A few days ago I was asked by this site's co-owner - a friend from school - if I'd like to go to TIFF (the Toronto International Film Festival, duh) and interview Rian Johnson, director of 2006's Brick and The Brothers Bloom, which is likely to hit UK cinemas in early 2009. I told him I would of course be honoured, especially as it meant a free ticket to the film!
Unfortunately, the video camera that I was lead to believe would be present was not and the interview, presumably, was to be audio only and a high-flying member of the national media such as myself of course had a dictaphone with him. Sadly not. So what was intended by the site to be a video interview, and by the studio to be a transcribed audio interview is here turned into good old-fashioned prose, like in the olden days before recordings, and writing (I decided that I would look pretty stupid if I suddenly began scribbling frantically and revealed that I was even more clueless than I had let on and that I had not thought to bring along a recording device, surely a journalist's most basic piece of kit). The interview took place in the Royal York, an historic hotel in downtown Toronto, a bit like The Ritz, but not as good. In the waiting area I sit next to a gorgeous blonde from a local TV station, who is busily trying to learn her interview questions. Taking inspiration from this, I try to conjure some of my own. I chat with Rian (it's pronounced just the same as 'Ryan') for ten minutes, and here will do my best to convey what was discussed as accurately as I am able. I tell him the story of how I came to be there, and he seems entertained by it. He also promises to check out Obsessed With Film. So, Rian, if you read this and there's anything you feel I've misrepresented, let us know.
When I enter the room he introduces himself, offers me a bottle of water (which I take with me upon leaving - is that a faux pas, perhaps it's polite to leave the half consumed beverage, he doesn't seem the punctilious type though) and sits down casually. I immediately notice the conspicuous absence of a camera from the room. He is relaxed, affable, very entertaining and clearly having a great time at the minute. The interview mainly focusses on his upcoming film, The Brothers Bloom. It was made on a budget of around $20 million. It's Johnson's second film, and his first, Brick, was made for a meagre $500,000. People tend to romanticise the idea of cobbling together a film on a shoestring budget, but he assures me that it's not a very nice task, invariably resulting in having to pay people far less than they deserve. Secure a budget of twenty million dollars and you can pay people properly, avoiding the guilt that comes with being unable to do so. That twenty million also gets you big stars; Oscar winners Adrian Brody and Rachel Weisz, and, best of all, Mr Robbie Coltrane. I ask if when writing the film (so far he has penned both of the films he has directed, and I ask whether he considers himself primarily a writer or a director (he prefers the broader epithet 'film-maker'), whether he had any of the cast in mind (he says not)...
"If you write a film wanting a specific person for a specific part, you're almost invariably going to be disappointed; they'll have scheduling conflicts, they'll not fit the part so well as you thought, or they just won't want to do it"
He says it's important to keep an open mind about who can play a part, sometimes an idea will come up that at first seems ridiculous, but then grows on you. If you go into the process thinking about particular people for particular parts it can be hard to maintain this kind of flexibility. Case in point: Mark Ruffalo for the role of Stephen (the leader of the two brothers, and true master of the con) in The Brothers Bloom, who Johnson had originally considered for the role of Bloom (Adrian Brody's character - the somewhat unwilling brother, beginning to tire of a life of dishonesty - who seduces, and subsequently falls for, Rachel Weisz) before the possibility of casting him as Stephen was suggested. Initially Johnson was taken aback at the idea but it grew on him, Ruffalo was cast as Stephen and he carries the role perfectly.
Rian grew up obsessed with film (seewhatididthere?) and took a degree in it at the University of Southern California. Apparently you don't learn much in film school; he was making more movies before he went, but it's an important springboard into the big leagues. I ask if there was a specific moment when he realised he wanted to be a film-maker. No, it was just what he'd always done, a natural progression, from a fascination with cinema that began at a very young age. Plus, having spent all his time making and watching movies, he observed it was really film or nothing, that if he couldn't make his living behind the camera - in whatever capacity, that he really couldn't make it any way. I wonder if he ever thought he'd make it as well as he looks like he's going to? He can't shake the feeling that sooner or later someone will find him out though; catch him for the charlatan that he is and send him packing. He says he feels like a faker, a fish out of water, and draws a good-humoured comparison between his presence in tinsel town and my presence in the room. I tell him I think he probably doesn't need to worry about that, that he's made it. He affects modesty ? and, in the cut-throat world of Hollywood, who can blame him? - but I suspect he's here to stay. As for the future, his next project will take another new direction. It will be a dark sci-fi movie entitled Looper. It's great to see a film-maker eager to turn his hand to so many genres, let's hope it continues into the future. Perhaps a western to follow? Or maybe he could bring us what we've all been waiting for: Gremlins 3. The Brothers Bloom opens in the U.S. opens on limited release in the U.S. from December 19th after being dumped by the Weinsteins. It's release date in the U.K. is set at January 16th... expect our review to come in a few days.
