Fabreeze!

Imagine if you will my blog as a garment. A garment that's been worn many times, down the park, in Tesco, on the 38 to Angel, etc. And then imagine me taking a metaphorical can of Fabreeze and spraying my garment from the collar down to the scruffy hem and voilà! There you have it. It's the same old blog, the same layout but it smells fresher. Yes the blog is BACK.

And this particular can of Fabreeze is an interview with Fabrizio...see what I've done? Well in actual fact it's an interview with TITANIC actor Danny Nucci.

You’re probably more familiar with 41 year old Danny than you realise , having appeared in ALIVE, CRIMSON TIDE, THE ROCK, ERASER and Oliver Stone’s WORLD TRADE CENTRE. Bizarrely he was also turned down for a lead role in STAND BY ME having made it to the final call backs. But it’s his turn as doomed Italian immigrant Fabrizio in TITANIC that he’ll best be remembered.

I called him up and talked Titanic, James Cameron, Avatar and sounding like Sade! Here's the full unedited phone interview direct from LA...

What have been your biggest projects since Titanic?
I’ve done three or four TV series. One where I was the star called Ten Eight. It only ran half a season but that was great. I starred in a movie recently where I got to play famed mobster Jon Gotti, called The Sinatra Club.

I’ve watched an interview with you on YouTube about the movie. How did it go?
Yeah it was terrific. I got to scream and threaten people for two hours, terrific.

That must have been quite cathartic?
Yeah it was great, I got to be mean and obsessed and get paid for it, terrific.

So how did you originally get the role of Fabrizio?
Well I actually just went in and read for James Cameron. I went to Lightstorm Entertainment, I went upstairs and I went in. There were two scenes. The two scenes were the scene where we win the tickets at the beginning, and then the second scene is the scene that never ended up in the movie which is this long scene where I try to get my Norwegian girlfriend to not depart with her family and come with me. It was cut from the movie. So I got this jubilant scene and then I had this really intense, emotional scene. And I finished my reading and Jimmy was behind the camera. He was actually filming! Usually the director sits down. There’s usually someone filming and the director sits next to the casting director and watches. But in fact he was filming the thing.

Was that intimidating?
No, it was kinda part of the deal. You know I’ve worked with some pretty big directors. So I was kinda used to it. So he pulled the camera away from his eye and he goes..."Oh, you’re an actor."

That must have been a good sign?
It was a great sign. I said thank you politely but inside I wanted to jump up and down.

What training or preparation did you make for the role?
Well a lot actually. Well the first thing I had to do was to learn to speak with an Italian accent and be an immigrant. And then I did a lot of research on what was going on in the world in 1912 and learned stuff about Titanic and the history, so I had that to look forward to and rehearsals and that sort of thing. But you it was about trying to put myself in that time. Which was where most of the work was in the preparation, in the accent and the era.

What was he like as a director? Was he cool?
He’s nuts! Absolutely nuts.

Is he as much of a tyrant as people said he was?
You know it’s funny, I’ve worked with tyrants, who shall remain nameless. The thing I will say about Jimmy is he’s not a tyrant without purpose. He’s very clear on what he wants and you know he’s already got it figured out in his mind so when it doesn’t go his way it’s so frustrating for him. But he’s not mean spirited.

So what about Kate and Leo, what were they like? Do you have any funny stories?
Well Kate I fell in love with, just as friends. But she would humour me and do an American accent all the time. I’d say "Kate please do it" and she would start talking in an American accent. It was just the funniest most charming thing, she’d just into this California girl accent. She’s got such a proper accent English accent, so when she’d go into it, it was one of the funniest things..."Hi Danny how you doin? Well alright man I’m goin’ to make up." That was great. And Leo I’d known for a long time. Leo I met through Tobey Maguire. They were friends for a long time. And I knew Tobey for a while. So when I saw Leo for the first time, it was like "Hey, how you doin bro?" But actually I used to teach an improv class way back when and Tobey and Leo used to come to the class.

Wow, you used to teach them improv?

Yep

Is it true that the first scene they shot was the sketching scene?

I don’t know cos’ I came into it quite late so I’m not sure what was on the call sheet for the beginning of the shoot.

I heard a story that she flashed him just before they were about to start shooting to break the ice.

I wouldn’t put it past her. I’ve been doing this a long time but I’ve never seen anybody work harder than Kate did on that film.

