There’s another thread called The Soup. This got me to thinking about movies that are about making movies.
In The Soup stars Steve Buscemi as a wanna-be filmmaker looking for a producer for his 500-page screenplay. He lives in a crappy apartment and he has no money. How will he make his film? He puts an ad in the paper that is answered by a confidence man played by Seymour Cassell. Cassell wants a piece of the action – he wants to be ‘in the soup’, as it were. So where does this ‘angel’ get the money? A good film that no one has heard of.
Living In Oblivion also stars Steve Buscemi as a filmmaker. This time he’s actually shooting his film. Of course everything goes wrong. I’ve worked on several small and low-budget projects. What struck me about this film was how many things they got right. I laughed and laughed. The artiste with his vision, the uncooperative actors, neuroses, everyone lighting up a smoke during the breaks… I can relate.
…And God Spoke is presented as a documentary of the making of a big-budget biblical epic. Unfortunately the filmmakers run out of money halfway through their project. How will they finish? There’s a scene where Moses (Soupy Sales) appears on the mountain carrying the Ten Commandments – and a six-pack of Coke. ‘Why is Moses carrying Coke?’ ‘Product placement!’ ‘But this is a biblical epic! They didn’t have Coke!’
The filmmakers hire a proud Director of Photography. When his footage comes back underexposed he tells a story. ‘Otto Preminger [?] gave me this light meter. After seeing my footage he said, “You need this more than I.”’
The film gets off to a slow start, I think. There are a lot of funny scenes, but by then end they don’t really add up to an outrageously funny movie. Still – and again because I can relate, even though I’ve never worked on a film with a real budget – I like having this one in my collection.
What are other films about films, especially indie projects?
I just watched The Stunt Man for about the tenth time this weekend, mainly because the DVD had an excellent commentary track. I guess you could call the movie a cult classic, dealing with perception and the director as God.
I don’t care if he did have blond hair in the movie; Steve Railsback will always be Charles Manson to me.
I’ve heard the title, but haven’t gotten round to seeing it yet. (My French film collection is rather paltry: Godard’s Breathless (and I’ve seen but don’t own Alphaville, Betty Blue, Vagabond, Delicatessen, City Of Lost Children, La Femme Nikita, and Léon: The Professional) I’ll have to look for it.
I almost mentioned The Stunt Man (‘If God could do what we can do, he’d be a happy man.’) only I thought it was less a film about making a film than it was a film about a guy on the lam.
Sweet Liberty stars Alan Alda as a author who watches them making a movie of his book. Most notable for me since my father appeared in it as an extra (he got to share a freeze frame with Alda).
A good film that no one has heard of.