenix because it’s removed from L.A. and if I do need to go out there, I can very easily.
RS: Do you have an agent?
DILLEY: No, not yet.
RS: Have you been contacted?
DILLEY: Yes, by UTA and CAA. And, one of my best friends, he actually works at Imagine Entertainment and if this next movie materializes there’s a good chance we will be able to bring that to Imagine. So, we’ll see. But again, that is down the road.
RS: Do you think Brad or Suzanne may have a part in that?
DILLEY: Yea, well my thing is like, obviously each movie has to be unique. So you couldn’t have this character play a lead in your other movie, but there is still room to bring these people over if there is a role for them.
RS: Is it fair to say that you’re pretty loyal?
DILLEY: Yea, I have my inner circle. That’s the great thing about film or any other sort of business venture. You’re always going to meet new people and you’re always going to find people who are hard working, very talented and you’ll always add to that group of people.
RS: You tend to see that not so much in big films, but with famous directors such as Quentin Tarantino and his use of Michael Madsen, Martin Scorsese using Robert DeNiro and Joe Pesci, all the way down to Sam Peckinpaw and his use of Warren Oates. So you’re like that.
DILLEY: It all depends on the project. If you’re doing a comedy, Brad might not be the best for that role. But if you can, you should.
RS: But you would definitely consider your editor, your cinematographer”¦
DILLEY: Oh absolutely.
RS: And, I have to tell you it’s beautifully done. I was watching it again. The editing, all the different shots very carefully thought out, a fine independent film.
DILLEY: Thank you. It was fun making it.
RS: I just want to make sure I have this right. The pending dates for the release you have March 2nd through the 9th at the Harkins Valley Art Theater on Mill Ave in Tempe.
DILLEY: Yes and Harkins about a year ago finished upgrading all their technology so all of their projectors are digital now. So we’re actually screening “Suspicion” on Blu-ray. There is a difference on the Blu-ray since we shot with the RED camera and we had prime lenses. The maximum resolution on a RED Camera is a 4K camera, so 4000×1080 and that’s maximum resolution which is fine for a forty foot screen.
RS: Could the run get extended?
DILLEY: It could. Harkins told me that if it does well for that week, they’ll give me another week but the definition of how well it does ““ you never know. Mid-April it will be available on Netflix, VOD, cable and we might get picked up in Los Angeles and New York for another theatrical release which would be kinda cool. You could say my movie was in the theater in these three states. Yea, that would be cool
RS: I will recommend to people that they see it in the theater. Somehow the story and the tension it provides always appears better on the big screen. Thank you very much for this interview.
DILLEY: You’re welcome and thank you.
February 24, 2012
Weekend Shopping Guide 2/24/12: Fade In
The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the FRED Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support FRED by using the links below to make any impulse purchases – it helps to keep us going…)
It’s a little slow-going at times and uneven, but the good of The Fades (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP) far outweighs any deficiencies as it’s a clever take on ghosts and vampire mythology with a nice post-modern twist and an incredible performance from co-star Daniel Kaluuya as the pop-literate friend of our supernatural protagonist who’s faced with the end of the world. Bonus materials include interviews, deleted scenes, outtakes, and more.
Are you steampunky? Have you ever wished you could wear a tiny little folding telescope on your ring finger? So you could feel all steampunky and adventurous and ingenious? Well, Thinkgeek brings you Captain Jules’ Extraordinary Telescope Ring ($29.99), which is exactly what you need – a collapsible telescope (and compass!) that you can wear on your finger. Yeah. That’s cool.
I’m sure it’s just a personal hang-up of mine, but I’m not much of a fan of Leonardo DiCaprio, especially as he’s somehow become the go-to guy for vintage biopics of egomaniacal men. The latest is Clint Eastwood’s otherwise nicely made J. Edgar (Warner Bros., Rated R, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP), which dives into the ultimately flawed grand personality behind the FBI, J. Edgar Hoover, and his political kingdom of information.
Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson’s big Tintin film is about to hit home video, and the massive amounts of development and concept art that went into making it is presented in The Art Of The Adventures Of Tintin (Weta/HarperCollins, $39.99 SRP). And, if you get the book directly from Weta, you get exclusive replicas of the three parchment scraps that, when aligned, give the coordinates to find Red Rackham’s treasure. And for those with a fancy iPad, the publishers have put out an absolutely phenomenal app version of the book, with every piece of art enlargeable, interactive turnarounds, artist interviews, and even clips from the film.
And speaking of incredible behind-the-scenes books, now that the massive 8-film series has wrapped, you can explore all of the cinematic magic that went into making JK Rowling’s boy wizard come to life with Harry Potter: Page To Screen – The Complete Filmmaking Journey (Harper Design, $75.00 SRP). Comprehensive (and large), you get a look at everything it took to create the films, from casting and special effects to release – it’s all in there.
For years, Newmarket Press has been putting out some quite nice making-of and screenplay books for various films, and this Oscar season brings a pair of tomes from this year’s nominees. First up is Hugo: The Shooting Script (Newmarket Press, $19.99 SRP), the latest from director Martin Scorsese. Also available is a look behind Steven Spielberg WWI epic – War Horse: The Making Of The Motion Picture (Newmarket Press, $34.99 SRP).
I wasn’t expecting much, which is probably why I was pleasantly surprised by the working man’s revenge flick Tower Heist (Universal, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP), which finds everyday folks (with the likes of Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, Matthew Broderick, Gabourey Sidibe, and Casey Affleck) getting back at a Wall Street swindler (Alan Alda). Maybe that’s because this comedy is directed by the loathsome Brett Ratner. But hey, a decent flick every 10 years is understandable. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, alternate endings, deleted scenes, featurettes, and more.
You can watch Tudors and French Cardinals all you want, but in Italy the power center also had a family name, and it’s that powerful dynasty that’s the subject of Borgia Faith and Fear: Season One (Lionsgate, Not Rated, DVD-$39.98 SRP), as we look at the depraved Machiavellian center of the Catholic Vatican, Rodrigo Borgia.
It’s no Shrek, which I see as a definite plus for spin-off film Puss In Boots (Dreamworks, Rated PG, 3D Blu-Ray-$27.99 SRP), which finds Antonio Banderas reprising his feline lothario roll for a bit of a romp that finds him going up against the nefarious Jack & Jill. As usual for recent Dreamworks animated fare, the use of 3-D is rather enjoyable, and carries over well to a home theater presentation. Bonus materials include deleted scenes, featurettes, games, and more.
Fighting the nefarious likes of Simon Bar Sinister and Riff Raff, the dated though still fun cartoons featured in the 10-disc Underdog: Complete Collector’s Edition (Shout Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$69.97 SRP) are worth introducing to the kids in your life. Bonus materials include audio commentaries, a featurette, and additional cartoons.
A pair of Showtime series are dropping their latest seasons with the arrival of post-prison new life in the Big Apple Weeds: Season Seven (Lionsgate, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.97 SRP) and a post-confrontation Nurse Jackie: Season Three (Lionsgate, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.97 SRP). Both sport commentaries, featurettes, gag reels, and more.
Last week we featured Underground Toys’ collector’s set focusing on the villains of William Hartnell’s First Doctor, and this week we’ve got an action figure set which brings together a trio of Jon Pertwee’s with the Enemies Of The Third Doctor ($49.99 SRP). First and foremost, we get an Auton from the 3rd Doctor’s debut story, “Spearhead From Space”. Then we get the fallen Time Lord Omega from “The Three Doctors”, which just so happens to be coming out in a new special edition DVD very soon. Finally, we get the monstrous swamp-dwelling Drashig from “Carnival Of Monsters”. Here’s hoping they continue this line of collector’s sets with the other 8 Doctors… Though, granted, it might be a little hard to do with the 8th Doctor.
I’m not entire surely what Faustian deal the folks at Hot Toys and Sideshow Collectibles have entered into in order to keep delivering truly stunning 12″-scale collectibles, but each new one brings a fresh rounds of “oohs” and “aahs” for everything from the masterful sculpting to the pitch-perfect scale costume reproductions. The latest cinematic legend to get the platinum treatment of their deluxe DX line (with moveable eyes and more accessories than you can shake a stick at) is the 1989 Michael Keaton Batman ($239.99). From the rubber batsuit to the leather cape, the costume is exactly as you remember it, right down to the jagged-bottom bat symbol on his chest. The figure also comes with 3 different swappable mouths (closed, pursed, and bloodied), batarang, throwing stars, grappling guns, communicator, and more, plus a light-up base featuring the bat symbol. Incredible. I can’t wait to see their upcoming Jack Nicholson Joker.
