Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

   I was going to comment further in a political vein, but it just depresses me horribly.  We are indeed truly fucked.  It is agony to value honor and to be forced to work for people who don't even know the word.
   On a lighter note, did you ever see the 1973 version of '1984' with Michael Redgrave?  If so, what did you think of it, and how did it compare to the later version with John Hurt?  Just curious to see if it was worth digging up and watching.

                           Darryl

Name:              David R.
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

I'm kind of surprised not to see "Bad Day at Black Rock" on your favorites list. I thought that was a very solid picture from John Sturges.

Name:              John Hunt
E-mail:             Chowkidar@aol.com

Josh,

I wonder if Bush can finagle a presidential pardon for Cheney and Rumsfeld BEFORE they get charged with any crimes.  I would not put it past him.  Or the administration could file a whole series of charges so that Cheney et. al. could receive pardons.  I know that sounds like a conspiracy theory stuff, but...

It seems to me that the Justice Department corruption scandals are where the Bush administration will be most vulnerable to future prosecution. They  don't get as much attention right now but the paper/witness trail will be stronger and the law more clear.

Referencing Abu Ghraib; Retired General Sanchez on Friday on Fresh Air (public radio) said that prisoner abuse was widespread and universally known in DC, even prior to the Iraq invasion (Afghanistan).  He was theater commander during Abu Ghraib and so has incentive for spreading the blame, but his recent book apparently damns Bush and Co. on wide array of topics relating to the war.  I haven't read the book but in his interview he was incredibly harsh on the Bush administration.

Congrats on "Rushes".  I'm about nine books behind on my reading list but "Rushes" will come in at tenth.

John

Name:              James C
E-mail:             phsyco670@hotmail.com

Dear Josh:         

i completely agree. religion is evil. it is what causes all problems in this world. it causes most wars in this world. it is a complete waste of time. people should be focusing on their own lives and their families and friends instead of worshipping some god that doesnt exist.

Dear James C:

I suspect that responses like these, which I get regularly, must come from people putting "Religion is Evil" into Google, and since I've been on the web so damn long, my essay is the first thing you get.  You do know that you spelled psycho wrong, right?

Josh

Name:              Jeff
E-mail:

Josh,

Just received Rushes yesterday and read some of the essays, bouncing around a little. Very nice, although some of the pictures inside didn't turn out great.

I didn't realize how huge the debt for Hammer had been. I admire your focus and the fact you just keep slogging on.

Although I'm sure your nerves would give out, I hope you get called for Harpies 2. That essay had me laughing so hard I hurt myself and I'd love to read a sequel.

Good luck with the book!

Name:              David R.
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

So I take it "Rushes" is being released in paperback only?

Name:              Papa Pornin
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

In IF I HAD A HAMMER, there's a scene where Lorraine is asked if she's doing this for her own self image, clearly the look in her eyes says "yes". Later in the film, she seems more upset that she had to throw out her potato salad than about the five boys in jail. It seems like she never even visited them.

Was this meant to be an attempt at the "Right Thing for the Wrong Reasons"?

Name:              Re: Beckerspoof
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

<<It's actually kind of amusing, but don't you have something -- anything -- better to do with your time?  Try masturbating or counting the leaves on trees.>>

I suppose I could see SPEED RACER, but it won't be better than masturbating or counting leaves.

Name:              Alice Schultz
E-mail:             aeschultz333@hotmail.com

Hi Josh,

I could be wrong, but I kind of think maybe Beckerspoof meant it as a tribute, as other good spoofs are tributes, but is taking it down soon anyway in case anyone gets it wrong.   I check my film impressions against your favourites list myself all the time.  Call me an idealist but -- OK I am an idealist but -- I find it hard to believe anyone smart enough to come up with as an imitation like this would do it and transmit it from a stupid motive.  As for the spoof list of titles  -- I know you've said you're not that keen for discussions of bad movies instead of good ones, but if you do look at this as a way of expressing concurrence about what's a really silly movie, this is really funny and clever.

Well I'd been planning to ask whether you know about the "Sex and the City" movie that's being released on May 30.  It has all four original main actresses and also Chris Noth.  Remembering what you've said about the TV series, do you think this might be one you'd turn out for?