Did you have any scary moments on set, particularly working in the water?
Well let me put it to you this way. We did a scene where the front of the ship goes underneath, goes under the water. So it was on hydraulics. It goes beneath the water in the scene. Now Jimmy’s shooting it from seven different cameras. So he’s sitting at a monitor, with seven different monitors for each camera and there’s a wide shot. One of them is wide. So what happens is the front of the ship goes down and you’ve got two hundred extras, swimming across and looking like it’s chaos...and it was (laughs). You know and I have to cut this rope, it was so intense. No acting necessary. It was really swimming in the water and cutting rope, climbing, trying to avoid people...and then take two, dry everybody off and do it again.

Did you ever reflect on it and think ‘Oh my God, this is genuinely terrifying?’
There’s one scene where I basically had to allow the water to drag me through a..er...little window, and there was a period of time I was gonna be under the water. Simon the stunt coordinator was so careful, he gave me all the directions and just having him be so prudent about precaution made me feel should I worry? God you’re so insistent about so many things, should I worry? But you know through diligence it went great. But it wasn’t like I got to control it, I literally had to let the water drag me through this little hole and go underwater, and they had to come and give me a breathing tube whilst I was under water. You know it can be frightening but they know what they’re doing.

So did you have a favourite scene to film?
Well Leo and I had a lot of fun. One of the scenes, that wasn’t necessarily my favourite but definitely sticks in my memory is ...we did this scene where we’re on the bow...you know the king of the world?

Yes
And the way it was actually filmed is we were on a very tall small piece of the front with a green backdrop and it was really a drag to get us up and down, cos’ it was very time consuming. So in between shots we were up there and the wind was howling. This is February! It was not cold by any stretch of the imagination but it was cold for that time there, and the wind was howling and we hadn’t eaten and we needed the bathroom. We couldn’t just go over the side because the entire set would see us. I mean Leo and I would do the scene and be jubilant and happy about this amazing situation that we were in on this boat and it’s ‘I’m the king of the world’ and ‘there’s the Statue of Liberty’ and the minute they yell cut we would be miserable! We were hungry, we had to go to the bathroom...we looked at each other at one point and just said this is hideous...and then hey be jubilant again... hey, oh my god look at the dolphin! That would be the acting part of it. That’s when we really acted.





Did you ever think the film would be as successful as it became?
No I actually thought it would be as good as it was. But, for lack of a better word, doomed...

As I suppose everybody else did at the time?
Yeah we had people coming down saying when you gonna finish it? What’s going on? Blah blah blaaah. You know, I was like, oh boy!

What was it like when you saw it? Where you completely blown away?
Well when I saw it...I didn’t really see it the first time all I thought was how much I wasn’t in it! That’s all I saw. And Jim sort of warned me. Before I saw the film he sort of warned me. But when you actually see it, it’s devastating. And then the second time I saw it I thought it was great. An amazing piece of filmmaking.

It must have been great because when the special edition came out a few years ago on DVD, it gave people the chance to see those scenes?
Yeah, they got a chance to see some of those scenes which was cool.

What did you think of Avatar?
I loved it. You gotta remember, I’ve got a thirteen year old daughter who was actually born during the making of the boat, of Titanic. I actually had to leave set to go have my child. And I had them calling me going, "umm are you gonna be coming back cos’ we’ve gotta finish the dance scene?" I put it in the contract cos’ I knew I would have to leave, cos’ the due date was in the middle of filming. Getting back to your question, I went to see Avatar with her. And to see it in 3D in one of the big movie houses here in Los Angeles with her, I kinda got to see it through her eyes and it was just terrific that way.

So is there any chance of Jim calling you up to offer you a role in the sequel?
Of Avatar?! You know Jimmy’s great in the sense of if I’m right it’s great, I’m in. But if you look at Avatar, there’s really nothing I could of done in that film.

I don’t know...
Yeah, nothing that wouldn’t have been a force. If there’s something Jim thinks I’m right for he’ll call me.

Is it true you narrowly missed out on a role in Stand By Me?
Yeah I was in the final call backs for that film. They were doing a mix and match, and you know all of the guys who got the role and some of the people who didn’t get the role who were there like Sean Astin and myself. Yeah that’s actually true.

So what’s next for you? What plans have you got?
Well right now I’m actually starting to work on a record.

Really?
Yeah I’ve actually done music for a long long time and because there’s a bit of a lull between now and September. I mean I think I’ll probably go back to work in September, I’ve got a couple of things in the works but for the next two months I’m hoping to finish the record. I’ve just finished eleven songs and I’m starting pre-production on it and you know, go in and knock it out.