So there you have it… my humble suggestions for what to watch, listen to, play with, or waste money on this coming weekend. See ya next week…
-Ken Plume
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February 23, 2012
Whotininnies 11: Phasers On Stunned
Join Ken Plume and Glen Oliver as they take you on a journey beyond geekiness and nerdiness – Well, they pretty much just nerd out geekily and have a bit of a chat about Doctor Who and all things sci-fi.
Whotininnies 11: Phasers On Stunned
Ken and Glen compare injuries and dive into Trek Lore with a little bit of meddling and mild insanity along the way. As always, our theme is courtesy of Chameleon Circuit.Hope you enjoy…
Download “Whotininnies 11: Phasers On Stunned“:
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(Artwork by Molly Lewis)
Cabin Fever 107: Dead Becomes Her
Cabin Fever (hosted by the twisted souls Brian Fitzpatrick and Aaron Poole) is the result of having too much time on your hands and access to some microphones.
Over the course of an hour, they manage to trawl the depths of good taste, plus throw some music in. How much more could you want from a podcast?… Quality? Oh… we didn’t think of that.
Enjoy! And we hope our cross Atlantic friends can understand the Irish accent 😉
CABIN FEVER #107: Dead Becomes Her – Double A and The Rev spend a chilled Saturday afternoon discussing the Grammys, celebrity marriage, the hotness of Goldie Hawn, and pHitzy goes on a rant about his hatred for The Walking Dead.
[CONTENT WARNING]: Explicit contents! We say every naughty word you can think of. You have been warned!
DOWNLOAD: (right click to save)
Episode #107 (MP3 format)
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Got something to say? E-mail Aaron & Brian at the Cabin Fever mailbag.
CLICK HERE FOR THE CABIN FEVER ARCHIVES
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February 20, 2012
Trailer Park: REAL STEEL, BOMBAY BEACH and Warren Skeels of THESPIANS
Check out my other column, This Week In Trailers, at SlashFilm.com and follow me on TWITTER under the name: Stipp
BOMBAY BEACH – DVD REVIEW
An emotionally gripping documentary that charts the lives of those living around the Salton Sea area in California this is a film that incorporates the emotional punch of showing a triad of stories that deal with rural poverty and abject isolation with some artistic injections of poetry and dancing. I know, it sounds like a combination that should not work and if it wasn’t anyone else but filmmaker Alma Har’el at the helm of this project it wouldn’t have worked well but the truth of the matter is that you understand her subjects more because of these disparate elements. You appreciate their inner plight when you can peel back the superficiality of living in a place that seems to be oozing despair and show them as human beings who yearn for more than what they have, what they’re surrounded by.
Just like General Orders No. 9, this documentary blends the literal and surreal in ways that just make sense. The lives of people who are living closer than any of us will to the edges of society make for more than just documentary fodder, it makes for the perfect platform with which to illustrate people many of us try so hard to ignore. There is no place to hide here and thank God for that.
About the film:
Bombay Beach, the Tribeca Film Festival 2011 winner “Best Feature Documentary” is now on DVD
– A documentary that is as much MTV as PBS… an awesomely fresh piece of cinema.” ““IndieWIRE
“It’s an American beauty.” ““The Wall Street Journal
“A beautiful, quirky and ultimately very moving film” ““Terry Gilliam
WINNER OF THE BEST FEATURE DOCUMENTARY AT THE 2011 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL, FILMMAKER ALMA HAR’EL’S “BRILLIANT AND POETIC ” FESTIVAL SMASH IS A MOVING AND MADLY INVENTIVE DOCUMENTARY EXPERIENCE
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Decades ago, the Salton Sea was a California tourist hotspot and a symbol of 1950s-era American optimism. Now, in a state of environmental decline and abandonment, its inhabitants still cling to their dreams despite living among the decaying relics of a bygone era. This year’s winner of the Tribeca Film Festival documentary competition and a festival hit around the world, BOMBAY BEACH creates a portrait of this small community living on the fringes of the lost American dream, and the dreamers who populate its surreal and poetic landscape. The film makes its DVD debut this January, from Entertainment One under the Focus World brand, which is charged with finding the most exciting voices in international and independent film.
“Many films try to portray dignity in rural decay, but the authentically poetic Bombay Beach is the real deal.” ““The Associated Press
True to her roots as a photographer, video artist, and music video director, Alma Har’el crafts an adamantly atypical and artistically innovative film, telling the story of three protagonists: Benny Parrish, a young boy diagnosed with bipolar disorder, whose troubled soul and vivid imagination create both suffering and joy for him and his complex and loving family; CeeJay Thompson, a black teenager and aspiring football player, who has taken refuge in Bombay Beach hoping to avoid the same fate of his murdered cousin; and Red, an ancient survivor and former oil field worker, living on the fumes of whiskey, cigarettes and an irrepressible love of life.
Each narrative is interspersed with dance sequences choreographed to music composed for the film by Zach Condon of the band Beirut, and songs by Bob Dylan; however, it is the camera that sets this film apart. Quite simply, the landscape of Bombay Beach is as fantastic and surreal a place as a dream. Each image appears to have been folded up and sent through the wash in somebody’s back pocket. Light collects in folds and pours through creases, revealing an earth that is worn, soft and surprising. The result is a moving and madly inventive documentary experience – an evocative, symbolic portrait of rural America and its inhabitants.
BONUS FEATURES
“¢ Deleted Scenes
“¢ “Where Are They Now?” Featurettes
“¢ Selected Scenes with Commentary by filmmaker Alma Har’el and editor Joe Lindquist
“¢ Alma Har’el Music Videos
REAL STEEL – DVD REVIEW
If any of you have watched OVER THE TOP you’ll have a good idea of where things are going in this one.
And that’s not a knock against a movie that is really made for families and in a landscape that is filled with dreck like Mr. Popper’s Penguins the pickens are slim. There really should be a handicap when it comes to family entertainment because it truly does have to serve many masters: mothers, fathers, and the kids. When you have to blend these many audiences it’s easy to see how too much of one could be a bad thing and end up with a movie best left to the kiddies but director Shawn Levy deserves some praise, however slight, for giving everyone their bread and circuses.
When you have a story about a father who has never met his son, who initially doesn’t want anything to do with this sudden parenting situation he finds himself in, a robot who wants to be more than just a robot (don’t they all), and a love story that is about as tame as something you’d see on the Disney Channel, you shouldn’t expect much. But, what you do get, is more than the sum of its robotic parts.
The action is good, the pacing is incredibly passable, and the ending, while not altogether surprising, is enough to make this one of those movies that if you had to find yourself choosing from a list of others in its weight class, should be your very first pick.
About the movie:
“It’s Rocky with robots”¦a heartwarming movie for everyone.”
– Pete Hammond,
Box Office Magazine
DreamWorks Studios’ REAL STEEL, starring Hugh Jackman, muscles its way into the Home Entertainment arena on Blu-rayâ„¢, DVD, Digital and On-Demand on January 24, 2012. This visually stunning action-adventure filled with heart and soul is a “must-add” to every home movie collection, delivering a premium in-home experience complete with knockout bonus materials that dive deeper into the action.
The Blu-ray Combo Pack, with its perfect picture and sound, delivers the ultimate punch, offering viewers a variety of supplemental bonus features that take them ringside with Director Shawn Levy on the making of the film. Exclusive features include a bare-knuckled exposé of the life story of Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman), deleted and extended scenes that go deeper into the film and storylines, and a riveting profile with legendary boxing champion Sugar Ray Leonard. Plus, the revolutionary Real Steel Second Screen app lets viewers sync their iPad™* or computer with the Blu-ray movie to peel back layers of effects with progression reels, check out 360-degree turnarounds of the robots, explore seamless branching pods that delve into the cutting-edge technology used to create the fights, and much more.
The #1 movie in the country for two consecutive weeks during its theatrical run, REAL STEEL is directed by Shawn Levy (Night At the Museum franchise, Date Night and What Happens in Vegas), produced by Steven Spielberg (Saving Private Ryan, Schindler’s List), with a screenplay by John Gatins (Coach Carter, Summer Catch). Set in the not-so-distant future where boxing has gone high-tech and 2000-pound, 8-foot-tall steel robots have taken over the ring, the film stars Hugh Jackman (X-Men franchise, Australia) as Charlie Kenton, Evangeline Lilly (TV’s Lost, The Hurt Locker) as Bailey Tallet, Dakota Goyo (Thor) as Max Kenton, Kevin Durand (I Am Number Four, X-Men Origins: Wolverine) as Ricky, and Anthony Mackie (The Adjustment Bureau, The Hurt Locker) as Finn.
