Readers Lives #6

Well the emails are in once again and there’s more than enough for another Readers Lives. So here are some of your emails which some of you might find interesting, if you don’t then find something interesting to email into me and I’ll get it included in the next issue!

This issue we’ll find out if that big Superman Returns plot spoiler was real, hear from an extra from the Miami Vice set, help someone whose forgotten a movie title, sign a petition to get another X-Files movie, read an extra long interview with Shane Black the screenwriter\director of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, help someone with prop design, read a review for a movie called Firecracker and help some misdirected people thinking that we can help them find work.

Superman Plot spoiler story pulled
…and by order of Warner Brothers no less. James dropped me a note with the update that the story had been pulled from the source and a note in its place.

The Superman Returns plot points/spoiler info from JoBlo has been pulled. When you go to their site and click on their link, it states that Warner Brothers has requested that they do not post any more spoiler info.

In case anybody was wondering if the report was real or made up (even though they had a few production photo’s, that doesn’t always mean anything), now we do know that at least some (if not all) was true

Well I think it’s certainly a very strong sign, however they could have pulled it because it was wrong and giving them some seriously bad fan responses. Still, I’m inclined to believe it was true, whatever it was since I didn’t read it!

Extras on Miami Vice set
I received an email from Jay who was an extra on the set of Miami Vice and he had good words to say about the experience. This contradicts the rumours that have been flying around about all the bad experiences. Here’s what he had to say:

I was an extra on the set in June 2005 and the work was exhausting. 16 – 18 hour days, M. Mann re-shot scenes each day from the previous days filming. The extras were the ones not showing-up every other day. The crew would get surly as the sun would come up with no end in sight to the ‘shoot’. Even I thought about ‘packing it in’ after the third day, the M.V. fan that I am.

I have a feeling the crew Mann brought with him stuck it out. He made COLLATERAL with that crew. It was probably the lazy Miami ‘wanna-bes’ hired locally that bolted.

Jay says he has a Blog talking about the experiences, but then fails to include the link. Hey man, if you want it included then drop it in the comments or drop me an email. I suspect it might be an interesting read.

Help! I’ve forgotten the movie title
Poor Jassim has had something awful happen to him, he’s forgotten the name of a movie. Don’t you hate that when it happens? You remember loads about it but just not the title? Well here’s your chance to help him out.

When i was bak in my country during 1995-2000. I saw this movie with my uncle in which there is a man who creates this another man using different parts of bodies including her wife’s bpdy parts………:)I guess it makes sense….It was an English movie. I forgot the name. I was like 12yrs old and hardly understand English at that time….So, plzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz help me with finding this very very very interesting movie.

Can anyone help him out with that movie title?

Petition to get another X-Files movie
Do you like X-Files? Want to see another movie? Well XFan2012 wrote to me and pointed out the site where you can sign the petition to raise support for the next movie. So if you want the next one, get yourselves over there and get your name on the list.

Extra-long interview with “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” Director Shane Black
Mike emailed me a while ago with the long version of an interview he had with Shane Black the Screenwriter\Director of the excellent Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.

We talked for over 45 mins. about “Kiss Kiss,” his guardian angels (Brooks and Silver), those noted eccentrics (Downey and Kilmer), his cult action masterpieces, tough directorial lessons, lame modern blockbusters, how to keep your spirits up in L.A., and much, much more.

How to get into Prop Design
Yuka is a Japanese high school student (Hi there Japanese readers!) and is really interested to get into prop and set design, yet he has no idea how to do it and where to go about it.

My dream is to become movie’s Props Master in USA. I hope to learn in American university. But I can’t find a university that I am able to learn property design. Does anybody know such university?

Where could Yuka find something that could suit? Anyone out there got any ideas or information? This would be a really worthwhile thing to help out with, from the email he does sound really keen on getting into this career.

