When he dies I hope they preserve Steve Buscemi and slice him up to figure out how someone could present such a Cretan, regardless of how his character is written on the page. I will always remember his persona from the first time I discovered him on screen in Reservoir Dogs, as the non-tipping Mr. Pink of Quentin Tarantino's crime tale.
In the case of the film Interview, we are very lucky that he decided to pursue funding for what for many was a very individual film in the hands of the original filmmaker Theo van Gogh. Van Gogh's background was ostensibly journalistic and his outspoken voice got him eventually killed. That Van Gogh's treatment of his subject matter may have been more for explication than entertainment, this adaptation may be better than the original.
Generally American remakes (I don't know why Hollywood constantly does it) are not as good as the originals. Al Pacino was in the remake of Scent of a Woman (ugh !), and was award an Oscar for his acting in the thing! The TV series The Office with Steve Carell is a remake of an excellent British TV show that is so far above the American simulacrum, that I am embarrassed to admit that it is playing in a country I inhabit.
But the Interview remake has a lot going for it that the original doesn't. Steve Buscemi does double duty as director and lead character, political journalist Pierre Peders, assigned the task of doing a fluff piece on the flavor-of-the-week Sienna Miller's self-involved actress Katya. At first this seems like a thin plot to hang an entire film on, but the movie touches on several cultural flash points that are sure to cause controversy in the viewer.
There's a particularly vibrant live feeling about the film, and this comes about primarily due to the way the scenes are directed. Buscemi's direction is to tap into the truth of the relationship between Pierre and Katya, and this does come off as caustic at times, but the actors always seem like real people.
The look of the flick is well-matched to its themes. Three camera operators shoot consistently each scene from specific vantage points so that many of the reactions from the actors are spontaneous. This is a two-hander and Buscemi and Miller carry the entire feature, and the dynamic that ignites between the two is memorable and will leave you thinking through much of what the characters say and do as the screen fades.
The film at times may feel a little too much like theatre. Things happen without a convincing amount of set up. We may wonder why Katya brings Pierre into her apartment in the first place. Some viewers may see it motivated by a sense of guilt on her characters part. Once inside it seems that each character needs the other to fulfill a need. This is never overtly expressed and director Buscemi allows the viewer to supply some speculation.
Whatever reason works to drive the story, the needs of each character come out in caustic, sometime violent ways, and the integrity of each is shown as completely devoid of substance. You may feel that the conflict is a standoff, and that viewpoint depends on what your value system dictates.
In the case of the film Interview, we are very lucky that he decided to pursue funding for what for many was a very individual film in the hands of the original filmmaker Theo van Gogh. Van Gogh's background was ostensibly journalistic and his outspoken voice got him eventually killed. That Van Gogh's treatment of his subject matter may have been more for explication than entertainment, this adaptation may be better than the original.
Generally American remakes (I don't know why Hollywood constantly does it) are not as good as the originals. Al Pacino was in the remake of Scent of a Woman (ugh !), and was award an Oscar for his acting in the thing! The TV series The Office with Steve Carell is a remake of an excellent British TV show that is so far above the American simulacrum, that I am embarrassed to admit that it is playing in a country I inhabit.
But the Interview remake has a lot going for it that the original doesn't. Steve Buscemi does double duty as director and lead character, political journalist Pierre Peders, assigned the task of doing a fluff piece on the flavor-of-the-week Sienna Miller's self-involved actress Katya. At first this seems like a thin plot to hang an entire film on, but the movie touches on several cultural flash points that are sure to cause controversy in the viewer.
There's a particularly vibrant live feeling about the film, and this comes about primarily due to the way the scenes are directed. Buscemi's direction is to tap into the truth of the relationship between Pierre and Katya, and this does come off as caustic at times, but the actors always seem like real people.
The look of the flick is well-matched to its themes. Three camera operators shoot consistently each scene from specific vantage points so that many of the reactions from the actors are spontaneous. This is a two-hander and Buscemi and Miller carry the entire feature, and the dynamic that ignites between the two is memorable and will leave you thinking through much of what the characters say and do as the screen fades.
The film at times may feel a little too much like theatre. Things happen without a convincing amount of set up. We may wonder why Katya brings Pierre into her apartment in the first place. Some viewers may see it motivated by a sense of guilt on her characters part. Once inside it seems that each character needs the other to fulfill a need. This is never overtly expressed and director Buscemi allows the viewer to supply some speculation.
Whatever reason works to drive the story, the needs of each character come out in caustic, sometime violent ways, and the integrity of each is shown as completely devoid of substance. You may feel that the conflict is a standoff, and that viewpoint depends on what your value system dictates.