Bonus Features Include:
REAL STEEL SECOND SCREEN
Countdown to the Fight – The Charlie Kenton Story
Sugar Ray Leonard: Cornerman’s Champ
Deleted and Extended Scenes with introductions by Shawn Levy
Extended “Meet Ambush”
Deleted “Butterfly” Storyline
PLUS All DVD Bonus Features
1-Disc DVD (1 DVD)
Making of Metal Valley
Building the Bots
Bloopers
HIGH-DEFINITION & STANDARD DEFINITION DIGITAL
Sugar Ray Leonard: Cornerman’s Champ
PLUS All DVD Bonus Features
FILM SYNOPSIS:
Balancing gritty action and emotional heart, “Real Steel” is an inspiring and visually stunning film that takes audiences on an action-packed journey. Washed-up boxer Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) scrapes by as a small-time robot-fight promoter as he tries to make a comeback. Against all odds he eventually succeeds – at least in the eyes of his son Max (Dakota Goyo). “Real Steel” is spectacular family entertainment that will have everyone cheering again and again.
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Director, Warren Skeels of “Thespians” – Interview By Ray Schillaci
Back in May of 2011, I raved about a documentary at the Phoenix Film festival that brought laughs and tears to the audience that packed the theaters. Warren Skeels’ “Thespians” now has a DVD release and has premiered on Showtime. Warren recently graced me with an interview and gave me some insight into the amazing journey of this special film.
RS: Warren, I have to tell you how excited I am that your film is moving forward. Not enough people see documentaries and it’s probably been since Michael Moore that audiences discovered documentaries can be informative and entertaining at the same time.
WARREN: Very true.
RS: Your film has a similar emotional journey as entertaining as Alan Parker’s 1980 film, “Fame”.
WARREN: I’m glad you feel that way. My background is with the performing arts. I went to a performing arts high school and did the theater thing. I went through this whole journey that the kids that we followed went through. So, I could empathize with them. I went to So Cal and got a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting and minor in Film, and after I made two films, two narratives, I was trying to think of what project I could do next.
Sometimes when you’re doing a narrative project, it’s like making a movie and there’s maybe no kind of future inherent or value in it except for the fact that it’s an entertainment product and that it’s done. I really wanted to do something that had a bigger meaning to it, but also could be entertaining. I was talking with my sister, who also has a performing arts background and we were discussing what a great time we had doing thespians in high school.
Then it just hit me that would be a highly entertaining film to follow different trips on this journey. At the same time, it could also be a way to highlight the value and the importance of theater arts and education. I wanted to do so in a way that was entertaining and hopefully inspiring, but not like a Dateline, news magazine. I did not want the approach where I’m going to Capitol Hill and talk about the lack of funding in the arts and just allowing that to be the 800lb gorilla in the room.
RS: I’m curious, how did you go about distinguishing the four different schools?
WARREN: I would love to say, I had an audition process for that. I certainly needed to hedge my bet, so to speak. I was close with the state director from when I was a senior in high school. He had been doing it for eighteen years”¦it was actually the last year he was going to be doing it.
He was reluctant as to tell me who was performing well. I didn’t say; tell me who the best schools are. I just said; over the last five years tell me some of the recurring schools who seem to be showing up in the critic’s choice. That way I could go and talk to them and see if they would be interested in the experience and seeing if the teacher was interesting and dynamic, can kind of articulate their experiences as well and that sort of thing. I ended up choosing four high schools off that kind of list and the fifth high school I chose ended up being the “Alter Boys” school, which was not on the list at all.
RS: They were great.
WARREN: Yea. The teacher, Shirley Sachs, of that group was a teacher of mine in high school. When she found out I was making this film, she requested me to come out and see an early rehearsal of “Boys”. They could not put one foot in front of the other. But she was so convinced that they would compete and that because they were such brainiacs and their work ethic was so determined, by the end of it, I would be surprised as to what they had put together, and that they would bring a quality product to the table. I would watch them and I thought, wow, they are going to bring a lot of levity to this film.
RS: Yes, they did.
WARREN: It was one of those things where the outline of where I thought I was taking the film, but at the same time, that’s why you create an outline. You create a blueprint so that you can veer if you need to pick up something. What we ended up doing was essentially following five schools, one of which did not make the final cut, which was Coral Reef High School in Miami, a predominantly Hispanic-Jewish school that was really fascinating to me. In the end, it just did not have a strong enough story line that shared the spotlight with the other storylines.
The “Alter Boys” story was really funny to me, because watching them learn it the first time that Jade came in from New York, and he’s the choreographer and he’s like, “I’m not going to pull any punches. I’m going to treat you like how anybody else would in New York.” I don’t know if it’s that evident in the film. I think it’s partially evident and it’s humorous just being there, on the floor and it’s highly entertaining even outside of what you see in the film.
RS: It’s funny that you say that, because I was going to ask if you thought anybody was holding back when you were filming, the students or the teachers. I remember way back that my drama coaches could be brutal or there always seemed to be a drama queen, a young woman or man in class.
WARREN: What was interesting, I wanted to put a particular filter on the film as well. Which was, we all know what high school theater kids can be and the last thing I wanted to do was make a film and bolster that perception of the loud, annoying theater kids. I really wanted to examine and show the value of what is really happening. I specifically had that filter on going into it. When there were moments or times where that was kind of exhibited I found ways not to make that into the cut of the film.
RS: Did you ever expect the reaction you are getting as far as the documentary?
WARREN: It’s really flattering to see the response to the film and I think as a filmmaker you just hope that people want to see the film. So, with that in mind, I feel very fortunate. I feel most fortunate that the people, kind of opened up their lives to us, to follow their process and the schools that allowed us into the classroom and give us access to tell their story.
You know, in this day and age, it’s kind of difficult to walk a camera into a school. There’s a lot of red tape and fortunately we were given permission and a lot of that had to do with the fact that I had produced a documentary film prior to this called, “Chops”. That was about the largest high school jazz competition in Lincoln Center, New York with Wynton Marsalis and the late Ed Bradley made a cameo as well. We premiered that at the Tribeca Film Festival. We sold it and with that little bit of critical acclaim it gave us some footing and some credibility to kick-start dialogue with the school systems that we were going into. They were much more opened to us being there. I think if we had just walked off the street and did not have any credits it would have been a more difficult process.
RS: Would you say there were other hurdles in pre-production and filming?
WARREN: What was interesting was; I did not know how long it was going to take for the kids to warm up to us. Yet some of them like Jeremy were, “Sure, you want to start filming. You can start right now. What do you want to know?” Then the “Altar Boys” were a like, “Ah maaan, they got a camera here? They’re going to film us, oh no!” It took them a little bit too warm up. Brendan could walk through his room and describe his toy frog and the maps made for Halloween and his interest in history and architecture. Then all of a sudden I was like a voice for him and he was really excited about that.
Then there were others like Adam and Melanie doing the duet piece from “Danny and the Deep Blue Sea” by John Patrick Shanley. Adam was really anti my presence for a good bit of time before he started to get a little more familiar with me and saw that my crew and I were there on good terms and we were doing something positive. He kind of turned on us a little bit, but in a good way. Initially, he was kind of unapproachable, which was unfortunate because we were really trying to highlight what he was doing and it just took awhile.
The interesting thing is all the kids that are in this film, I stay in touch with a lot of them and they’re like my younger brothers and sisters. I’m trying to look out for them and their careers. Tiffany from the “Look Homeward Angel” play, I’m trying to get back with her and people regarding representation. Ana also from “Look Homeward Angel,” the blonde, I actually directed her in a short film that hopefully I will bring to the Phoenix Film Festival, which I would love to do.
RS: I have to tell you, two people for me stood out from the rest. Jeremy was one. What’s happened to him so far?
WARREN: Jeremy actually has a band called Easton and they have something like 30,000 fans on Myspace. He was the lead singer of this pop rock band in his middle high school years, but then he started getting more and more involved in theater, but being a lead singer in a band was his first love. He kind of fused into acting. He went up to SUNY Purchase in New York. Melanie from “Danny in the Deep Blue Sea” stayed as a senior at Boston University BFA program and Adam is a senior at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh.