Firecracker review
Chris dropped me an email some time ago with this review, and he’s certainly spent some time on it. A good review and well worth the read. Here’s what he says about the review:

I recently had a chance to see a movie I’ve been following for about 2 years now and though I should share my thoughts. First though, a little back story. This movie is a movie that defines the word indie. Paid for and put together by cast and crew. No studios involved, at all. It sounds like it could be lame, home made video looking crap, but it’s anything but.

..and the review itself…

Firecracker is a movie I’ve long been anticipating and a movie I had extremely high expectations for. I’ve read all kinds of glowing reviews and what have you. I thought I knew what to expect going in after reading all of it. But 5 minutes in, it was nothing like I expected. First off, there was no ads or trailers. Lights go out, movie goes on. I’ve never been to a movie like that before and it seemed to add to my enjoyment. The movie starts with a shot going down a street in your everyday American suburb, this one being Wamego Kansas. We see people running down he street, stopping to tell something to someone and then them running as well. We finally end up at a tool shed and see a crowd gathered around it. Dirt is being shoveled out and the sheriff covers her nose, which implies they found a dead body. Then the opening credits kick in. I never really care much for these, but these somehow grabbed my interest. We are shown various shots of the Wamego countryside burning set against an absolutely great score.

The score is the one thing that surprised me the most in this whole movie. It was an amazing score. It was haunting, touching, and everything a score should be and was perfect for the movie. Justin R Durban & Lindsay Anne Klemm are one of the many people involved on this film that have a potentially long and rewarding career ahead of them.

The story is told mostly through the eyes of Jimmy. Jimmy’s played by newcomer and Wamego native Jack Kendall. Jimmy comes off as a very mild mannered, introverted young man. He also seems to be a little slow in the head, but nothing is implied in the movie. Jimmy’s brother, David Mike Patton) is your everyday working man, or so it seems. He works at the local garage and wants to get Jimmy working there. After going to the shop one day the 2 brothers and their mother Karen Black) sit down for dinner. Jimmy mentions that there’s a piano recital coming up that he’s going to play in. This is where the real David comes out. David turns into a angry, abusive, ass hole telling his brother to be a real man and supply for his family. It’s a very scary scene and very emotional to see Jimmy and his mother so scared and helpless against him.

Using the money David gave to him Jimmy goes to the carnival that pulled into town. Back in those days the carnivals were a lot seedier then they are today. Filled with freak shows and burlesque dancers. There he sees Sandra(also played by Karen Black), the main attraction. She’s sings an absolutely beautiful opera song. We then see David come in transfixed on her. After the show he follows her to a local bar where we find out they have a history. When Sandra gets back to her trailer Jimmy gets her to let him in, only to have David show up. David attacks Sandra and Jimmy then attacks him only to have David something so horrible and hard to watch. The rage of David and the pain of Jimmy is beyond powerful. David goes home that night and is murdered. They don’t show how he is murdered. They just show something hitting the back of his head.

I won’t ruin much more of the story because it really needs to be seen. We are introduced to the leader of the carnival, Frank who is also played by Mike Patton. An overly controlling and downright sadistic ass hole of a human being. We watch the sheriff as she try’s to uncover David’s disappearance and Eleanor as she try’s to cover up the murder evidence in the house. We see the darkest reaches of the characters and the lengths they go for what they want.

Karen Black is absolutely phenomenal in both roles. As Sandra she’s a scared and abused former star who has no where to go. There’s a scene late in the movie of her singing another opera song filled with so much pain and shame that you can’t help but feel bad for even watching. Her moments of Joy and her scenes with Jimmy are just great to watch. Seeing her happy makes you just as happy. As Eleanor, the mother, she’s a completely different person. She’s as religious as the come. Always praying with her rosaries beads and bible. After the murder the pain, joy, conflict, and everything else she portrays is amongst some of the best acting I’ve seen. Her role reminded me a lot of Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream. She goes on a downward spiral farther and farther away from her former self. Truly an Oscar worthy performance.

Jak Kendall is such a great find and the kid has a good carrer ahead of him if he so chooses. It’s amazing how they were able to find such a talented kid in their own community. If he hadn’t pulled this role of the movie would have never worked. You’re so emotionally invested in this kid. You want nothing but the best for him and to see his torture end.

