April 26, 2024
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20 Weeks To Oscar: Rush To Poor Judgment?
20 Weeks Extra: Could There Be One More Turn?
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It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?
So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.
And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.
There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.
I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.
So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.
But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”
My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher
“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that I’m on the phone with you now, after all that’s been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didn’t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. There’s not a case of that. He wasn’t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had — if that were what the accusation involved — the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. I’m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, “You know, it’s not this, it’s that”? Because — let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. Times piece, that’s what it lacked. That’s what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.
~ David Simon
I’m looking forward to finally see that movie. Don’t know when though.
I’ll be the first to confess: Out of the big five, Good Night is my personal favorite. Not too hot, not too cold… 93 minutes and just right. Maybe Clooney is the one they should fly out to Peter Jackson for the inevitable brevity-is-the-soul-of-wit talk.
Good film… but small. It’s not a very hip opinion, but I prefer the emotional rollercoaster that is CRASH.
Actually, cutting another 10 minutes out of the movie would make it even better–the Clarkson/Downey “secret affair” subplot is a big “huh?” and added absolutely nothing to the film.
Capote is expanding into 1200 theatres… I wonder if either one can break into the Top 10 with that many theatres. Maybe Capote since fewer people have had the chance to see it.
I agree with you, Crow. Although it doesn’t “feel” like a Best Picture movie, it was the most satisfying to me of the bunch.
It should be proud to get a nomination. But that’s as far it’s going to get.
I sure hope so, Crash is in my bottom 10 of the year.
I was fully prepared to see Crash get nominated.
But goddamn it still hurt when I saw that it did.
Best movie of the year, bar none. But I’ll be happy if it at least squeaks out Cinematography.
Ugh. Its cinematography was lame too. I was more bored by plenty of other movies, but I can’t think of any movies that insulted me more.
I’ve heard it said about the Downey/Clarkson thing was superfluous, but I liked it. Perhaps people were expecting it to blossom into a full-blown subplot, but I saw it as a quiet echo of the film’s motif.
Thank God I got to see “GNGL”. I would never have known what a real hero Ed Murrow was. Thank you, Clooney.
“Best movie of the year bar none”
Did we watch the same movie????
How are there this many differing of opinions on “Crash”? Such a wide and diverse group. You have some that loath it and some proclaiming it the best of the year. Movies with this much difference don’t usually win Best Picture though.
I’m sorry–I didn’t realize other posts would creep in after the one I was referring to. When I said, “Best picture…bar none,” I meant GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK, not CRASH (though I did admire the latter). And my hopes that GN&GL will win Cinematography are obviously motivated by the fact that it might encourage more films in B&W.
I don’t think it is the best of the year but I can see and accept why you would say that about “GNGL”. It grew on me the second time. I wonder how it plays on the small screen though? Will voters embrace it? I don’t know if it will play as good on the small screen.
He almost invites you to roll your eyes at his Capra-esque politics, but George Clooney really is an auteur in the tradition of Orson Welles. I can think of only a few actors in the past 20 years (Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson) who have put their Hollywood juice consistently on the line to do the projects they wanted to. If just a handful of big celebrities in this town had the vision he does, the courage of his convictions, the pointed self-deprecation, this so-called “slump” would be an afterthought.
And those who said it are right; GN&GL isn’t really Oscar winner material. But the same can be said for 99% of all great cinema.
I roll my eyes at all of Clooney’s politics. But I got to respect the fact that he’s actually making films. You could have made a lot of money betting that he’d be nominated for an Academy Award as a director ten years ago.
Talking about stars who take chances and use their juice is remiss if you don’t include Mel Gibson.
I give Clooney major props for both TOMATOES and SOLARIS. A sequel-remake double-header to end em all.
“Out of Sight” saved his career. And Soderbergh’s too. For good reason. It’s a great movie.
“Brokeback Mountain” expands to 2,000+ theaters. “Capote” gets re-released wide — and just barely (1200). “Munich” expands just short of wide (~1150). “Good Night …” gets re-released semi-wide as per Mr. Poland.
Incidentally, “Brokeback” continues to be shut out of Lincoln NE (population 200,000+). This may be a case where the local theater chain has banned the movie a la Utah.
If they could make a buck at the theatre with a movie, they’d be playing it. No matter what the film is about.
I don’t know any details, but it appears that only the Douglas Theatres Company is showing Brokeback on 4 screens in the Lincoln area. I guess everyone else is allergic to money.
Can I make a request of Dave?
Can you please discuss (briefly i suppose) how films such as this are handled in terms of % of gross to theatres and studios.
We know big movies that open in thousands of cinemas have a high amount go to the studio in the first week and then increasingly less goes to the studio and more goes to the cinema. But what of a movie such as Good Night and Good Luck, which is now in it’s 18th week? I’d be interested, even if no one else would be.
I’m seeing GN&GL next week! Yay.
Can I just say i L-O-V-E the fact that it’s only 90 minutes long. I am of the opinion that comedies should be 100 minutes or about that, but when an important drama comes in at 90 minutes then I am impressed.
The new (at least new to me) ad art for MUNICH (the guy running next to the car in the crowded urban street as a bomb goes off in the backgroud) is even less appealing than the earlier one of the guy with the gun holding his head down. It’s not so much the idea as the image. All I come away with is: “boy, 70s cars sure were ugly.” Doesn’t bode well for an upswell in MUNICH receipts.
Do you ever have anything good to say about “Munich”? Do you hate Jew’s? Is that it? I know what BBM fans feel like now.
I love Munich but I agree, that art is not very good. It looks like a direct-to-video action movie.
Read my comment again, Josh. Slowly. I’m not criticizing Munich–which I’ve said a number of good things about in the past. I’m criticizing the way Universal has botched the release, something Dave has also mentioned several times.
Sarcasm goes over the heads of some people. Wooooooosh!!
I like the new art for “Munich”. It beats the contemplative solo guy with the gun.
Sarcasm is hard to pick up in text, especially when it reads as completely sincere with no cue for the reader.
Explaining sarcasm is even worse. It happens. Maybe I should have added the “you hate the movie Capote? You hate all over weight lispy writers?”
Sarcasm isn’t going over? How ironic!
(No point in making a joke if you’re not gonna beat it to death.)
Pound….Pound….Hammer….Love jokes….Hammer…