Next up was Interview, Steve Buscemi’s remake of the late Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh’s film.
Before the film began, Buscemi wished to express his honor for actors, in particular Seymour Cassel (who had been in all of the films Buscemi directed until this one) and his late “Uncle” Peter Miller (who proved to him that a kid from Brooklyn could make it). Miller’s family was in attendance at the screening.
Following the screening Buscemi was joined by screenplay writer David Schechter and producer Bruce Weiss. Apparently van Gogh was a good friend of Schechter, and together they had planned on remaking van Gogh’s own films in English until his untimely death in 2004. Schechter decided to remake three films with three American directors: Stanley Tucci will direct Blind Date and John Turturro will begin filming 1-900 in October.
Buscemi had never seen van Gogh’s films before but was intrigued by the three camera method (which allows coverage and long takes while shooting quickly and in sequence) and Interview spoke to him. They rehearsed it in 10 days and shot it in 9 days (the original was done in 4 nights), using van Gogh’s camera crew.
He didn’t want to create a carbon copy of the original, so helped to tweak the screenplay once he decided to take the lead. He believes it is truly an actor’s piece tailored around performances, and it was inspired by a Shakespearean actor meeting an actress from fluff movies.
The result is a thought provoking film. The two characters (performed by Buscemi and Sienna Miller) never show all of their cards and may be more manipulative than they seem. They both have their share of troubles and secrets, and each tries to dig out the truth from the other. Very well done.
Review coming soon