Alice

Name:              Tim
E-mail:             NansemondNative

Good Evening Josh.

I'm with you on Carpenter. John's scores seemed better than his movies most of the time. I found the score from "The Fog" to be particularly haunting and have it along with many digital source cues from the movie.

I found "Starman" to be among his best as well and I just like watching Karen Allen in most anything. Remember at the opening of the movie, Karen's character is sitting there watching those old Super-8 home movies? You won't find too many Super-8 projectors on the kitchen table these days.What about that redneck..."HEY! What happened to the goddamn deer?"
STARMAN replies..."He went there." and points out to an open area.Right after that he gets decked. What about "KID NAP PED"? Pretty funny shit there Josh.

You and John have that thing in common in that you are both able to work miracles with extremely low budgets. Love him or hate him he is a kindred spirit.

I am presently reading Stephen King's "Storm of the Century". I have already seen the movie and find it better than most movies based on his stories. The book is written in script form and Steve has outlined all the camera movements and everything.

Most scripts I have read do not include camera movements written in. He has even outlined all the props and things of that nature in all caps. I guess you can write a script that way if you have a done deal...A sure thing. The thought crossed my mind that the movie might not have been made if it wasn't close or damn close to what Steve had envisioned for the story. He seems to be able to command a whole lot of creative control.

Any thoughts Josh?

Have a good one.

Tim

Name:              Papa Pornin
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

Do you remember what the date was for the first official theater screening of IF I HAD A HAMMER? What were the most intelligent questions asked at the screening?

Name:              Beckerspoof.com
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

Your worst nightmare:
http://coppolascocaine.awesomewebspace.com/beckerspoof.html

I'll take it down tommorrow. I love my dreamweaver (evil grin)

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

   Not having read the memorandum you mentioned, I cannot adequately comment on it.  However, I can say that at battalion level and lower, particularly with the Military Police presence in Baghdad in 2003, the command emphasis was on 'rebuilding' the Iraqi Police Service and the Army.  A specific part of this mission was getting the Iraqi police and the Iraqi Army to abide by the Geneva Convention rules and due process and to stop using torture to extract information.   Prisoners that U.S. forces took for crimes against Coalition Forces (planting IEDs, attacking U.S. forces, sabotaging the Iraqi infrastructure, etc) were usually sent to Camp Victory at the airport, and passed outside my view.   Criminal suspects were turned over to the police, and usually ended up at Abu Ghraib Prison or later Camp Cropper after a lengthy stay in a precint holding cell.  Whenever we dealt with prisoners we were required to deal with them decently, sometimes to the point of tying our own hands tactically.  I remember when the word came down that we couldn't put sandbags over prisoners' heads (more effective than a blindfold), which while it makes us look prettier and more humane, also lets that prisoner get a great look at the inside of a U.S. FOB, complete with pace-counted distances for an insurgent mortar when the beaurocracy inevitably releases the prisoner.  As for orders to ignore the Geneva Convention and torture prisoners, I never saw one.

                          Darryl

Name:              Scott
E-mail:             sspnyc66@mac.com

Hey Josh,

Yeah, this incentive thing in Michigan sounds good. I think the infrastructure will return, and it really started to decline a little over ten years ago just before I left to move to NYC.

Victor Duncan closed its Detroit office because it was bought out by Panavision and the Detroit office was one of the slowest of all the Victor Duncans at that time (1995).

I interned there right out of college and I learned a lot about both Arri cameras and Panavision cameras from   a great repair guy they had there, his name was Rick. He was great and he could machine just about anything and new those cameras inside and out.

He used to come in early for me, so we could go over different cameras that I was not familiar with, but had to use on assisting jobs. All those early mornings were invaluable to me, and I have still retained all of that info which in turn also helped me when I started shooting as well.

I think after Victor Duncan closed in 1995, that became the big downward spiral for the infrastructure in Detroit.

