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
MILD SPOILERS. The Conjuring 2 is pretty terrible, and I really like the first one a lot. It’s got to be one of the most overly sentimental horror movies ever made. Why remind viewers how much Ed and Lorraine love each other once when 27 times will do? Patrick Wilson leading an Elvis Presley sing-a-long is the most cringe-inducing scene I’ve seen in a theater this year. It’s at least 20 minutes too long and while Wan can certainly craft a good jump scare he overdoes it with way too many of them. The first hour is just five or six jump scares, some in London and some in the states (it takes forever for the two to merge). They lose their effectiveness long before the insanely dumb conclusion. Lorraine defeats the demon in what has to be less than 30 seconds. A huge disappointment. Surprised it’s received so many positive reviews. Nowhere near as good as the first.
What does everyone think of that “De Palma” gross? I know it’s just opening day, and it’s only playing at three locations, but that seems promising for a movie that’s essentially an interview accompanied by clips, doesn’t it?
I really had no idea what to expect for the film, although I’m huge fan of the De Palma and had been rooting for the documentary to find an audience and, hopefully, introduce the filmmaker to new viewers.
Agreed Stella. I actually enjoyed NYSM2 more. And it’s not good either.
How crazy is it that NYSM2 is Lionsgate’s biggest non-HG/Divergent opening in over 2 and a half years? Aka, pre-CATCHING FIRE.
In the pantheon of VG adaptations…cmon critics, WARCRAFT isn’t THAT bad. I’ve sat through at least 11 RESIDENT EVIL movies at this point. Each time I go to one, from Retrograde, to Apocalife, my brow is a bit more furrowed than the time before, as I try, with increasing confusion and desperation, to search for some shared sign of human connection with the shambling bro-men in the seats next to me as they smack their meat-limbs together in hearty approval.
Even though it was kind of boring, and I missed some references, WARCRAFT made me smile a few times. I’d put it up there with SILENT HILL, FINAL FANTASY, DOA, PRINCE OF PERSIA and TOMB RAIDER: CRADLE OF LIFE in the exclusive club of VG movies that didn’t want to make me research “painless ways to remove eyeballs from eyesockets” on WikiHow after getting home.
Christian, the De Palma doc seems to be on its way to open with as much as De Palma’s own last feature, Passion (around 33k). I’d say that’s good, even a bit ironic!
Thanks, Gustavo. Just curious: Do you remember how many screens “Passion” opened on?
Scratch that. I looked it up. “Passion” opened on 14 screens.
I guess FINDING DORY will come along to take our attention off of how lousy the movies and the box office has been so far this summer. If it weren’t for WARCRAFT’s huge Chinese gross, there’d be a lot more about how badly it’s playing stateside.
Christian, I wasn’t even aware PASSION got a released in theaters stateside. Certainly better than “Redacted”, or whatever DePalma directed previously. Really looking forward to the documentary. Might be the first time I’ve ever really looked forward to a Noah Baumbach movie.
Liked, but didn’t love “Maggie’s Plan.”
Miller has done better (“Pippa Lee,” “Personal Velocity”).
Julianne Moore–who I’ve been as hot + cold on as Streep the past decade+–is absolutely delightful, tho.
Overall, it’s closer to the Woody Allen of “Melinda and Melinda” than “Manhattan.”
Surprised nobody has mentioned its similarities to 1982’s all-but-forgotten “Author! Author!” (Perhaps because the lion’s share of people getting paid to “review” movies today have never heard of–let alone seen–“Author! Author!”)
P.S.= “Author!” is a longstanding guilty pleasure of mine: Pacino, the ineffable Tuesday Weld, Dyan Cannon, some cute kids, NYC/B’way milieu, fun!)
I am not an MMORPG gamer but I loved Warcraft. It does not deserve the critical scorn it is receiving.
Gotta second the thumbs up to Warcraft. I knew nothing going in and was entertained. Not sure why all the hate.
Things where I find myself disagreeing the most with mainstream critics’ negativity over the years: Tarsem Singh, blanket hatred of every VG release when only 90% deserve hatred, and Joseph Kahn. Also any movie in which Eva Green has a prominent role, since she has the uncany ability to will anything that’s otherwise dreck into a celebration of batshit insanity.
Positivity: Most WWII/Holocaust-themed movies, the majority of African-set movies (which often involve masturbatory proclamations of importance), Claire Denis, Matteo Garrone and Tom Hooper.
Considering the lowered expectations of Warcraft, it’s doing quite well. It’ll do better than a lot of other movies, notably sequels, this summer that outright bombed.
EtGuild2:
Amen to your Eva Green comment. She could read the phone book and make it magical.
for some reason, all i can remember of “author author” is pacino and his kid going out for a run and pacino wearing denim trousers — like was this a 70s thing? running in heavy denim pants? something like drinking a raw egg with some liquid smoke and doing some ludes before hitting the roller rink?
Either way — sick of seeing orc shirts in PRC. Was this the end-goal of the whole Legendary deal? structuring the next 10 years off of warcraft? pack of wolves my ass.
“Author!” was penned by legendary NYC playwright Israel Horovitz (Adcock’s dad).
Amusing to consider autobiographical elements in the film, and that the future Beastie Boy may have been the inspiration for Pacino’s eldest son.
“Perhaps because the lion’s share of people getting paid to “review” movies today have never heard of–let alone seen–“Author! Author!””
zing. i can’t remember running in heavy denim pants being a thing tho the roller rink sure was. per previous instalments of the ‘weird double features’ files here, author author made me think of a weird pacino doubfeat with ‘cruising’ in the mid-eighties, at the university i think it was. i remember having a tiff with my cousin after because i thought in ‘cruising’ burns was the killer in a rare instance of the camera itself as an unreliable narrator and not that ambiguous, but my cuz pooh-poohed that
Gawd, I miss Tuesday Weld! She was the missing link between Frances Farmer and Jessica Lange.
Inconceivable that she never received an Oscar nomination.
Would be super-sweet for Tuesday to receive an honorary statuette.
Tuesday Weld was nominated for “Looking for Mr. Goodbar.”
You are correct, Milano!
Forgot all about that.
My sentiments still hold: Weld is one of the all-time greats and deserves official recognition.
ugh in hindsight my comment re: the killer in ‘cruising’ takes on a distasteful overtone in light of the mass shooting at the orlando night club, i hadn’t heard about the shooting yet when i wrote the above and wish i hadn’t now. i can’t imagine the pain and loss inflicted by such an act of hate and violence, my heart goes out to the victims and their loved ones in this time of great sorrow
I read a book about Sue Mengers where Tuesday Weld is discussed, as she was one of Sue’s clients. Apparently TW was not that interested in stardom and it was very difficult to actually get her to take film roles. She was ambivalent about her career.