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
You can see R rated movies at 17, but you have to be 18 to watch the trailers to them? Odd.
It’s not an invasion of privacy, I guess, since you’re going to them and not them to you. Still seems silly though.
Eddie, I believe that several years back, the MPAA quietly changed the R-rated policy from “no one under 17” to “no one 17 and under” … I could be wrong about that, though.
It doesn’t really count as an invasion of privacy, because the fine print tells you they’re doing it, and no one is forcing you to watch; ie. it’s your own choice. The problem as I see it is that not everyone has a DMV record …. like say, those of us in Canada. How are we supposed to watch?
I believe that several years back, the MPAA quietly changed the R-rated policy from “no one under 17” to “no one 17 and under”
Haha, seriously? So what’s NC-17 then? Man, I’m happy I don’t have to deal with this stuff anymore.
..Although apparently now I do.
Well for the R, both “no one under 17” and “no one 17 and under” refer to the restrictions for entering without a parent, not at all. I forget if NC-17 means no one under 17, or no one 17 and under. Maybe that was the one that got changed, or maybe they both were… I’m confusing myself now!
So really, kids should be able to watch the red-band trailers if adults are present. 😉 (I’m joking, but I guess an adult could enter his or her name and birthdate for the kid to give permission… though as Dave points out, most kids probably do know their parents’ birthdays and zip codes.)
This is great publicity for the first trailer (or the first two trailers) to do it. After that, it’s obnoxious and counter-productive.
will-o
If you go to Tribute.ca you can watch the redband trailer there after just entering your birthday, with no verification as to how you actually are. The MPAA rules don’t apply in Canada.
Please won’t someone think about the children??? I say raise the age to 21! Can’t we shield them from the obscenities that Hollywood keeps forcing down our kids throats? If we don’t stop this onslaught our kids are going to turn into a bunch of evolution-believing non-gay-bashing immigrant-tolerant wimps. Pshaw!!!
And it’s not “a parent,” it’s an “adult” for R movies if I’m not mistaken. Or am I mistaken?
I still remember going to see The Doors when it came out and I was like 16 but my friend was 18 – and this was the first movie I remember them ever taking the restricitions seriously, because of drug use and sex – and my friend just acted like the adult and we walked in! Fun times!
I think what qualifies as “adult” might vary from theater to theater (of course, MPAA rules themselves aren’t *laws* though some theaters pretend they are). I once called a theater asking about whether I could take my sub-18 sister to a Matrix movie, and they said it was OK cause I was 21+ (not 18+ — that would’ve been a sweet loophole towards the end of high school!). But I’m sure that’s not a hard/fast rule.
My best young-MPAA rating story: So my best friend and I went to see Desperado, August ’95. He was about to turn 16; I was about to turn 15. Our parents didn’t care; they dropped us off and picked us up and knew what we were seeing. However, the older lady at the counter cared. So when my friend is like, “one for Desperado,” she asks him “are you 17?” We’d never been hassled about this before (we’d gotten into Die Hard 3 no questions asked a few months earlier), so he panics and says “uh, no” and she says no dice. I’m right after him in line, so once he’s out of the way, I go up and say “um… two for Desperado?” The lady asks if I’m 17. I say yes. She asks if I’m buying the other ticket for someone under 17. I say no.
She sold me the tickets, but when I did, indeed, take my “under 17” friend in with me, she sent someone in to kick us out. My poor dad had to take me to see Desperado the next weekend.
To paraphse Ghostbusters: if someone asks if you are 17… you say YES!
A quick look at MPAA.org reveals that an R rating requires anyone under 17 to have an accompanying parent, and an NC-17 rating states that no children 17 and under will be admitted. So if you’re 17 you’re allowed to see R-rated movies by yourself but you still won’t be admitted to one rated NC-17.
As for the authorization system, I remember running into it (and circumventing it) a few years ago while visiting the Bacardi website as a young college student. Funny enough, it looks like they’ve gone back to the old “trust me” way of entering your age.
Yeah, what if you don’t have any DMV records? Dammit.
The MPAA ratings are merely a guideline anyway and not an enforceable law. Theatres have individual policies regarding how they handle this, and some states may have their own laws that are tied to the MPAA guidelines.
The phrasing was changed to “17 and under” because “under 17” was ambiguous; i.e., is 17 okay or not? I was there, and when Valenti said it would now be “17 or under,” I spoke up, “And.” He looked at me: “I beg your pardon?” Me: “And. 17 AND under.” He pondered for a moment, and then said, “By God, you’re right! ‘And’ it is.” And then he pointed at me and added, “Grammarian!” Correcting Jack Valenti on a matter of language is one of the sterling highlights of my feeble life.
That’s a great story, Cadavra. Nice work!
Interesting move on Sony’s part but for folks outside of the United States – like me – it makes viewing the red band trailers impossible.
That said, I managed to catch the Solomon Brothers redband trailer on YouTube before it was pulled and it’s nearly identical to the theatrical trailer except with some f-bombs thrown in. That said, it looks very funny though I think lazier critics will unfairly compare it to Knocked Up when reviews start rolling out.
And anything with Michael Cera has me there. That kid is turning out to be one of Hollywood’s biggest suprises.
“Yeah, what if you don’t have any DMV records? Dammit.”
And what if you’re Paris Hilton and your licence is suspended? Do you get sent back to jail for watching the red band trailers with it? OH THE HUMANITY!
Doesn’t help if you live in the UK either, what are the rules for overseas nations?
I live in Canada so the only zip code I know is 90210. The only person for sure who I know lives there is Tori Spelling, so I got her birthday from IMDB. Worked. Took 20 seconds. I liked the Superbad trailer a lot. “what’s it like to have a gun?”
I was once denied a ticket for Amistad at the ripe age of 16 by a particularly loathsome General Cinemas employee. Amistad, dude.
The funny thing about that was, it was the same weekend Scream 2 was opening and unaccompanied 12-year-olds were being sold tickets for that slasher flick. Needless to say, I had to search out somebody to buy an extra two tickets to Amistad for me and my buddy. Needless to say, this was difficult because the movie was, well, Amistad.
The point is historical films depicting slavery = bad for a 16-year-old. Portia de Rossi getting her throat slit = just fine.
PdR doesn’t get her throat slit. You’re thinking of Jamie Kennedy (spoilers!)
“Interesting move on Sony’s part but for folks outside of the United States – like me – it makes viewing the red band trailers impossible.”
That’s because the trailer is meant for American consumption. I’m sure the foreign trailer will be even raunchier than the American red-banded one.
Thanks, jeffmcm. Those flicks have kinda blended together. Perhaps Portia is on my mind because of the Arrested Development marathon I’ve been having. What a wonderful show, and Will Arnet’s finest hour to date.
Stand By Me was Rated R when it came out. Can you imagine?
So was WOODSTOCK. Hall Of Fame Irony: people who were actually THERE couldn’t see themselves in the movie without their parents!
So, what? If you use the internet but don’t live in America you’re denied access? THANK A LOT, WANKERS.
The distribution of press materials in every country at once is a challenge that all the studios are facing.
Maybe I’m showing my age here, but when watching the SUPERBAD trailer did anyone else have an ARTHUR flashback? I mean, it’s kinda funny the first time through, but on repeated viewings it’s rather sad and pathetic–“Hey, look at the fat alcoholic kid who wants to be a date rapist, heh, heh…yeah.”