What kind of style of music is it?
Somebody said , I mean I can’t describe it, but somebody said that if Sade and Elvis Costello had a bastard child, it would be me.

Wow, that sounds interesting.
Yeah I don’t know how to put that but they said I sound vaguely English. Can’t think why? Bit of an anglophile.

Do you play as well?
Yeah I play guitar and stacks and bass. So yeah I’ll play a lot on the record.

Are you hoping to tour?
Well it depends on how well the record does. I mean if there’s a necessity for it I’ll do it but it would probably be something limited just because I can’t commit to stuff like that cos’ of work.

See the abridged 'WHERE ARE THEY NOW' version in an upcoming issue of Empire.

Prince of Persia

Directed by Mike Newell
Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley and Alfred Molina
Released 21.05.10

So Mr Jerry ‘Big Buck producer’ Bruckheimer is back with another blockbuster to whip up a sandstorm of business this summer. Hoping to follow the success of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Prince of Persia is an epic adventure yarn with daring stunts, exotic locations and oodles of buckles to be swashed.

Based on the classic video game the movie version of Prince of Persia tells the story of Prince Dastan (Jake Gyllenhaal), a once orphaned street urchin now adopted and raised by the King of Persia. When Dastan uncovers the powers of a mystical dagger, capable of controlling the Sands of Time – a gift from the Gods that can reverse time, he reluctantly joins forces with a feisty princess (Gemma Arterton) to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.

The good news is that this is probably the best film based on a video game in movie history. Bad news is there wasn’t much competition in the first place.

There’s much to enjoy in Mike Newell’s adventure, not least in the casting of Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton, who are almost living embodiments of Disney’s animated Aladdin. Gyllenhaal is blessed with Disney drawn eyes that will charm any movie goer, man or woman, in the multiplexes this summer. His charismatic turn as Dastan proving once again he has the gravitas to carry a big blockbuster in much the same way he has with indie flicks such as Donnie Darko.

His goofy charm and boyish heroics play nicely against Gemma Arterton’s Princess Tamina, who is both alluring and fool hardy. Their banter provides most of the fun in the movie and I found myself being swept along as they bicker their way across Persia.

There’s also solid support from Alfred Molina as desert entrepreneur Sheik Amar, who has a penchant for ostrich racing and Ben Kingsley as Dastan’s villainous Uncle Nizam. It all shapes up to be an Indiana Jones sized romp across the desert, but somehow manages to fall just short of the mark.

For a spectacular epic there sure isn’t much spectacle. The gravity defying acrobatics of Dastan and the time reversal powers of the dagger are directly lifted from the game. So it’s a shame that the producers decided to omit the sand zombies and creatures that play such a huge part in the Sands of Time videogame, opting for aerodynamic snake attacks instead.

The movie looks sumptuous and at times very entertaining, but ultimately forgettable. Actually I can’t remember one stand out sequence. It’s almost as if someone went back in time and wiped my memory. Uhhhh where’s that dagger?

Bond babes and me!

What’s this, Bond making an exhibition of himself? Surely not. Well actually several Bond’s were making an exhibition of themselves at the James Bond Fanfest last weekend. Located on the Southbank, The London Film Museum played host to a special event celebrating all things 007. George Lazenby was there to sign autographs and Sir Roger Moore was on hand to accept the Cinema Retro Magazine Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of his good friend Christopher Lee at a ceremony on Saturday night.

They weren’t the only Bond alumni who were out in force. Ex Bond girls including Britt Ekland (pictured above), Honor Blackman and Maryam d’Arbo lined the signing rooms, along with the larger than life Richard Kiel (aka Jaws) and freerunner Sébastien Foucan (Casino Royale). The event was awash with directors, effects gurus, photographers and über fans that have all helped to establish Bond as one of the biggest franchises in film history.

But it wasn’t all Bond and babes as fans had the opportunity to attend special presentations and Q&A’s from some of the most influential figures in the business. Terry English talked through his career as armourer for movies such as Excalibur and the recent remake of Clash of the Titans, and Brian Johnson discussed his work as special effects supervisor on Alien and his involvement with 2001: A Space Odyssey.

One of the highlights of the weekend was a press conference with the original master of stop motion animation Ray Harryhausen. Assisted by his biographer, Tony Dalton, Harryhausen (who is an astonishing 89 years old) gave an insightful glimpse into his life working on beloved movies such as Jason and the Argonauts and the superior original Clash of the Titans. Guests were also treated to a glimpse of original creature models including a skeleton warrior from Jason and Calibos from Clash.