RS: The other person that really struck me was Ana. Were you aware while you were filming her that she had a striking resemblance to another actress?
WARREN: Who do you think? Sharon Stone?
RS: I’ve heard so many people say, that’s a young Sharon Stone.
WARREN: Yea. What’s actually funny is that when we were filming at State our executive producer came to visit and was kind of hanging out at our room and he was like, “How’s my young Sharon Stone?” the whole time. The thing about her is that she’s a very attractive girl and she’s very talented too. She’s doing a ton of modeling in Greece and in China and modeling in New York. She’s working on a degree on PR/Communications at Platford University, in St Augustine, Florida. She just played one of the leads in a suspense/thriller short film that I directed this past summer. We should be working together again.
RS: With your theater background, you had to find yourself very connected to these kids. Did you ever find yourself becoming emotionally involved with your subjects to the point where it upset you when certain players did not do as well as expected?
WARREN: There’s kind of two different motions to that kind of run the gamut with this kind of scenario; 1.) I really started rooting for all of them and wanted them to do well, because I genuinely liked them as kids and liked what they stood for. I felt like an older brother to the performers. 2.) (WARNING: SPOILER ALERT”¦for several paragraphs) as a filmmaker you kind of hope for some successes and some failures. With Jeremy, when he went overtime and ended up losing, at first I was really bummed, cause I thought he was going to be someone who was going to go all the way.
He’s so super talented and his monologues were really strong. But in the end, by him losing early and failing, it gave us some conflict of a resolve that this could happen to the others, and better, we’re going to be moving forward. It also gave us value in a story that you can’t lose. It’s not that everybody is going to win, but someone will lose and how Jeremy, who was so strong, actually is the first one out. I think it was kind of a wake-up call for the viewer, realizing, “Oh, we’re not going to be watching him for the next hour-and-a-half. He’s done.”
RS: It was pretty much a shock to a lot of people. I know that my son’s drama class, when they saw it, they were in total suspense after that. They had no idea who was going out.
WARREN: As a filmmaker and working with my editor, Billy, we took out that part (originally) because he (Jeremy) didn’t go any further and so we focused on the Dr. Phillips High School kids and “The Altar Boys’ and others. Then I realized, I was missing out on that sense of loss, that you can’t lose and we went back in and added all of Jeremy’s stuff, because I really enjoyed that storyline. If he was a little more disciplined, he could have gone all the way. But he let his talent; ego and pride go beyond itself.
What we didn’t have on camera, which I really wished we did, we were not rolling at the time, the rehearsal prior to the District when he did his monologue, his teacher Beverly timed his monologue and said, “Right now, you’re thirty seconds over. I think we should work on this and cut some lines, so you have some time.” He responded, “Oh I’m not worried about it. I’ll be fine. I’ll get under.” And, of course, he didn’t. I wish we had that on camera, because it would have built it up even more.
(SPOILER ALERT ENDED)
And, what’s interesting is that he’s kinda made out to be a little bit more egomaniacal in this film than he is in real life. He’s actually a sweet heart as a kid. But you’re making a film and it’s entertainment so you kinda bring out certain elements and I talked to him about it after the editing and I told him we have a certain focus on your character, it’s going to be hilarious. He couldn’t wait to see it. Then he came to New York when we held a special advanced screening for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS who is a beneficiary of the film (15% of our net profits go to them on behalf of all Thespians). Jeremy loved it. It was like, “I’m in a movie, and this is great!”
Adam, the guy from “Danny and the Deep Blue Sea” actually just saw the film for the first time after a friend of the family’s brought to his mom’s attention that a picture of her son was in Entertainment Weekly. She was surprised when the friend inquired if he was in the movie, “Thespians,” and she acknowledged it, but had not seen it. She didn’t know what was happening with it. He just kinda lost touch with everybody because he was going through college and that sort of thing and kind of MIA for a little while.
She finally caught it on Showtime and called Adam, insisting he catch it on the cable. I got an email about six days ago from him telling me how he felt so bad about giving me a hard time, at first, because this is really a great film. He told me I did a wonderful job and he was really proud to be a part of it. I thought it was really cool to see that. It’s like the best self-help video anyone could ever make for me. I was like, “Aaaah.” He did give me a real hard time at first. Like, “What are you doing? Why are you filming us? Why do you want this so much? Trying to cause trouble?” He gave a lot of lip, so to speak.
RS: Warren, this is such an important film for young people involved in the Arts, and I feel from middle school on, is there any movement to make this documentary required viewing in schools.
WARREN: Not that I know of and if that were to happen I think that would be fantastic. We are trying to make the educational rights affordable. We want to allow the school to screen it as many times as it wants for their students, faculty, staff, guests and etc for a onetime fee of $270. They just can’t charge admission, but they could screen it for eternity as long as it’s at the school district. I talked to our investors and relayed that schools have it really tough right now and if we could get any kind of price break on this and I finally got them to agree on a $99 rate.
Currently online, through the website thespiansthemovie.com you can purchase the DVD for $19.95 (for individuals) and receive a 20% discount by using the code, “heart”. For teachers and schools (for the educational license) enter the code “xmas” and it will go from $270 to $99 and the educational license comes with the DVD, 12-page film guide, and a 24×36 movie poster. We wanted it to be the holiday season year round for teachers when ordering the educational license.
What I would love, is to find a way to where if the school themselves cannot afford it in their budget that boosters or parent association or kid’s parents via a program can afford to buy it for the school. So it would not have to be bought by the school but for the school. We tried to work that out with people in Texas and California already.
RS: I want to thank you for your time and cooperation granting me this interview and I will continue to my praise for this film by letting you know that “Thespians” has made it to my top ten list of films of 2011.
WARREN: Awesome.
RS: I’m going to encourage young and old to share in the enjoyment of this wonderful motion picture experience that celebrates the joys of being a Thespian.
WARREN: Thank you so much, Ray.
RS: You’re welcome. I wish you the best of luck. You have a powerful film that touches so many people and I’m proud to have been able to talk to you and to convey this to everybody I know.
WARREN: Thanks, that means so much. It really does, more than you know.
Attention teachers, parents and anyone who knows any person with an interest in the performing arts, this film is for you. I urge you to check out their website and make the purchase of this DVD that is perfect for any home video library and educational institution that promotes the Arts. When viewing, be prepared to laugh, cry and cheer. Warren Skeels’ “Thespians” is a wondrous emotional journey.
February 17, 2012
Whotininnies 10: A Lumpy Anniversary
Whotininnies 10: A Lumpy Anniversary
Ken and Glen reach grand old 10 with tangents aplenty, including eBay robots and horrid holiday specials. As always, our theme is courtesy of Chameleon Circuit.Hope you enjoy…
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(Artwork by Molly Lewis)
Weekend Shopping Guide 2/17/12: The Three Doctors
The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the FRED Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support FRED by using the links below to make any impulse purchases – it helps to keep us going…)
Things kicked off proper with To Kill A Mockingbird, and Universal keeps the excitement of their 100th anniversary going with a fully restored, absolutely beautiful high definition presentation of their WWI epic All Quiet On The Western Front (Universal, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP). Bonus materials include an introduction from Robert Osborne, a rarely seen “silent” version, and a look at the restoration process.
You don’t have to be lonely or irresponsible to want an Electronic Goldfish In A Bowl ($19.99) – although certainly, if you are, there’s no better pet this side of not having any pet at all. Or a rock. Who couldn’t love an endlessly circling faux-fish, lit by LED and a perfect little visual diversion and desktop conversation piece… That you won’t have to flush.
The now-companionless 11th Doctor puts his own spin Narnia with World War II and plenty of trees thrown in for good measure in the latest Christmas adventure Doctor Who: The Doctor, The Widow, & The Wardrobe (BBC, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$19.98 SRP). A wonderful little festive tale. The disc also contains a prequel and a trio of “Best Of” documentaries.
The Doctor & Peri land on barren Androzani Minor in the middle of violent human/android keruffles & find celery useless against stickyballs in the final Peter Davison adventure The Caves Of Androzani (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$34.98 SRP). This new release of the previously available story adds a lovely batch of bonus materials, including an audio commentary, making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes, extended scenes, interviews, and more.
The TARDIS materializes inside a ship full of fraidy-cats paralyzed by flat-footed psychic aliens fond of onesies but not humans in the William Hartnell story Doctor Who: The Sensorites (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$24.98 SRP). Bonus materials include an audio commentary, featurettes, a photo gallery, and more.
