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Sundance Interview: Tucker & Dale vs Evil Director Eli Craig

Eli Craig

Although it didn't make it onto my Best of the Fest list, one film that I had a great time at during Sundance was Tucker & Dale vs Evil, a comedic spin on horror films, where the hillbillies living in their vacation cabin are the peaceful ones, and it's the college kids who wrongly accuse them of being killers. It's hilarious and it works so well because it has the perfect balance between horror and comedy. Tucker & Dale vs Evil is the first feature film from director Eli Craig, who we interviewed at Sundance. Brandon and I talked with Craig about his background, finding the tone of the film, and what it was like shooting his first feature film.

February 3, 2010 | Posted in: Indies, Interviews, Sundance 10 | 4 Comments

Sundance Interview: Blue Valentine Director Derek Cianfrance

Derek Cianfrance

Yesterday it was revealed that Blue Valentine was one of Brandon's and my favorite films of the Sundance Film Festival. After first seeing the film at its world premiere last week and being absolutely mesmerized, I walked out of the screening and immediately setup this interview. Brandon and I later both met with and talked with director Derek Cianfrance about the 12 years of work he put into making this film, his real life inspirations for the screenplay, and so much more. It's one of the most emotional interviews we've ever done and one of the best as well. There are no spoilers, but we talk about a lot of great things, so check this out!

February 2, 2010 | Posted in: Interviews, Sundance 10 | 2 Comments

Interview: 12th & Delaware's Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady

Directors Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady

Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady made one of the most terrifying films I've ever seen - Jesus Camp. Their even-handed, objective portrayal of their subjects is the hallmark of their filmmaking, and it's no wonder that objectivity continues with their latest documentary 12th & Delaware, which explores the microcosm in Florida where an abortion clinic and a pro-life pregnancy care center exist on opposite sides of the same street. I caught up with Heidi and Rachel in Park City (read my Sundance review) where they talked about their filmmaking process, the importance of objectivity, and what we can expect from them in the future.

January 31, 2010 | Posted in: Interviews, Sundance 10 | 1 Comment

Sundance Interview: Directors Jay & Mark Duplass on Cyrus

Jay & Mark Duplass

Jay and Mark Duplass are no strangers to the Sundance Film Festival. In fact, they're pretty much family, having premiered multiple shorts and feature films at the festival over the years. They've returned this year with their first studio feature, Cyrus, starring John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill, and Marisa Tomei. Brandon and I both saw the film at its world premiere and enjoyed it (watch our video review). A few days ago I caught up with Jay & Mark Duplass for a chat about their new film and their filmmaking process in general, since the ways these guys shoot their films is unlike anyone else out there. Anyway, check out the interview below!

January 27, 2010 | Posted in: Interviews, Sundance 10 | 1 Comment

Video Interview: Sherlock Holmes' Composer Hans Zimmer

Hans Zimmer

Last week I had the honor of interviewing the one-and-only Hans Zimmer at his amazing studio in Santa Monica. This isn't the first time I've talked to one of my all-time favorite composers - I talked with Zimmer and James Newton Howard for The Dark Knight in 2008. This time the focus was supposed to be Sherlock Holmes, but because I'm such a huge fan of almost all of his work, we talked about everything from how he develops his scores to how he continues to remain original. His answers are fascinating and insightful. And of course, we talked about Chris Nolan's next film, Inception, which he's working on as we speak. Enjoy!

January 19, 2010 | Posted in: Featured, Interviews | 20 Comments

Interview: The Book of Eli Directors Albert and Allen Hughes

Albert and Allen Hughes

About a month back, before Avatar had even hit theaters, I met up with and interviewed brothers Albert and Allen Hughes, the two filmmakers behind Menace II Society, Dead Presidents, From Hell, and now The Book of Eli. I really wanted to talk with them because after seeing Book of Eli I had so much to ask them about the style and the ideas in it and so on. The movie looks great, the story in it is awesome, and I had a blast watching it, so of course I wanted to talk to these guys. In the complete interview we also talk about where they've been, how they got Denzel Washington, and their filmmaker inspirations. Read on!

January 14, 2010 | Posted in: Hype, Interviews, Opinions | 6 Comments

The Definitive Interview with the Writers of 500 Days of Summer

Scott Neustadter, Michael Weber, Marc Webb, Joseph Gordon-Levitt

It's fitting that on the very last day of 2009 I run my final interview with the screenwriters of my favorite movie of 2009. 500 Days of Summer is, hands down, my favorite movie of the year. Although I saw the film for my first time in January at Sundance, at the beginning of the year, it has remained my favorite. I've been lucky enough to interview everyone involved in the movie: director Marc Webb, stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, and now the screenwriters - Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber. This is the definitive interview about 500 Days of Summer, every last question about it is answered, so read on!

December 31, 2009 | Posted in: Cool Stuff, Featured, Interviews | 8 Comments

Interview: Lord Blackwood Himself, British Actor Mark Strong

Mark Strong

If you've seen Sherlock Holmes, or at least seen the trailer, then you probably know who Lord Blackwood is. British actor Mark Strong plays Blackwood, Holmes' "depraved adversary" in the movie, and is not only quite devious and brilliant, but also seems to have supernatural powers. Just before I talked with director Guy Ritchie, I got on the phone with Mark Strong. Despite the sinister nature of the villain's he plays, he's one of the most down-to-earth and incredibly humbling actors I've ever had the pleasure of interviewing. This time my focus was on Sherlock Holmes, but I also threw in a few questions about John Carter of Mars.