You still have Mid-America Cine Support for lighting though, and they are very good. I used to know Doug Wandrei very well when he was still alive, and his daughter Cheryl started running the company after he passed on about 6 or 7 years ago. he always had great crew stories from the Jack Handy days and when he worked on the "Route 66" TV show as well as when he was a combat cameraman in the Korean war..

I hope things do get better in Detroit, because I think it really is a terrific place to shoot barring the weather problems and it's great to have those incentives now. Plus, its my home man!

-Scott

Name:              Kristie
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

I'd say "The Graduate" is one of the five or ten greatest films of the sixties. I'll also second your vote for "Carnal Knowledge" - one of the great American films, gloriously vulgar, heartfelt, witty, somber. Along with "Five Easy Pieces," it's also the best place to appreciate Nicholson in all his young, early glory. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" is also essential, and I must say I'm moved to tears everytime I watch it. All three are also lensed by brillant DPs(Surtees, Rotunno, Wexler).

For his more recent work, did you catch "Angels in America?" And yes, do give your opinion on "Charlie Wilson's War" when you see it.

I've certainly never loved any of Noyce's films, either (although I liked the remake of "The Quiet American," even a little more than the original, and "Newsfront" is good), but if he's passionate enough about the material and is able to properly nuance the novel into a great screenplay we may have something. And yes, while Paul Bettany has a strange, interesting face, I wouldn't cast him either.

Oh, and "The Making of Harpies" what what I meant when I wrote "Making of Alien Apocalypse," which of course is one of your most entertaining 'making of' stories.

Kristie

Name:              Kristie
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

I just ordered "Rushes!" It'll be nice to have your essays in a volume (revised and expanded too, correct?) and I look forward to "The Making of Alien Apocalypse." Hopefully it won't be too long before your memoirs see the light of day.

On the new movie front, "Charlie Wilson's War" by Mike Nichols was a lot better than I was expecting (like you, I'm a first generation Nichols fan, even though he's made some crap). Tom Hanks and Philip Seymor-Hoffman were well-suited to the material, though (predictably) Julia Roberts lays her role a little thick (but she isn't awful). It's good to see Ned Beatty again. And being Nichols, it looks very nice and is peppered with some interesting sexuality. The dialogue exchanges are also entertaining, particularly since there isn't exactly a glut of films these days that really try for snappy, well-written dialogue (and succeed, that is). I'd be interested in your opinion when you catch it.

I also saw a 2008 film, "Elegy," Nichols Meyer's latest adaptation of Philip Roth, starring Ben Kingsley, and that was interesting and intelligent. Might be up your alley.

Speaking of that, word on the street is that Chris Doyle is now attatched as DP for Noyce's film of "American Pastoral," so it'll look gorgeous, and actor Paul Bettany reportedly gave a hell of an audition for Levov, but nobody's been cast yet. I'm waiting for more announcements, though... this project has 'potentially great movie' written all over it so I'm always on the look out around town for news.

Kristie

Dear Kristie:

Yes, the essays in "Rushes" are revised and expanded, as well as the premiere of "The Making of 'Harpies'."  The essay on Xena and Herc got way expanded, and it's about 35 pages long.  I had Rob Tapert vet it, since I thought I might be coming off just a tad insulting, but he was fine with it. I even added more into the "'Evil Dead' Journal" between the journal entries. 

Meanwhile, I'm most certainly a fan of Mike Nichols, although he hasn't done much for me lately.  I do love "The Graduate" and "Carnal Knowledge."  When "Charlie Wilson's War" pops up on HBO I'll definitely watch it.  And though I really loved the book "American Pastoral," and if Chris Doyle shoots it then it will be gorgeous, but Phillip Noyce has never made a movie I even came close to loving, so I have my doubts.  And if they cast a gentile as Levov, I'll be pissed.

Josh

Name:              Eric
E-mail:             hoheisele@aol.com

Dear Josh,

"As was stated, though, Michigan presently doesn't have the infrastructure to support spending the entire budget here."

What parts of the infrastructure are missing?