Watch as the History Channel continues to fritter away its reputation with another volume of the lamentable Storage Wars (History Channel, Not Rated, DVD-$19.95 SRP), wherein a bunch of mooks go looking for “treasure” in storage unit sales.
The less than dynamic duo return to snigger and snark for a new generation with the release of Beavis & Butthead: Volume 4 (Paramount, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$26.99 SRP). Featuring all new episodes, the 2011 Comic-Con panel, interruptions, and more.
In a brilliant move (and as a way to release potentially obscure characters with a little more context), the fine folks at Underground Toys have begun releasing themed sets based on adversaries of the various Doctors. First out of the gate is Enemies Of The First Doctor ($47.99). The 3-pack features the Dalek-subjugated zombie-like human Roboman from “The Dalek Invasion Of Earth”, a flame-shooting Dalek from “The Dalek’s Master Plan”, and an original-style Cyberman from the 1st Doctor’s swan song, “The Tenth Planet”.
We’ve gotten plenty of incredible premium format Star Wars statues from the fine folks at Sideshow Collectibles, from Darth Vader to Princess Leia, but we’ve finally gotten one of the most iconic – and common – elements of George Lucas’s galaxy far, far away with the Premium Format Stormtrooper ($299). Ready for action and posed to fire his weapon in a most unskilled fashion possible, the Stormtrooper features spot-on armor and accessories, right down to the fanny pack on his belt. Sideshow continues to provide fans with absolutely exquisite 1/4-scale statues sure to delight even the nerdiest of nerds.
So there you have it… my humble suggestions for what to watch, listen to, play with, or waste money on this coming weekend. See ya next week…
-Ken Plume
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February 15, 2012
Cabin Fever 106: The Pissiest Place On Earth
Cabin Fever (hosted by the twisted souls Brian Fitzpatrick and Aaron Poole) is the result of having too much time on your hands and access to some microphones.
Over the course of an hour, they manage to trawl the depths of good taste, plus throw some music in. How much more could you want from a podcast?… Quality? Oh… we didn’t think of that.
Enjoy! And we hope our cross Atlantic friends can understand the Irish accent 😉
CABIN FEVER #106: The Pissiest Place On Earth – Aaron returns from his trip to Disneyland Paris and finds that not everything is quite so magic at Le Royaume Magique. This reminds pHitzy of all the lamer aspects of spending the summer in NYC, and the two cabin boys piss and moan ad nauseam. Misery loves company, and podcasting apparently.
[CONTENT WARNING]: Explicit contents! We say every naughty word you can think of. You have been warned!
DOWNLOAD: (right click to save)
Episode #106 (MP3 format)
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CLICK HERE FOR THE CABIN FEVER ARCHIVES
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February 13, 2012
A Bit Of A Chat with Ken Plume & Charlie McDonnell 4
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
In this episode, I have another chat with vlogger, musician, and presenter Charlie McDonnell about eye patches, screenwriting, travel, driving lessons, Japan, unicycles, and Muppets.
CLICK HERE to hear our first Bit of a Chat.
CLICK HERE to hear our second Bit of a Chat.
CLICK HERE to hear our third Bit of a Chat.
Visit Charlie’s official site at www.charliemcdonnell.com.
Hope you enjoy…
Download “A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & Charlie McDonnell 4“:
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Drop Ken a line HERE.
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You can also find more of my interviews by clicking HERE.
A Bit Of A Chat with Sharon Stiteler & Bill Stiteler
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
In this episode, I have a chat with Birdchick Sharon Stiteler and writer/actor/director Bill Stiteler about birding, theatre, condiments, fugitive dogs, toast rooms, bees, and hair.
You can find Sharon’s official site at www.birdchick.com and Bill at www.williamstiteler.com.
Hope you enjoy…
Download “A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & Sharon Stiteler & Bill Stiteler“:
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Drop Ken a line HERE.
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You can also find more of my interviews by clicking HERE.
February 11, 2012
Whotininnies 9: The Phantom Countdown
Whotininnies 9: The Phantom Countdown
Ken and Glen clip Lucasian wings and talk lovingly of genre oddballs. Also – Kubrick and a bit of Rick rolling. As always, our theme is courtesy of Chameleon Circuit.Hope you enjoy…
Download “Whotininnies 9: The Phantom Countdown“:
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Drop Ken & Glen a line HERE.
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(Artwork by Molly Lewis)
February 10, 2012
Weekend Shopping Guide 2/10/12: The Lady Is A Tramp
The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the FRED Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support FRED by using the links below to make any impulse purchases – it helps to keep us going…)
I know it should no longer impress me, because they’ve done it with each of their classic high definition releases, but Disney’s restoration of their newest Diamond Edition, Lady And The Tramp (Walt Disney, Rated G, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP), is truly beautiful. Never has this film looked so sharp and vibrant, and it makes the wait for the remaining classic titles to hit Blu-Ray that much harder. Bonus materials include all of those featured on the previous DVD Platinum Edition, plus deleted scenes, a deleted song, a lovely featurette on Walt’s Disneyland apartment, and more.
Celebrate special events in aeronautic style with the incredibly easy to use (and quite beautiful) Sky Lanterns Mini Hot Air Balloon ($3.99). This simple paper hot air balloon features a small flame source under a paper balloon, which can soar up to a mile high. And it’s completely biodegradable.
Following up on his stellar turn in series 5, Murray Gold keeps the roll going with his music for Doctor Who: Series 6 (Silva Screen, $18.10 SRP). The 2-disc set contains cues from all 13 episodes, including his epic “Majestic Tale (Of A Madman In A Box)”. Ace.
It’s very much of the period, but there’s no denying that the chemistry between Ryan O’Neal and Ali McGraw as two star-crossed lovers is what made Love Story (Paramount, Rated PG, Blu-Ray-$22.99 SRP) such a success way back in 1970, and it’s certainly worth revisiting over 40 years later in high definition. Bonus materials include an audio commentary and a retrospective featurette.
Collecting together a trio of character-based live specials from earlier in his career, Steve Coogan Live (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$24.99 SRP) is worth a spin if you’re only familiar with Coogan from his recent feature film work, or just Alan Partridge. Bonus materials include additional Australia highlights, animations, and Steve Coogan: The Inside Story.
If you’re in the mood for a brilliant little two-hander, Cormac McCarthy’s The Sunset Limited (HBO, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP) stars Samuel L. Jackson as Black, a man who has just stopped White (Tommy Lee Jones) from committing suicide at the train station. Black takes White back to his apartment, where he proceeds to try and convert him to the faith… in something.
If there’s one overriding takeaway from the Harold & Kumar movies, is that they’re really not interested in anything much besides giving audiences a pleasant viewing experience. In that, A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas (Warner Bros., Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$35.99 SRP) doesn’t deviate too much, though it does find our pothead protagonists a few years older and separated, as Harold is married and living a big-money existence in the suburbs while Kumar… Well, Kumar is still Kumar, just a little older and sadder for it. Ah, but this is a holiday movie, so circumstances unite them both for a truly mad adventure that does, indeed, feature the return of Neil Patrick Harris. Of course. Bonus materials include deleted scenes and a pair of featurettes.
Lucas Cruikshank’s internet sensation Fred Figglehorn returns for another adventure in the spooky Fred 2: Night Of The Living Fred (Lionsgate, Not Rated, DVD-$16.98 SRP), which finds our high-pitched hero desperate to prove his replacement music teacher is actually a vampire. Bonus materials include a clutch of featurettes and videos.
In the mood for a small character drama this weekend? Give a spin to Fireflies In The Garden (Sony, Rated R, DVD-$30.99 SRP), which finds a Midwestern family rocked by an accident on the eve of the matriarch’s decades-delayed graduation from college, which she had set aside to raise her now-adult kids while her husband pursued a career that has put him on the track to become university president. The disc sports a making-of featurette.
Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson star in the charming little drama The Song Of Lunch (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$14.98 SRP), about a book editor (Rickman) who meets up with his former love (Thompson) for lunch, 15 years after their breakup. Quite a nice two-hander.
Tween girls will probably want to snap up the Disney Channel movie Geek Charming (Walt Disney, Not Rated, DVD-$26.99 SRP), starring Modern Family‘s Sarah Hyland as a high school it girl rescued from humiliation by a film geek who decides to cast her in his documentary. Guess what? They fall in love and remake each other’s stereotypical expectations! Whoda thunk it? Bonus materials include 10 episodes of the series Shake It Up.