An extensive collection of Ray Harryhausen’s work will be unveiled on June 29th 2010 at the London Film Museum.

For more info visit http://www.londonfilmmuseum.com/

Erasing David

Starring: David Bond
Directed by: David Bond, Melinda McDougall
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: 1 hour 20 minutes

If you consider yourself to be a paranoid person, than it might be best to stay clear of David Bond’s feature length documentary, or risk inflaming your paranoia to the point of hysteria. Erasing David is a fascinating, and often chilling, exploration into how much personal information is stored in government and corporate databases. But also how easily this information can be misconstrued to the detriment of the individual, or even more frightening, used to hunt you down.

Following the arrival of a letter informing him that his daughter Ivy is among 25 million residents whose details have been lost by the government, David Bond decides to leave his family behind for one month in an attempt to achieve total anonymity. On his tail are two private investigators that will use whatever means to track him down before the end of the thirty days. Bond hopes that by disappearing he will be able to prove the extent of surveillance that is now an unconscious part of everyday life for the average British citizen.

David Bond is a likeable everyman and makes an appealing protagonist to the piece. I only wish that the chase across Britain and Europe, which provides much of the dramatic narrative to the documentary, was as enthralling as some of the discoveries he makes in his investigations. We learn about information collated by Internet providers, victims of faulty criminal databases, surveillance cameras and new measures taken by schools to register pupils by their fingerprints. All of which makes for riveting viewing that is undermined by a rather sorry excuse for a manhunt.

Bourne Supremacy this is not. At times it feels a little condescending (and laughable) watching professional detectives searching through bin bags and glancing at Facebook pictures in order to piece together Bond’s life. It does exemplify the infringement of privacy that we all face on a mundane level, but is contradicted by the melodramatic tone of the chase.

All in all Erasing David does make compelling viewing when you consider the evidence that Bond uncovers. It’s often humorous and terrifying. Just don’t expect much from the hunt.

3/5

Lebanon

Samuel Maoz, Israel / Germany 2009, 93 min.

Hebrew with English subtitles
Screenplay: Samuel MaozCast: Yoav Donat, Itay Tiran, Oshri Cohen, Michael Moshonov, Zohar StraussPhotography: Giora BejachEditor: Arik Lahav-LeibovichMusic: Nicolas BeckerProduction: Metro Communications; Uri Sabag, Einat Bikel, Moshe Edery, Leon Edery, David Silber, Benjamina Mirnik, Illann Girard

Set within the confines of a military tank, Lebanon follows the traumatic experiences of four young soldiers one day during the first Lebanon War. Their inexperience and courage is put to the test when they are commanded to infiltrate a hostile town recently bombarded by the Israeli Air Force. What should be a routine mission quickly dissolves into horror and the four young strangers battle to keep their humanity in the most hellish of circumstances.

The second feature by Israeli director Samuel Maoz is an impressive if emotionally stunted journey about the insanity of war. Drawing on personal experiences, Maoz clearly wants his audience to witness firsthand the spontaneity and disorientation of the battlefront. Sound effects, lighting, and camerawork are deployed with spectacular effect to create a sensory overload that will leave you gasping for air.

The claustrophobia of the tanks interior is brought to life through the production design of Ariel Roshko and proves aesthetically challenging throughout the duration of the film. The tank oozes oil, belches steam and growls with metallic malice, as if it were a beast swallowing up the audience in its wake. The experience is almost a bombardment of the senses, akin to a theme park ride, drawing you into the moment but leaving no lasting impression.

Although the performances are heartfelt, the script offers no new interpretation of the dilemma of being a soldier. Ego’s battle it out whilst macho positioning is promenaded like many a good war film before. The atmosphere within the film is so tense that there is very little time to reflect on what’s really going on internally with the characters.

This isn’t helped by the way we witness the dramas taking place outside the confines of the tank. The crosshairs of the tanks gun sweep across the town, focusing on the faces of victims, blood stained rubble and the confusion of gunfire. These are the moments that should really disturb the audience into a realisation of the consequences of war, but instead comes across as emotionally contrived. It’s almost as if you are watching the cut away scenes from a tasteless video game.

That isn’t to say that the film misses the point entirely. Maoz has succeeded in creating a realistic depiction of life within a tank. You really can feel the heat of the hissing pipes and the vibrations of the engine. But what should be an arresting emotional exploration of the war torn soldier merely becomes an aesthetical trip at the cinema.