Thanks,

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

   I'm not saying you don't have a point, but I do protest using the Abu Ghraib incident as an example.  In context, it was not a matter of deliberate U.S. policy to 'torture' those prisoners.  It was a handful of stupid punk kid privates put in charge of prisoners and having their moronic, sophomoric fun with them.  If there was any culpability, it was with their company commander and battalion commander for not standing up and taking their lumps for piss poor leadership.  I honestly don't believe that anyone above company level knew of the prisoner abuse, but rather than admit that the officers and NCOs failed to discourage this type of behavior, they instead covered their asses and pinned the whole thing on two or three junior enlisted personnel.  Come on, a GED female private from West Virginia the mastermind of a secret torture conspiracy?
   Then of course the hardened Iraqi mafia thugs, carjackers, and carbombers, used to being routinely beaten by the Iraqi police for information, emerge from a U.S. run jail where they received three meals a day, sanitation, and medical attention (things you don't get in an Iraqi-run jail) and complain of 'torture' for being forced to stand naked with dog collars on their necks?  Call me a dumb, brainwashed soldier if you want, but it sounds suspiciously to me like...gee, they were exploiting the incident in the media to get a bigger reparation payout from the U.S. government and possible release from prison.  And of course there's no one in Iraq who might want to play up that incident and use it to embarass the American government for their own political advantage.   I was in Baghdad when this story broke, and it made me groan for two reasons:  first, it was a stupid, heinous, unprofessional thing to do, and second, it was going to give the Army a black eye publically.  Soldiers forget that when you wear the uniform you represent the entire Army as a whole to the public, and whatever you do, the public assumes you were ordered to do it as a matter of deliberate policy.  These losers made the whole Army look guilty.
   As for the 'torture' that Iraqi prisoners 'suffered,' it really added up to little more than stupid fraternity type hazing.  It shouldn't surprise me that a public who complain if they have to wait in line at Dunkin' Donuts would consider standing naked with a dog collar on your neck [something, I might add, that many Americans do quite willingly in their own bedrooms] to be torture.  Come on, we're talking about Iraq, a country where REAL torture (physical beatings, car battery leads attached to your testicles, being whipped in the guts with a chunk of rubber hose, having teeth ripped out, and other means of persuasion) were and are routine police procedure. I'm sorry, but to call what those idiots did at Abu Ghraib 'abuse' or 'hazing' is appropriate, but to call it 'torture' in a country where they have the real thing is grossly inappropriate.

                          Darryl

Name:              Wait wait wait, what?
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

So are you saying that if I could get 50 grand together, from wherever, and then go use it to shoot the movie in Michigan, I would get 40% back, meaning that I'd only really be spending a little over 25 grand for 50 grands worth of production value?

Is that what you're saying, or is there a catch I'm missing?

Name:              Matthew
E-mail:             curiousmattp@yahoo.com

Dear Josh:         

I just found your site and I particularly enjoyed the Q and A section, so I thought I'd come up with a question myself.  I recently discovered Jim Jarmusch's films and believe on the merit of GhostDog and Dead Man alone that he is truly one of the under-exposed film making geniuses of our time.  What do you think about him?

Name:              steven burton
E-mail:             ramapoughnative1@hotmail.com

Hey Josh! 

I was in Sofia the same year in september for a month. You make me laugh! You are "spot on" with your observations and some of them I forgot about. I'll be traveling back this september for another month. I didn't know about Murphy's but I do know where the Dunkin' Donut is located, so i'll check it out. When I go, I stay at the Hilton which is another scary place with the gangsters that hang out at the bar there. Thanks for the laughs!

Steven

Name:              Gary Huff
E-mail:             gwhuff@gmail.com

Josh,

I've always been interested in what directors do between projects. You mentioned a while ago that you were working on your second Sci-Fi Channel movie (Harpies I would assume) and that you needed the money so you were working for 25% less than your previous fee. In the downtime between films, how do you usually go about your day?

Name:              Anthony Palmer
E-mail:

Josh,

Did "Running Time" play at any film festivals?

Name:              Brian
E-mail:             mackbrockton@aol.com

Dear Josh,

Kind of a random question, but what do you think of the films of John Carpenter? I'm a big fan, and it seems like you guys would have a lot in common, given Hollywood's knack for passing over real talent.

PS. I've been dying to see Thou Shalt Not Kill...Except, but Netflix has it down as a "long wait." Is the commercial dvd really that rare?