Having gained time travel abilities, the Daleks pursue the 1st Doctor and his companions in the 1965 story “The Chase”, eventually winding up on a jungle planet populated by Mechanoids sent decades prior to prepare the planet for human colonists that never arrived, who quickly take The Doctor and companions captive. Oh, and the Mechanoids and the Daleks don’t get along. You can now re-create that enmity with the Doctor Who: The Chase Collector’s Set (Underground Toys, $47.95), featuring a pair of classic silver Daleks facing off against the flame-wielding Mechanoid.
As a child of the early 80’s, I was a fan of just about any cartoon you can mention, both good and bad. Included in the bunch is the original, far superior run of GI Joe, which introduced a diabolical terrorist group bent on world domination named Cobra, with an iconic leader whose memorable voice and penchant for failure made him a favorite. Well, the fine folks at Sideshow have captured the iconic look of the one and only Cobra leader with their Cobra Commander Premium Format Figure . ($299) Standing regally evil with serpent scepter in hand and loaded pistol behind his back, you can display him with either his mirror-faced battle helmet or his hood via a pair of interchangeable heads. COOOBRAAAAAA!
So there you have it… my humble suggestions for what to watch, listen to, play with, or waste money on this coming weekend. See ya next week…
-Ken Plume
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Party Favors: The Good Life
O-TOWN – How can you not love a wallaby in a pseudo Hawaiian shirt? Rocko’s Modern Life was a cult hit on Nickelodeon back in the mid-90s and is returning on home video. This month Rocko’s Modern Life: Season Two hits the DVD Shelves.
Rocko is voiced by Carlos Alazraqui, best known as Deputy Garcia on Reno 911!. Tom Kenny (Mr Show) gets tone to Hefer Wolfe, Rocko’s slightly out of it cow pal. You might know Kenny as the star of SpongeBob Squarepants. This show is where Kenny and SpongeBob creator Stephen Hillenberg came together. But don’t make the mistake of viewing Rocko as the testing ground for SpongeBob. Rocko’s Modern Life is a great show by itself.
As someone who didn’t have cable when it aired, the show feels fresh. This isn’t like enduring a series packed with Jonas Brothers jokes. Season Two starts off with a new theme song from B-52s. “I Have No Son!” introduces us the disowned animator son of the Bigheads. There’s even a Christmas special.
I had a chance to swap questions via email with Rocko’s Modern Life‘s creator Joe Murray. After Rocko’s Modern Life, Murray went on to create Camp Lazlo. He’s currently making Frog In a Suit for KaboingTV. Our questions stuck with Rocko.
Party Favors: Looking back, do you find it odd that you had an easier time making Rocko into an animated series than getting it published as a comic book?
Joe Murray: Well, the Marvel Comic book came after the show started. Some people think it was the other way around. So it wasn’t difficult, until I tried to have a hand in the comic book on top of all my other duties.
Party Favors: Did you find yourself having a casting session with the supporting characters from the comic book deciding which ones deserved a recurring role?
Joe Murray: Supporting characters quite often start pushing their way to the front if they want more camera time.?
Party Favors: What was it like for you to go from working privately on the comic book to having story sessions with other writers?
Joe Murray: Well, I position this question to: What was it like to going from being my own writer on my Independent films to working with writers. Well,,, difficult. Especially when Nickelodeon first tried to “assign” a writer/editor they liked to me, and we didn’t get along. I had to say him or me because it was not working. Why have a creator driven show if they bring in someone who has his own vision of what the show should be?
Party Favors: Was there a discussion to call Rocko a Kangaroo?
Joe Murray: Not really. Nick liked that it was an odd animal. Relatively unknown.?
Party Favors: How did you end up making an animated series that features two main characters that aren’t loud and annoying?
Joe Murray: Why? Is that a formula? I wasn’t aware of that. Good thing. I just did a show that I connected to and related to.?
(Editor note: It is the Seth MacFarlane Formula of Success.)
Party Favors: How can Rocko work at a comic book store without being so judgmental of customers?
Joe Murray: Because he’s nice sweet Rocko. He just goes about his business while chaos happens around him.?
Party Favors: Had you seen Tom Kenny’s work on Mr. Show before he auditioned?
Joe Murray: Actually no. I did see his stand up comedy routine, and that’s what attracted me . Plus he’s such a great nice guy. Who wouldn’t want to work with that in combination with sickening fantastic talent??
Party Favors: How do you cast voice talent? Did you let Carlos Alazraqui test out his own voice ideas in the process?
Joe Murray: Yes. Carlos, who was also from stand up comedy, did great voices. He had never done voice acting before, but he was a natural. We had a long line of actors trying to do Rocko, and I just kept shaking my head no, no, not it, no.
And then Carlos nailed it,,, as well as Spunky. Plus Carlos is great guy as well. I don’t work with them if they are not nice guys.?
Party Favors: What allowed you to get the B-52s to perform the theme song?
Joe Murray: Well,, actually Nick asked me who my dream band would be to do the music for Rocko, and the B-52’s were on the top of the list. It just so happened one of the Nick producers knew Pat Irwin who did composing and was the keyboardist for the B-52’s. He did a demo for me and I loved it. Then it was just matter of him asking his friends in the band to do the opening song. I was there at the recording in New York, and we all had a great time.?
Party Favors: Did you have your own way to figure out if an episode could entertain an adult yet appeal to a kid?
Joe Murray: Well, we were all big kids, and we all found it funny. So that kind of covered us on all bases. We had the highest overall households ratings, so I guess it worked.?
Party Favors: We’re you pretty secure in the way the show would work for season two or was it still a big adventure?
Joe Murray: Every season is an adventure. But the way animation works, we needed to start season 2 before we aired the first episode of season 1, the main premiere. So we didn’t even know how any one was going to respond to this bizarre show. We just kept doing what we were doing on Season 1, but better. Filburt broke out as a more prominent character, the writing got better, we settled into a real great production groove. We got rid of the line producers, editors and writers that were assigned by Nick in the first season so the second season was smooth sailing as far as chemistry in the studio was concerned. I can’t wait for season 3 to come out. In my opinion that was the best.?
Party Favors: Are you excited about Season 2 coming out since it has Ralph Bighead’s arrival? Was Ralph you or a composite of all the people working on the show?
Joe Murray: No, Ralph was pretty much me. But the directors and writers also resonated with him. The episode “I Have No Son” was a lot of fun to do, except I don’t like my voice as Ralph Bighead. The episode “Wacky Deli” that came later was also a lot of fun.
Party Favors: How far into Season 2 did you know there would be Season 3?
Joe Murray: Well, we knew early on that we were going to start producing episodes for season 3, but didn’t know if they would air. ( we were pretty sure they would, but in entertainment, you never know. Season 3 was the last season I was completely in the trenches as a hands on Director, Producer Story editor. So I wanted to have fun with it. Season 4 I was the Executive Producer, and Steve Hillenburg (Spongebob) took over more of my jobs.?
Party Favors: What do you feel you did as a story editor back in the ’90s that made “Rocko’s Modern Life” still enjoyable for new viewers today?
Joe Murray: Well, we didn’t know how it would appeal to anyone. People thought it was a weird show back then, and I think more people “Got it” as time went on. I wanted to make Rocko a show that you could watch again and again, and get something new we put in each time. I hope we did that. Thanks to Shout, we have them on DVD now and the audience can do that.
The Party Favors would like to thank Joe Murray and the fine folks at Shout! Factory for setting up our email exchange with Joe Murray.
SAVE THE GREETER
Recently Walmart has been tinkering with the position of People Greeter. First it was eliminating the role from the overnight hours. This made sense since the old folks who stand at the entrances don’t like being night owls. Now they want to shift the greeters to further back in the store and make them restockers. How can Walmart think of messing with the position?
The only thing that gives Walmart an ounce of humanity is the old people at the front entrance saying “Welcome to Walmart.” Without the greeter, a Walmart is nothing more than a computer controlled box stocked with cheap Chinese products on the verge of being recalled and preprocessed frankenfoods. The old person gives the illusion that someone cares that I’m shopping in their inhuman labyrinth of consumerism. Plus the People Greeter reminds us that there might still be a job for us when we’re 80 years old and discover our retirement plan was a worthless scam. What other jobs can an 80 year old do? Grandma can’t work at Hooters. They have a rule that your breasts can’t drop below your orange shorts.
