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
There’s something rather disturbing about the juxtaposition of a nude Natalie Portman with the mental image of Patrick Magee as the Chevalier in Barry Lyndon…
I just spent 10 minutes trying to find it before finding that link you mentioned on the IMDB comments for the film. Can’t wait to watch it…and load it on my iPhone! Film nerdalicious!
It’s not being hidden. It’s just Apple’s inability to update Itunes properly. Seriously; they do this all the freakin time. They lack the ability to be consistently update that store. It will most likely show up tomorrow.
I really enjoyed this short, a lot more than I thought it would. This one was infinitely more subtle than Life Aquatic and it gives my hope that Darjeeling will be a return to his Tenenbaums form, where the style aids the substance instead of replacing it.
I think LIFE AQUATIC gets unduly beat down. The film is a brilliant parable about filmmaking…maybe one of the best there is thus far. Sure, it’s overly stylized but that’s Andersons thing. It’s like bitching that Tarantino is too “talky” or Kubrick was too “cold.” I mean, duh. Is Shakepeare too rhymey or…Cormac McCarthy too “stream of conciousness?”
Right the fuck on Petaluma. Freakin Noah just had to take a shot. I THROW MY CRITERION AT YOU NOAH! I THROW IT ;)! Nevertheless; Zissou is also about a man discovering that he is not as alone as he thought he was… thanks to the love of a son that’s not his son. What more could you want from a movie? That’s rhetorical. Keep your jibberjabber to yourselves!
Since its a free download, I hope some kind soul might like to host the file somewhere us poor canadians can get at it? (Since its only available in the US iTunes store….)
Thanks!
Petaluma and IO, I don’t hate Aquatic and I appreciate a lot of it, but I just find that it lacks heart. (spoilers ahead for Wes Anderson’s past work) I just felt that when Richie tries to commit suicide, it stung and I felt it. When Ned dies in Aquatic, I felt like it didn’t matter because I never really knew him. I don’t have a problem with a movie being stylized, but I felt it was in the service of something more in Tenenbaums than in Aquatic. As for parables about filmmaking, I’ll take Day for Night over Life Aquatic.
But this is not to say that I think Anderson is a bad filmmaker. On the contrary, he is one of my favorites. Even a movie like Life Aquatic, which I think is a miss for him, is ten times better than most of what passes for entertainment today. I think the larger budget for Aquatic might have made Wes a little less inventive, but who knows? I just know that it was a step back (for me) from Tenenbaums and Hotel Chevalier seems like a step back in the right direction. Of course, these are just my opinions. And IO, if you throw your Criterion of Life Aquatic at me, I’ll keep it! 🙂
I will admit the death of Ned was a gross misstep that totally took me (and many others) out of “the moment.” But….that closing sequence with Murray walking down the street with the kid on his shoulders makes me smile every time. I’m smiling now just thinking about it. Oh, wait, I was thinking about ham slapping again.
We’re in agreement there, Petaluma, great great ending.
Noah; I could not disagree with you more. There has never been a time, where the end credits of the Life Aquatic, does not get to me. Seeing Ned on top looking out and smoking his pipe from the lookout point on top ship… gets me misty every single time.
Again; I see the Life Aquatic as a movie about a man who feels that he has nothing. His career is in the shitter. His best-friend has died. Yet, like most moments in life, some guy out of nowhere enters his life, and gives him back the spark he has been lacking all of those year post-Kraus’ mohawk.
That film connects with me like few films ever have. Hell; I still use the Steve Zissou SHOULDER HUG til this very day. So… I get what your are aiming at Noah, but you are so fucking wrong. IT’S BLOODY ASTOUNDING ;)!
I agree with that whole middle paragraph about what the film is about, but it left me cold. I wanted to feel more connected to it, like you have, but instead it was beautiful to look at and I wanted to see what happened next, but didn’t feel a particular connection with anyone in the film and I really, really wanted to. But, if the film worked for you, then that’s great. I just wish I felt the same!
Just watched HOTEL CHEVALIER and now I’m freeking PSYCHED for DARJEELING LIMITED!! But I have to ask….
Dude, did Schwartzman get a nose job?? I’m pretty sure he did….
i loved tenenbaums & aquatic and looking forward to darjeeling, and i could view hotel c as a wes take on movie minimalism with actors i like in a city i love – but the other side is, this is another flic by and for men, with naked women and men in suits, called art (yawn). this world only exists in movies, magazines and strip joints.
I’m wondering, if you didn’t get natalie portman erotica, what would this do for you – honestly? the word “teaser” is apt – for men.
not that i don’t understand. what would i think if there was clive owen naked and women in suits? …well, it doesn’t matter, because that will never happen.
the wes mood music was a nice touch though, and bet they make a great grilled cheese sandwich there.
and i agree w/ io – apple can be slow to get their links firing on all cylinders.
The thing people don’t like about Life Aquatic is not that it’s super-stylized, but rather that all it is is style. Too in love with it’s own design. Or as someone recently called it, acutely, “the quirk”.
I love me some quirk, but Life Aquatic is like One From the Heart, one of those films where the filmmaker goes nuts from too much glory, thinks his shit doesn’t stink no more, and his technique so overwhelms the story that human element gets lost.
The father/son relationship at the heart of Aquatic plays like a bad parody of another Wes Anderson movie where Bill Murray took on a younger disciple. And I felt the parable about filmmaking element was a little dopey, or if you aren’t an insider, impossibly indecipherable.
The American Express commercials are clever, but Life Aquatic is just obvious when it isn’t so solipsistic and masturbatory that it’s embarrassing to watch. A parody of Jacques Cousteau? It’s like a groaner throw-away SNL sketch. But as the basis of an Anderson/Murray encore? Just a huge disappointment to me.
I have a problem with films that are ‘parables about filmmaking’. I mean, it took Fellini 7 1/2 movies to get to the point of making that movie, but Anderson was there after 3?
In case my fellow hot bloggers are curious. Hotel Chevalier is now available to download on ITUNES! Nice Life Aquatic discussion everyone. Let’s all take salt-tablets.
bobbob911 even though the video is free it’s still copy-protected. Hopefully FS will stream it on the Web somewhere.
I adore The Life Aquatic, as I’ve adored all of Anderson’s films. I’d likely rank it as the “least” of his movies, but that’s only because I feel so strongly about the first three.
I actually find Aquatic less stylized than Rushmore or Tenenbaums. But as in all of Anderson’s films, I find the style serves the substance. Mostly it’s just funny as hell, and I’m definitely moved by Ned’s fate, as well as Willam Defoe’s brilliant turn as the jealous first mate. And the animated sea creatures are inspired.
I changed my iTunes to the US version and it’s right there on the front page now. But, alas, I cannot watch it. 🙁
I had no problems downloading from iTunes at all and posted a link on my blog which you can find here:
Most of it is also on YouTube (minus the beginning) but we’ll see how long that lasts.
http://blogs.indiewire.com/jamesisrael/archives/014725.html
Somebody leaked it out there and I downloaded it from a rapidshare link. I have yet to watch it though.
Somebody leaked DARJEELING LIMITED too, but for some reason, small indie type films that truly need people to see them get ZERO press when leaked but when it’s some big budget P.O.S. people shouldn’t pay to see, it’s a federal crime. Go figgur…