-Sincerely,

Bri

Name:              Pierre
E-mail:             pierreducard2009@yahoo.com

Mr. Becker,

You are a very informed person in many topics. But, most people know what the media tells them, which often isn't true. The CIA and MI6 removed the Shah from power and put in the Ayatollah as part of the "arc of fire" strategy created by Brezinski and Kissinger.

I must ask...what is your animosity toward the idea of God? The Judeo-Christian God is the most loving being, and Christianity has helped many people. Why have you forsaken your Jewish background.

Pierre

Name:              Blake Eckard
E-mail:             bseckard@jagtec.net

Dear Josh:         

Saw Robert Altman's "3 Women" for the first time last night and thought I'd weigh in with it here.  Never a big Altman fan (with the exceptions of "MASH," "The Long Goodbye," and "The Player"), this, I think, is very possibly one of his best.  Today I can't think of anything wrong with it, and yet, it's so bizarre, so much of it's own thing, I don't really know why any of it works at all.  His signature long shots (long lenses), zooms, and overlapping dialogue, which so often put me off, were an absolute perfect match for this story.  And I never knew Shelley Duvall could be so brilliant (although she's pretty damn impressive in Kubrick's "The Shining").  I found her incredibly moving here, and very funny in a truthful, pitiful way.  She won the best actress award at Cannes as a result, and this is one case where they got it right.  And I just love when Sissy Spacek pours salt into her beer at the saloon, blows off the foam, chugs the entire mug, wipes her mouth, then belches several times.  (She actually chugged two beers for this.  Immediately after the first one, she threw up onto the stool next to her, but told Altman she could do it again, did it, and that's the take they used...now that's my kind of girl!)

Had Altman not just had several Oscar nominations for "Nashville," I really doubt that anyone would have ever, ever financed a film like this (although Fox distributed several more Altman films right after this, all of them very uncommercial).  Proof that sometimes films do escape.  Likely what can be summed up as a happy accident, but it's a very welcome one.

I did recently see "The Player" for the first time in years, and it holds up exceedingly well.  Any thoughts on this film, or Altman in general? I've always been sort of surprised that he was 45 years old before his wild filmmaking career really began.  More hope for us all.

Name:              Edwin Fritzmeier
E-mail:             efritzmeier@yahoo.com

Dear Josh:         

I have a story about my Father and how his church turned against him for speaking his mind about how blindly people believe in the bible. How you should ask questions and how when it was written people where writing down things the way that they understood them back then, there perception.
Anyways they fired him, now I've hated religion way before this happened but it sure didn't help. I HATE RELIGION !!! The meanest most evil people I have ever met were religious. Let me tell you another story real quick.
I was at a gas station one day in a small town of about 200 real small. So anyways I'm sitten in my friends truck, on the door of the store theres a sign that's advertising a computer for sale. There are two kids playing outside when this old lady pulls up gets out and heads for the door, when one of the kids asks her " hey what does that sign say? and she says "somebody is looking for a computer" A blatant fucking lie, then in the same breath turns too another lady sitting in her car and says " Oh hello Doris are you going to church tonight?" now what the fuck is that shit? I mean come on your gona lie and talk about going to church in the same sentence. Anyways I could go on and on for days about this kind of stuff, my father was a pastor for forty years just to be screwed by the church.. E.S.F

Name:              Barry
E-mail:             bocajay@Hotmail.com

Josh,

I think I have read/seen just about everything (available in public) you have written, directed, whatever.  I appreciate your contributions toward helping artists and, especially, your frankness.

My question is about the movie script market:  does a "new-face" really stand much of a chance to interest anyone in, let alone sell, a script?

Like many wannabes, I think I'm a damn good writer.  I've read a lot of screen plays, even a few good ones, and know I can do as well.  I've written a bunch but, I look at the odds and it seems pretty hopeless.

Is there any reason for a striving writer to even try to sell a movie script?

Name:              Thomas
E-mail:             devildog4evr@hotmail.com

Dear Josh:         

The Police officer who Brought out Crowley was a New York city detective named Johnny Broderick

Name:              Brett Greene
E-mail:             brettmgreene@gmail.com

Hi Josh,

Two questions for you today, about our current digital age.