Let Walmart know that you need a greeter. I propose a Vampire Protest. Refuse to enter a Walmart until someone greets you to come inside. Thousands of people must cluster outside Walmarts across this country to hive the message to Bentonville. We need our People Greeters! And I’m not just writing this because I’m about to publish The Seven Secrets of Great Walmart People Greeters. Although it would help sales if they still had People Greeters.
BLU-HEAVEN
Star Trek: The Next Generation – The Next Level is a demonstration of what happens to the U.S.S. Enterprise as it hits the warp speed of high dentition. When the series originally aired, the live action was shot on 35mm film, but the special effects were done in standard video. This worked well for the syndicated television world of 1987. But now in the world of HDTV, ST:TNG does not look modern. Luckily someone at Paramount realized that this show wasn’t always going to be stuck on standard def channels. They basically redid the post-production on the show. The original 35mm film was rescanned, the special effects were recreated in a higher resolution and a fresh 7.1 DTS-HD sound mix was created. The results judging from the three episodes on this sampler Blu-ray are magnificent. All the little details onboard the deck come out. You’ll be able to read the emotions of Deanna Troi. Ladies should be warned about seeing the young Wil Wheaton in 1080p. The uniforms have a sheen to them. “Encounter at Farpoint” is the double episode pilot that brought the franchise back to the small screen. Picard and crew have their first encounter with Q. The higher being is eager to smash them if they fail his test. Season Three’s “Sin of the Father” makes Worf defend his father’s honor in a Klingon ceremony. Season Five’s “The Inner Light” plays with how a lost civilization gets Picard to remember them. This is a fine sampler to let folks see the glory of the fresh post-production. If you need a gift for your Star Trek fanatic pal, this is it.
DVD SHELF
Happy, Happy is a cute, cute film from Norway. Kaja (Agnes Kittelsen)is excited when new neighbors move next door in the middle of winter. She adores the new couple since they seem so perfect. Her own marriage is turning into a bit of a pain since her husband is more focused on their kids. He’s lost his sex drive. The new couple gets her a little excited and she ends up doing something that can bust up every one’s lives. But she’s not sinister about it. She’s not out to destroy and claim as reawaken herself. Plus the husband needs a little payback since they moved after his wife admitted to having an affair. This is a great throwback to the foreign language sex comedies that used to appeal to an art house audience that didn’t mind subtitles to see how risqué the rest of the world lives. They do sing in English.
Outrage: Way of the Yakuza is the kind of Asian mobster film that would have had me driving out to Dave’s Videodrome in Carrboro to rent the VHS tape in ’93. Luckily it’s cheaper nowadays to just online order the DVD or Blu-ray and not have to worry about the price of gas and late fee. Takeshi Kitano remains a cinematic artist who paints the screen in badass red. He wrote, directed, edited and starred in Outrage. This is his movie. The Yakuza, the Japanese version of the Mafia, are changing to fit the 21st century. No longer are they tattoo covered goons with missing fingers. They’re hustling in the age of digital technology. There’s a power struggle as aging lions are targeted by young cubs with sharp teeth. Kitano’s mobster is part of a family looking to mess with their neighboring crime family. A little disrespect tumbles into an all out mobster war with bodies piling up. Did you know that instead of sending a muffin basket for a slight screw up, you include the finger of the Japanese intern? Think of how many fingers would be piling up at the various new channels. Outrage would have been worth the drive to the Videodrome.
Police Woman: Season Two gets Angie Dickinson’s iconic series back on the release tracks after six years. The series was a spin-off from Police Story when the public couldn’t get enough of Sgt. Pepper Anderson (Dickinson) and her partner Sgt. Bill Crowley (Earl Holliman). The duo enjoyed going undercover to bust mobsters, pimps, drug dealers and more mobsters in Los Angeles. “Pawns of Power” bring son the heavyweight talent of Mr. Robert Goulet! Even wonder how long Ian McShane has been around? He’s in “The Chasers” with Film Noir legend Ida Lupino in 1975. “Farewell, Mary Jane” has Angie saying hello to Sam Elliott, Geoffrey Lewis and Loni Anderson. “Glitter with a Bullet” dazzles with Frank Gorshin (Batman‘s The Riddler). Future supercop Erik Estrada (CHiPs) is part of “Don’t Feed the Pigeons.” There’s only two more seasons left. “The Pawn Shop” trades in a younger Joan Collins. “Wednesdays Child” gives us the joy of Robert Loggia (The Sopranos) and Raymond St. Jacques (Coffin Ed in Cotton Comes to Harlem). The season wraps up with the two part “Task Force: Cop Killer.” Angie might be targeted. The series kicks. There’s only two more seasons left to be released.
The Adventures of Chuck and Friends: Friends to the Finish is about tiny Tonka trucks. Chuck’s a jacked up dumptruck with a need for speed. The show appeals to little kids who are can handle motor vehicles with eyeballs. Chuck’s brother is a big time racer so the kid has a Speed Racer quality. The show’s big focus appears to be on the worthy nature of practice. This is series is not Allen Iverson approved. Each episode is about 11 minutes long so it has the ability to keep a little kid’s attention before they start zipping their own cars and trucks around the floor.
Limelight gives the history of New York City’s legendary nightclub that was inside a church. The mixing of religious architecture and ecstasy that took over the mantle of decadence from Studio 54. Owner Peter Gatien went beyond Studio 54 when he created a nightlife kingdom within the Big Apple. He also ran Tunnel, Palladium (home of Club MTV) and Club USA. During the ’80s and ’90s, Gatien’s clubs had larger audiences than the Yankees. Cocaine Cowboy‘s Bill Corben once more scores in creating a documentary that reminds us America likes to get messed up and party down. Gatien’s clubs not only helped mark the rise of Rave culture, but his Tunnel’s rap night created a hip hop nation. Naturally the mayor of New York had to shut down anything that wasn’t wholesome. The infamous Party Killer murder of a club kid by one of the Limelight’s top party promoter didn’t help the cause. The documentary allows Gatien and the players discuss how the city dismantled the velvet ropes and escorted Gatien back to Canada. This is a bigger story than Studio 54. Sad thought is that soon the Limelight will be turned into an iHop. Be careful if you find a lost “sugar packet” under your table.
?Father Dowling Mysteries: The First Season brought Tom Bosley back Happy Days purgatory. He’s a pastor of a Catholic Church in Chicago that loves mystery novels and true detective tales. He’s got an eye for details and the ability to spot sin in a man’s soul. He’s also got a cute nun (Tracy Nelson) as his sidekick. The show was made by the people behind Matlock so it has the same tone in the crimes. “Fatal Confession” was the TV pilot movie that stole America’s heart in 1987. Father Dowling doesn’t believe a parishioner is a suicide. He has to juggle his investigation with running various church function. The first season only had 7 episodes when it started in the winter of ’89. His cases included mobster priests, hookers, babies, evil brothers and Harriet Nelson. After confession, you can always use an episode of Father Dowling to replace 10 Hail Marys.
February 9, 2012
Win THE SUNSET LIMITED on Blu-Ray!
In conjunction with HBO Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of THE SUNSET LIMITED on Blu-Ray.
Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, February 22nd.
Official Rules
No member of FRED Entertainment or their immediate families may enter.
No Purchase necessary to win.
Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.
One entry per day, per person.
All submitted entries must be received by 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, February 22nd.
The winner must allow 4-6 weeks after notification of win to receive the product.
Win DELOCATED on DVD!
In conjunction with Adult Swim Home Video, we’re giving away three (3) copies of DELOCATED on DVD.
Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, February 22nd.
Official Rules
No member of FRED Entertainment or their immediate families may enter.
No Purchase necessary to win.
Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.
One entry per day, per person.
All submitted entries must be received by 11:59pm EST on Wednesday, February 22nd.
The winner must allow 4-6 weeks after notification of win to receive the product.
A Bit Of A Chat with Ken Plume & Matt Debenham 2
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
In this episode, I have another chat with writer Matt Debenham about sleep outs, periwinkle butterflies, spirals, singles, and strippers.
Be sure to visit his official site at www.MattDebenham.com, and purchase his new short story, “The Advocate”, by CLICKING HERE.
And you can listen to our first chat HERE.
Hope you enjoy…
Download “A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & Matt Debenham 2“:
[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/bitofachat/bit_of_a_chat-matt_debenham_2.mp3]
SUBSCRIBE
Subscribe to this Podcast via iTunes
Drop Ken a line HERE.