December 27, 2009 | Posted in: Featured, Interviews | 15 Comments

An Elementary Chat with Sherlock Holmes Director Guy Ritchie

Guy Ritchie

Just last week I caught up with Sherlock Holmes director Guy Ritchie for a chat on the phone since he was in London (and I live in LA). I've interviewed him once before (for RocknRolla in Toronto), so I knew what to expect, but it's still always crazy interviewing Guy Ritchie. At one point, he started interviewing me, asking me questions. You don't expect that when you're interviewing a big director, but it's all good fun. Best of all, I loved Sherlock Holmes and I'm a huge fan of his movies, so I was still excited to chat with him and made sure I got in every question I wanted to ask. So without further ado, read on for my interview!

December 24, 2009 | Posted in: Hype, Interviews | 23 Comments

Flying 'Up in the Air' with Anna Kendrick & American Airlines

Up in the Air

Starting today, Jason Reitman's Up in the Air is now playing in limited theaters. It'll expand nationwide on Christmas Day, so if you haven't seen it yet, be sure to see it then. A few weeks back, Paramount invited me on a special flight hosted by American Airlines in promotion of the film. Not only was it a private flight with American, but we would see the film on the plane (my third time seeing it), interview Anna Kendrick, and get a live performance from Sad Brad, who's song "Help Yourself" can be heard in the second half of the film. It was one of the best flying experiences I've ever had and one of the coolest trips I've ever been on!

December 4, 2009 | Posted in: Editorials, Hype, Interviews | 11 Comments

Interview: Cormac McCarthy's The Road Director John Hillcoat

John Hillcoat

Hitting theaters everywhere tomorrow is The Road, adapted from Cormac McCarthy's novel and directed by Australian filmmaker John Hillcoat, of The Proposition previously. I first saw this wonderfully haunting film at the Telluride Film Festival (read my review) and thought it was an impressive and beautifully bleak adaptation. After the screening I caught up with director John Hillcoat to talk with him for a few minutes about the film. We cover topics regarding how tough it was to adapt a novel this bleak, preventing the story from including an explanation, and casting the two roles. This is one of the best interviews I've ever done!

November 24, 2009 | Posted in: Hype, Indies, Interviews | 2 Comments

Interview: Fantastic Mr. Fox Voice Actor Jason Schwartzman

Jason Schwartzman

Earlier today I ran an article about my trip to England and visit to Roald Dahl's estate. During that trip across the pond, I met up with and interviewed director Wes Anderson and actor Jason Schwartzman, who voices the character Ash in Fantastic Mr. Fox. Here is my video interview with Schwartzman. There are some awkward moments in this and that's because we were both trying to joke with each other and it was just odd with all the cameras. He's a funny guy so I tried to ask him funny questions about Fantastic Mr. Fox. And at least I got some fun responses out of him. So without further ado, enjoy the interview!

November 23, 2009 | Posted in: Hype, Indies, Interviews | 6 Comments

New Video Interview: Ninja Assassin Director James McTeigue

James McTeigue and Rain

Hitting theaters next week for Thanksgiving is the most badass action-packed ninja movie you'll see this year - Ninja Asssassin. It's directed by James McTeigue, who got his start working as the Assistant Director for the Wachowski Brothers on The Matrix, then spun off and directed V for Vendetta on his own. Now he's back with his second movie, Ninja Asssassin, and it's awesome (I've seen it a few times and love it). A few months back, Warner Bros invited me to interview McTeigue while he was in Austin at Fantastic Fest. In promotion of the release next week, here's my interview with James, which went incredibly well.

November 20, 2009 | Posted in: Hype, Interviews | 8 Comments

Interview: Werner Herzog's Bad Lieutenant Producer Alan Polsky

Alan Polsky and Werner Herzog

If you go see Werner Herzog's Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans this weekend and walk out of it thinking, how the hell did this movie get made and come together this way, well, here's the story. A few weeks ago I met up with producer Alan Polsky (seen to the left with Herzog) at a lunch joint in Beverly Hills to talk about how he got into the business (Alan and his brother Gabe recently started producing) and how this version of Bad Lieutenant got made with such heavyweights as Nicolas Cage and Werner Herzog. Not only is the Bad Lieutenant story great to hear, but he's got big aspirations for the future. So read on!

November 18, 2009 | Posted in: Hype, Indies, Interviews | 0 Comments - Be the First!

Interview: Fantastic Mr. Fox Writer & Director Wes Anderson

Wes Anderson Interview

A few weeks back I traveled to London, England and the small town of Buckinghamshire to be immersed in the world of Roald Dahl for Fantastic Mr. Fox. After touring the museum and his estate (more to come on that next week), I sat down for a very brief interview with Wes Anderson, the visionary director behind Fantastic Mr. Fox. My focus in this interview was on his creative process and development of the film, since Anderson was involved in writing the script (with Noah Baumbach) and directing the stop-motion animated film. I've been a fan of Anderson for a long time and it was a delight to chat with him. Enjoy the interview!

November 13, 2009 | Posted in: Hype, Indies, Interviews | 7 Comments