Mike Patton is a bit of a mixed bag. As David is completely convincing. He looks like your every day guys guy. Tight white shirt, jeans, and the combed over greaser looking hair. And just as much as an abusive person. As Frank he took some getting used to. At first I had a hard time getting into the role as it seemed a bit forced. but as the movie goes on I got more and more into it and by the time it really reaches its peak, it’s over. And the operation her performs. Oh geez. Talk about disturbing. The whole theatre had one big “Holy fuck!” moment. The role was originally filled by Dennis Hopper and I couldn’t help but feel like the role was written for Hopper. It has the trademark Hopper we all know. Moments of absolute craziness right after a quiet calm.

The only real weak link of this film in my eyes was the sheriff, Ed, played by Susan Taylor. She just didn’t have the whole sheriff vibe going for her. She’s supposed to come off as compassionate, while at the still time being a sheriff and having the tough attitude that comes with that. The only problem is that I found her too nice to be a sheriff, but to sherrify to buy her moments of compassion. It’s not so much that she’s not good in the role as much as it is that the role just isn’t that good.

The cinematography and directing is downright phenomenal. The movie switches between black and white at home, and rich, vibrant colors at the carnival. It’s is used to amazing effect and goes way beyond being a visual gimmick and more another essential character of the movie. There are moments when see a blend of both together and the colors reversed. On a visual level alone the movie doesn’t have a dull moment in it. There’s a scene of Sandra running through a green field with a large red robe blowing in the wind. The colors in this scene are beyond explanation and need to be seen.

I mentioned the brilliant score already, and the sound design is just as good. The noises in between the transitions directly affect the scene. There was one part were the music got pretty loud, but it seemed pretty fitting given the circumstances.

Overall I was extremely thrilled at how the movie turned out. Like I said before, I had extremely high expectations and they were matched and exceeded. After reading so much into it I was still surprised many times though the whole movie. A testament to how good it really is. The only real weak part of it for me was a few of the actors. They are actors from the community and their lack of experience shows. Thankfully the are small parts and are gone after a few scenes. Jak is of course the exception to this.

Steve Balderson needs to be applauded and awarded. Not just for making a phenomenal movie, but for doing so under such a small production. The movie was all self financed. The sets were built by the cast & crew. Not hired hands. The movie is very much a labor of love, and to see it pulled of so well is inspiring, to say the least. I can’t wait to see where he goes from here and I can only hope that this movie gains some steam and is seen by a lot more people. It’s truly an amazing movie that pulls no punches and is not at all afraid to go the direction it goes in.

Many people will compare it to David Lynchs Blue Velvet, and rightfully so. There’s a lot of similarities. But I will tell you now that this movie is better then Blue Velvet in absolutely every sense of the word. David Lynch could only wish his movie was this good

Looking for work
Here’s an email that I received a little while ago and is similar to others we get from time to time. Let me reiterate that we are nothing to do with the industry other than commenting on it and enjoying movies as the audience, albeit a vocal part of the audience. We cannot get you work, and as a one off I’ll post this email…

Pooja from Bujumbura in Burundi, Central Africa, wrote to me asking if I could give her a mention and help her out. She’s a singer\actress whose done a few commercials and is looking for work. Her resume is online and available for viewing.

If you are looking to cast, check out her resume and end up hiring her then let us know. Personally I’ll eat my hat if any casting people in Hollywood Studios are reading this, and even moreso if they get in contact…

There’s a similar email we often get asking if we know of any castings. Let me be clear on this, this section is a one off, don’t send us these kind of emails, we can’t help! If we can, for instance know of some castings, then we’ll let you know in a post. Nick is looking to be an extra in Saw 3…Anyone got any ideas? Post your comments below.

Many thanks to all the readers in this issue, and to all of you out there reading, my apologies for taking so long with this one, it’s been a busy holiday season.

Richard.