1) Have you considered using the digitized version of If I Had A Hammer for torrent uploads? You could charge for download access. Thereafter, users could stream the film on their computers or burn it to disc, but it would have no overhead cost to you and the film would get some greater exposure.

2) You're obviously well read and have read many books about film, which I think shows a dedication and passion about the subject. What do you think has been the impact of sites like IMDb which can provide a wealth of information but no real effort from its users?

Name:              Eric
E-mail:             hoheisele@aol.com

Hi Josh,

Okay, so you have what you think is a good 'high concept' idea for a feature film. You could either write the story as a screenplay or a novel, wouldn't it make more sense to spend your time writing it as a novel?

By writing your story as novel you greatly increase the marketing possibilites, because there are many more publishers than companies that are interested in buying screenplays. And, if you sell the novel, that would only help the possibility of selling the screen rights.

Please let me know if you think that my reasoning here is faulty.

Thanks

Name:              Jason Roth
E-mail:             scootermcgurk@yahoo.com

Hi Josh,

As a fellow Michigan resident, I'm curious to hear what you think of the new tax incentive deal.  I've talked to a few people that went to the Grace & Wild meeting. Most seem fairly enthused about the potential.

Going way back in the Q&A, I have to say thanks for recommending Elvis Meets Nixon on here.  What a great little movie.  I probably wouldn't have seen it without your review.

Looking forward to Rushes!
Best,
Jason Roth

Name:              angry
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

what are you shooting a movie or something? answer some goddamn questions. we miss your jaded, cynical, out-of-touch insights.

Name:              Dana
E-mail:             danamichelle3972@yahoo.com

Hi Josh... I liked your story.  Very creepy.  How have you been, it's been a while?

Name:              Tim
E-mail:             NansemondNative

Josh,

Are you still with us? Everything cool?

What's new?

Tim

Name:              Dawn
E-mail:             dcornwall@stny.rr.com

Josh -

Found your site by typing in "religion is evil".  It's one of my personal favorite mantras and I like to see what it scours from the web.  I love your treatise.  One point of contention - I think you give people too much premeditative credit.  Most are just cows following the herd and would worship shopping malls and video games with the same vigor.  Oh wait - that's the US.  Hmmmmm.  You should make a short about that poor kid in the service who is being harrassed for being an Atheist.  The morons he is dealing with are so programmed that they have tried to define Atheism as if it is its own religion.  Atheism just means you understand enough to realize you will never understand it all, and that you do not need fairy tales to make you feel better.

Name:              Dustin Buckley
E-mail:             duttyroo08@yahoo.com

Hey Josh what is the best way to copyright a finished work without a headache?

Name:              Dr Pepper
E-mail:             23flavors@hotmail.com

Josh,

Is MOVIE MOVIE out of copyright yet? I noticed some websites sell DVD-Rs from the 70s and 80s, and this one was very hard to find.

Name:              Henry
E-mail:

Dear Josh,

Watch this video by filmmaking "genius" Uwe Boll and tell us what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWqCNmfJ1hY

Always interesting to hear your perspective.

Henry

Name:              Mark Baccay
E-mail:             1@espncentral.com

Dear Josh:         

Hi, after reading your story about selling a screenplay I have a question. Will they read manuscripts, or do I need to convert my story into a screenplay first? Also, how much did they pay you?