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You can also find more of my interviews by clicking HERE.
February 8, 2012
February 6, 2012
FREDagator: 2012-02-06
In case you missed it, OK Go have made another mad video with them doing mad things. Plus music…
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February 5, 2012
A Bit Of A Chat with Ken Plume & Gillian Jacobs
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
In this episode, I have a chat with COMMUNITY star Gillian Jacobs about smoking, acting, skydiving, McHale’s neck, Community Theatre, hashtaggery, and Karate Dog.
Hope you enjoy…
Download “A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & Gillian Jacobs“:
[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/bitofachat/bit_of_a_chat-gillian_jacobs.mp3]
SUBSCRIBE
Subscribe to this Podcast via iTunes
Drop Ken a line HERE.
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You can also find more of my interviews by clicking HERE.
FREDagator: 2012-02-05
“What the wife selects on her console will be paid for by the husband on his counterpart console…”
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Cabin Fever 105: 1.2 Bitches Per Song
Cabin Fever (hosted by the twisted souls Brian Fitzpatrick and Aaron Poole) is the result of having too much time on your hands and access to some microphones.
Over the course of an hour, they manage to trawl the depths of good taste, plus throw some music in. How much more could you want from a podcast?… Quality? Oh… we didn’t think of that.
Enjoy! And we hope our cross Atlantic friends can understand the Irish accent 😉
CABIN FEVER #105: 1.2 Bitches Per Song – What? We have to do this crap every week? It’s easy to forget just how much of a pain this podcasting lark is. After a brief Royal Rumble celebration, our cabin dwellers get stuck into a slew of strange stories from around the world. Along the way they discuss the poetic verse of HOVA, Craig List faux pas, The Rev’s status as a sex object in the gay community, and lots more nonsense that you have come to expect from two barely educated Irish lads. Seriously, pHitzy can’t count past the number twelve, and I’m pretty sure Aaron is just straight up illiterate.
[CONTENT WARNING]: Explicit contents! We say every naughty word you can think of. You have been warned!
DOWNLOAD: (right click to save)
Episode #105 (MP3 format)
[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/cabinfever/cabin_fever_105.mp3]
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Subscribe to this Podcast via iTunes
Got something to say? E-mail Aaron & Brian at the Cabin Fever mailbag.
CLICK HERE FOR THE CABIN FEVER ARCHIVES
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February 4, 2012
February 3, 2012
Weekend Shopping Guide 2/3/12: Mockingbird, Yeah
The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the FRED Weekend Shopping Guide – your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support FRED by using the links below to make any impulse purchases – it helps to keep us going…)
As part of their 100th anniversary celebration, Universal has cleaned up and presented a pretty-damn definitive high definition edition of To Kill A Mockingbird (Universal, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$39.98 SRP), looking and sounding truly spiffy. The stunning quality of the film itself remains intact as an unassailable classic. Bonus materials include a feature-length making-of documentary, an audio commentary, interviews, featurettes, a look at Universal’s restoration process, and more.
Do you like magnets? I like magnets. Do you like tops? Heck, who doesn’t love tops! Well, now you can chocolate and peanut butter them to get the Magnet Powered Spinning Top ($9.99), which is the perfect little desk novelty to keep you giddy during those long work days.
If Monty Python defined British comedy for the 70’s, it was Channel 4’s inaugural comedy show The Comic Strip Presents that set the tone for the strident comedy of the 1980’s. Featuring the likes of Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Rik Mayall, Ade Edmondson, Alexei Sayle, and Robbie Coltrane, the short comedic films are absolute gems and required viewing for anyone who considers themselves a comedy lover. The Complete Comic Strip Presents Collection (E1, Not Rated, DVD-$89.98 SRP) contains all 5 seasons, plus a hefty clutch of bonus materials.
I’m a massive fan of the legendary Marvel Comics series Fantastic Four, which means I dove into the exquisite history of the book’s creation and golden age – Lee & Kirby: The Wonder Years (Twomorrows, $19.95) – with gusto. Well-researched and well-presented, author Mark Alexander makes the brilliant creative alchemy and circumstance between Stan Lee & Jack Kirby come alive.
While I applaud Paramount for dipping into the coffers to take the time and considerable cost necessary to high definition upgrade (via original film negative and effects materials) the whole series, I wish the Star Trek: The Next Generation – The Next Level (Paramount, Not Rated, Blu-Ray-$22.99 SRP) sampler disc did not feature a trio of regrettable episodes to showcase all of the incredible work being done. I certainly would not have picked “Encounter At Farpoint”, “Sins Of The Father”, and “The Inner Light”, though I can understand wanting to take the worst and most dated – the pilot – and show off the new process, but it also is a reminder of just how plodding and awkward that pilot was… Even if it does look and sound better than you can possible believe now.
As far as thought-provoking science fiction flicks go, In Time (Fox, Rated PG-13, Blu-Ray-$39.99 SRP) is an interesting enough watch, with a concept that finds humanity immortal from the age of 25 – but with all currency in the form of time from their lives. The rich can live forever. The poor die when they’ve spent all of their time. And when a poor person (Justin Timberlake) upsets the system? You get this movie. Bonus materials include deleted/extended scenes and a featurette.
The Blu-Ray pact between Miramax and Lionsgate brings another pair of catalogue releases to tick off your waitlist – the Academy Award sweeper The English Patient (Lionsgate, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$19.99 SRP) & the Civil War epic Cold Mountain (Lionsgate, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$19.99 SRP), Bonus materials include audio commentaries, featurettes, deleted scenes, and more.
If you’re going to revisit a beloved horror film, you should probably at least try to be up to the challenge. Sadly, the new “prequel” to John Carpenter’s The Thing (Universal, Rated R, Blu-Ray-$34.98 SRP) doesn’t quite realize the subtlety and realism that made the horror really pack a punch, instead opting for unconvincing CGI and too much bluster. Bonus materials include an audio commentary, deleted scenes, featurettes, and more.
You know me – I simply adore Doctor Who. And because I’m a geek, that means I also love the action figures based on the almost 50 years of the series being produced by Underground Toys. I’ll be featuring some pretty damned spiffy sets in the near future, but consider this one a celebration of all of the figures they’ve been producing recently from the more recent Matt Smith 11th Doctor era of the show. All figures retail for around $15-$20, depending on where you find them. You’ve got the Corroded Cyberman with Chest Damage, Corroded Cyberman with Face Damage, & a clutch of Cybermats from “Closing Time”. Or go even creepier with a Silent with Closed Mouth or a creepier Silent with Open Mouth. Okay, maybe creepiest of all is the Peg Soldier from “Night Terrors”. Ah, but that’s enough baddies. Let’s move on to River Song, and her mind-controlled assassin mode as The Astronaut. Or how about darling little Amelia Pond. There’s the TARDIS personified as Idris from “The Doctor’s Wife” And how about we wrap things up with a whole bunch of 11th Doctor variants – the Flesh Doctor, the 11th Doctor with Beard, the 11th Doctor with Cowboy Hat, AND FINALLY The 11th Doctor with a brand new (and much more accurate the Matt Smith) head sculpt. Aren’t they all great?
The brilliance of Sideshow’s Premium Format Gollum ($299) is that, considering what a small figure our ring-obsessed degenerate Hobbit would be in the 1/4-scale, they’ve decided to give us the ability to display to complete versions – the ring-clutching and glowering Gollum and the triumphant Smeagol, both of which are perched atop a tall rock. Ah, but even when you’re not displaying a version in its full figure glory, they’ve provided a separate base which allows you to display the alternate version as a bust, complete with its own swappable nameplate. How cool is that?
So there you have it… my humble suggestions for what to watch, listen to, play with, or waste money on this coming weekend. See ya next week…
-Ken Plume
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February 1, 2012
A Bit Of A Chat with Ken Plume & DC Pierson 6
I’m Ken Plume, and soon you’ll be listening to “A Bit Of A Chat” with me, Ken Plume.
In this episode, I have another chat with writer and actor DC Pierson about hubhunkulous, pilots, impressions, Herzog’s Coke, no hands hugs, and brevity.
Be sure to visit his official site at www.DCPierson.com.
Hope you enjoy…
Download “A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & DC Pierson 6“:
[audio:http://traffic.libsyn.com/bitofachat/bit_of_a_chat-dc_pierson_6.mp3]
SUBSCRIBE
Subscribe to this Podcast via iTunes
Drop Ken a line HERE.
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You can also find more of my interviews by clicking HERE.