3/5

The many merits of Grease 2

'Whoa oh, turn back, Whoa oh, turn back the hands of time. We'll turn back!'
Michelle Pfeiffer and Maxwell Caulfield, Grease 2, 1982.

As the Easter holidays approach, I’m reminded of the films that helped pass away the days off from school. Between watching Return of the Jedi from a base I’d created out of duvets and chairs, to feeling a little sick from the multitude of Easter eggs that I’d scoffed in front of Beetlejuice. Grease 2 has always shared a special place in my heart.

You may be smirking at my admission but I believe this 1982 classic is the ultimate bad movie. What’s not to love? From the dizzying choreography of ‘Score Tonight’ to the show stopping ‘Girl for All Seasons’, this musical delivers. Not to mention it’s the film that introduced the world to the talents of Michelle Pfeiffer. I will even lay my reputation on the line and state that her character, Stephanie Zinone, is the coolest unsung heroine of modern cinema! That smile, that dress sense, that sassy way she demands more ketchup. Don’t believe me, then watch this little clip…



In Grease 2 we find the role of girl wants boy reversed. When Michael Carrington (cousin to Sandy Olsson no less) arrives from England to join the unruly teenagers of Rydell High School, he quickly falls for the head of the Pink Ladies, Stephanie Zinone. Unfortunately nobody but a member of the T-Birds can date a Pink Lady. To make things more difficult for Michael, Stephanie has an image of her perfect man that doesn’t quite match his preppy A-grade persona.



Wow, what a killer song. Anyway, needless to say Michael sets about transforming himself for Stephanie. Not exactly a positive message about being yourself, but I guess deep down we’d all like to be someone’s ‘Cool Rider’.

Grease 2’s pièce de résistance comes in the number ‘Reproduction’. Substitute teacher Mr Stuart attempts to explain the birds and bees to his class but quickly falls foul of the student’s lustful drives. Watch out for the girl with pigtails in this scene, she steals it.




'(Love Will) Turn Back The Hand Of Time' is probably the most honest depiction of love ever committed to screen. Forget Bogart and Bergman, Mitchell and Leigh, or Kate and Leo, this is the real deal...



Ok, so it’s not a perfect movie and regrettably for the majority of people it will never compare to the original Grease. For example, the new T-Birds, led by Jonny Nogerelli, are as cool as John Prescott doing the conga. And I have to skip the song ‘Do It For Our Country’ for fear of losing my lunch down my cardigan. Plus, Maxwell Caulfield has the singing voice of a fourteen year old going through puberty. But these are just minor flaws in an either wise masterpiece of bad cinema.

The likes of Glee and High School Musical should look on in awe at the magnificence of Grease 2. A timeless love story, full to the brim with show stopping numbers and the coolest chick this side of Kate Moss. So to paraphrase Michael Carrington ‘I think it’s kind of terrific’.

Trashed Nash for Clash

No this is isn’t a response to a smutty Sun article about gynaecology. I am in actual fact talking about the Clash of the Titans premiere last night.

I had originally intended to watch Kate Nash filming the Album Chart Show at Koko in Camden but then I learnt Sophie Ellis Bextor and…shudder…Scouting For Girls were also playing. So I decided, guiltily, to ditch Miss Nash for a chance to glimpse the celebrities treading the red carpet in Leceister Square.

I wasn’t disappointed. The gardens in the middle of the square had been fenced off and transformed into a ruined temple with collapsed pillars and cracked steps. Bursts of pyrotechnic flames licked the celebs and lucky punters as they made their way up the steps and along the gangplank into the Empire.

First up was Gemma Arterton, looking rather foxy. She made apologies for not stopping for autographs as she was due on stage at the Garrick Theatre, where she’s currently starring in the Little Dog Laughed.



Nicholas Hoult, Jason Flemyng, Alexa Davalos, Mads Mikkelsen and director Louis Leterrier all scooted into the screening. But most of the excitement was saved for man of the hour Sam Worthington, who plays Perseus in the movie. Apologies for the poor footage but he was too busy listening to his lady friend and the crowd were too busy with their bleedin’ umbrellas. But here y’are…



I have to say, despite the scale of the premiere, the atmosphere was no where near as electric as the Kick Ass premiere the previous week. Though I guess the presence of Brad Pitt kind of elevates any function. I was only there for about five minutes when the bearded one strolled past.



I haven’t had a chance to see either movie yet but my Easter pennies will be well spent at the cinema over the next week.