Thanks,

-Mark

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

    I do recall that WMD was the main reason cited for the need to topple Saddam; my comment was that he was a ready scapegoat, particularly to a shocked and devastated public.  If we had never had any dealings with Saddam Hussein prior to 2001, the invasion would've been a harder sell. However, there was an underlying sentiment in this country that Iraq was unfinished business.  Certainly when I was in basic training in 1996, all the drill sergeants (Gulf War vets all of them) assured us that sooner or later we would fight Iraq again, or as SSG Zamora put it "finish the job."
Paint Saddam as a supporter of terrorists much like the ones who hit the WTC and Pentagon, and you've got all the political support you need to sell a war in Iraq.
   As for the American public, we are despite our faults generally a generous and kind-hearted people.  Scarcely a disaster, man made or natural, occurs on this planet that the American people don't help the victims of with food, medicine, clothes, and money.  Adversity tends to publically unite us, particularly when our leaders give us a clear course of action.  Certain public officials realized that, once the fires were put out in New York and the dead were buried, the American public would want to know what to do next.  They took advantage of this weak moment in the public consciousness to promote their own agenda.  That's why I say that it is not the American people who are evil, but the people who lied to the American people that may be called such.
   Regarding Charlton Heston, I imagine he felt that Khartoum was his greatest stretch as an actor, which is perhaps why he was so fond of the role.  I saw the interview you were talking about, and even have it on tape somewhere. I think that Robert Osbourne does the best interviews in Hollywood; his knowledge of film and respectful, conversational style really get his subjects to open up and be candid.  What do you think?  But anyway, Charlton Heston always seemed to be Charlton Heston in every role he played, but I always enjoyed that about his performances.  Apart from BEN HUR, I rather liked his performance in SOYLENT GREEN; he plays a character significantly younger than he is, his back-and-forth with Edward G. Robinson [who hands in an outstanding final performance] is great, and I particularly liked the fight scene where he kicks Chuck Connors in the balls, which was obviously choreographed but not some ludicrous martial arts extravaganza.

                            Darryl

Name:              Tim
E-mail:             Nansemondnative

Good Morning Josh.

The one moment in "The Deer Hunter" that did stick wth me was the scene with Deniro, I think it was Deniro,in a submerged lock-up so to speak. He was imprisoned in a bamboo cage and submerged in water and given barely enough room to stick his lips up through the bars and take a breath of air. Meanwhile, there are rats running around on top of the cage adding to the misery. We had a discussion once about "World Trade Center" and that helpless, trapped, claustrophobic feeling that was conveyed in most of that movie. The water prison reminded me of that same kind of hopeless outlook.

I had a boss one time who had been a Command Sargeant Major in the Army and he did two tours of Vietnam. He would never really say much about operations over there but he did on occasion talk about "Charlie" and the viciousness of the guerilla warfare they employed. I will not expand on what he told me but my thoughts on it tie back to something you once said. You said something to the effect that human monsters were more scary than anything fictional and then you tied in WWII Germany and the atrocities committed by Hitler. You couldn't have stated anything more true and to the point.

Last but not least, I saw a 1922 silent film I think you might enjoy entitled "Shadows" with Lon Chaney and Harrison Ford.

The film provides a very interesting character study and it touched on many things I would never have believed would be present in a 1922 movie.

Lon Chaney's character, Yen Sin, gets beached after a storm at sea. He finds refuge in a small fishing village that is also predominately Christian. Yen finds himself caught up in the intricate web some of the human Christians weave. Yen does convert over to Christianity to save a friend that is being blackmailed. Chaney's performance was very entertaining. I thought Marguerite De La Motte's performance was very good as well. I'm divided on Harrison Ford just as I am with his modern day counterpart. Overall, it was very enjoyable. Certainly not bad for $1.00.

Have a good one.

Tim

Name:              RUSSIAN ROULETTE
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

You wrote:
" He said, "Have a character put a gun against their head and you've created suspense, but there's nowhere to go with it.""

I suspect that's because the only place you can go with it is to shoot the lead character, which isn't fucking likely, so that kills the suspense right there.

On the other hand, Maestro Rex Harrison DID shoot himself, and it was GLORIOUS! And then he comes back to reality, and can't even load the gun properly.

Name:              Diana Hawkes
E-mail:             crazyfelinelady@yahoo.com

Dear Josh:         

I wanted to pass the word that R.J. Stewart has responded with his answers to fan questions:

http://xena.yuku.com/topic/17042/t/RJ-Stewart-answers-our-questions.html?page=1

Just as with Rob's Q&A, I'm amused at our (fans') ability to ask incredibly detailed questions hoping for specific reactions and long involved answers, only to be met occasionally with "Sorry, don't recall."
LOL! *blush*
I guess we've seen these eps 1000 more times than you Powers-That-Be. I asked the "people assume we'd be embarrassed to be fans" and Peter Berg questions; R.J.'s anecdote about showing pride to a collegue in being associated with XWP gave me the warm fuzzies.

