Austin360 blogs > Austin Movie Blog > Archives > 2007 > October > 01
Monday, October 1, 2007
‘Barbarella’ smelling sweet as a Rose?
Has Robert Rodriguez really, after snickers over its precipitous inevitability, cast sweetheart Rose McGowan in the lead of his remake of “Barbarella”?
So say, or at least wishfully prognosticate, the online gossip-mongers. Start HERE.
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Mucha suerte y buen viaje, Lacey Pipkin
Lacey Pipkin will be leaving her position as public relations manager with Cine Las Americas, an organization with which she has worked for four years, to manage print traffic for Mexico City’s FICCO Contemporary International Film Festival. The UT graduate student, who told me she will continue writing her final reports/thesis on the Mexican film industry and international film marketing for her masters in Latin American Studies, admits that, while she is very sad to leave behind so many great friends, she is nonetheless thrilled about her new opportunity.
“Working with FICCO will be a good challenge and a great opportunity to work with filmmakers and distributors from around the globe, and I’m thrilled to get a chance to see and study the Mexican film industry from the inside,” Pipkin told me today at lunch.
Related note: Pipkin will be playing her penultimate gig as harmonies vocalist and keyboard player with Honor Farm (listen on SoundCheck 360) this Wednesday at Jovita’s at 9 pm. She’ll be back briefly for a CD release party Oct. 27 at the Scoot Inn.
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John Milius, Hollywood tough guy, says Stiller and Ferrell are the ‘best’
Legendary writer-director John Milius is famed for being a burly, gun-toting, war-happy, right-wing, self-described “zen fascist.” He’s best known for writing “Dirty Harry” and “Apocalypse Now” and for writing and directing “Big Wednesday,” “Conan the Barbarian” and “Red Dawn.”
Don’t make John Milius mad
Some of his most famous dialogue includes the “I love the smell of napalm in the morning” speech in “Apocalypse Now,” Captain Quint’s “USS Indianapolis” soliloquy in “Jaws” and Clint Eastwood’s immortal “Go ahead, make my day” in “Sudden Impact.”
Milius will accept the Distinguished Screenwriter Award, a lifetime achievement deal, at the Austin Film Festival the weekend of Oct. 12, where he will screen “Big Wednesday.”
I interviewed Milius last week. He said most film writing is crap — hardly news from the bluff maverick. But we also talked about what he likes. You (as I was) might be surprised what flips his switch.
Milius: “The Departed” was very well-written. A movie I thought was really well-written was “Kinsey.” Really well-directed. A really good movie across the board. Really made you think and consider the nature of science and behavior. Oh, and I like anything Will Ferrell has to do with. He’s just terrific.
Me: For real?
Milius: He’s the best. He’s the best that ever was.
Me: No, you’re lying.
Milius: I love Will Ferrell. I love “Talladega Nights.”
Me: But the films are so sloppy, so messy. But I guess it doesn’t matter if it’s funny.
Milius: I love “Talladega Nights.” I love “Blades of Glory.”
Me: Are you actually saying this?
Milius: Yeah! I think some of the best comedy guys around right now are Ferrell and Ben Stiller. I love “Dodgeball.” But my favorite of all is “Zoolander.” I think “Zoolander” is just genius, genius.
Me: You’re kidding me.
Milius: It’s better than “Caddyshack” and “Animal House” or any of that stuff. Much better, much better!
Me: Why?
Milius: It’s just great. It’s so insightful. These guys are really good, really interesting.
Me: Are you looking forward to the remake of “The Heartbreak Kid” with Ben Stiller?
Milius: No, because that’s not a real Ben Stiller (movie).
Me: That’s very true.
Milius: It has to be a real Ben Stiller. There’s only a few real Ben Stiller movies.
Me: Yeah, where you can tell he’s been riffing on the material.
Milius: Yeah. And also, a little bit of him goes a long way. It has to be just right. Like in “Dodgeball” he almost overdoes it. But he’s good. “Dodgeball” is good. “Talladega Nights” is a masterpiece.
Me: That’s hilarious.
Read the full interview with Milius in next Tuesday’s (10/9) Statesman and online at Austin360.com/movies.