Anyway, such a treat you all are receptive to communicating with us. Sounds like we'll be attempting to ask Chris Manheim and Liz Freidman next (Liz seems like a hoot.)

Name:              X
E-mail:             x@xxxrated.com

Dear Mr. Becker,

The current wars and politics is a frequent topic on your forum. I must tell you that both gulf wars were fought for oil. 9-11 was done by remote controlling the planes and there were no hijackers. The government knows where Bin Laden is, he had nothing to do with it. He is in that mountain region between Pakistan and Afghanistan I believe.

There are bigger and darker secrets. Are you interested. As a film director, you can imagine the Apollo moon landings were faked on a film set, can you? What do you think of that.

X

Name:              DEER HUNTER
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

You wrote:
"In a way, "Deer Hunter" is the beginning of modern Hollywood movies, in that it had everything -- big budget, great cast, gorgeous cinematography -- and basically no script."
-----------------------
I noticed that the first time I watched it. I had been conditioned by countless viewings of LORD OF THE RINGS and other long movies, so I couldn't see what was wrong with DEER HUNTER.

But if you watch THE GODFATHER, during the opening wedding scene, there is a lot of great dialogue, setups, and storytelling to keep the momentum going.

Meanwhile, I re-checked it. The release date fiasco isn't on the official imdb trivia in any form. I posted it on Chud and this one fan implied it was justified by the movie's "brilliance", even if it wasn't as good as GODFATHER.

Name:              Hubba Bubba Tubba
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

What do you think of Led Zeppelin? I've never heard you talk about them before.

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

    I heard about Charlton Heston's death over the weekend, and wanted to say a few words about him publicly.  I know that you didn't think much of his acting ability, but I admired the many roles he attempted, and the mature aspect he brought to the screen.  He put the MAN in leading man, as opposed to the crop of spoiled whining pretty boy lead actors that we're saddled with today.
   As for his politics, well, you know my stance on gun rights, so to me Mr. Heston was a hero.  It takes a good deal of courage and sand to stand by your principles, do what you believe is right, and all the while be a gentleman about it.
   I know that in eulogies, a man's bad traits are all sanitized and his good deeds inflated, but I believe in this instance that Mr. Heston's merits do outweigh his faults.  I for one will miss him.

                        Darryl

Name:              Ben
E-mail:             sphere6@gmail.com

Dear Josh:         

I've been writing a lot lately and I keep getting caught up on dialog. Do you have any advice on writing it? Anything to help it move along?

Name:              August
E-mail:             joxerfan@hotmail.com

Dear Josh,

In response to a couple of recent topics, according to the IMDB, Deer Hunter was released in LA only on Dec. 8, 1978, and then nationally on Feb. 23, 1979. Which might mean one theatre in NYC and one in Chicago. And then wide release probably after it won the Oscar.  Although I seem to recall seeing it in Nashville before it actually won, but that's a long time and many brain cells ago.

The musical Robert Shaw, according to Wikipedia, was a Grammy-winning conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, who did various things with NBC in the early years.

OK, now my question relates to something you once mentioned about your directing days down in  NZ.  I recall you said that some guest directors had more success than others, and it didn't seem entirely logical to have a constantly revolving slate of directors, some of whom had never worked on the show before.  I have noticed that the ABC series Lost sometimes uses guest directors... but about 2/3 of the episodes have been directed by the same two guys, who both were given Exec. Producer status.  Both had been "regular" directors who had worked with the show's creators on previous shows, so presumably that was part of the deal from day one.  Is this something that is becoming more common in tv nowadays?  And do you think that's a good move to ensure continuity, as well as allowing a director to not only have creative input, but actually get screen credit (and presumably compensation) for it?

Thanks,

August

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

   I never agreed with the million Iraqi death toll, it not being based on definite counts but rather vague estimates.  That being said, I don't know if you can call America's stance in this evil.  Our leaders presented us with evidence of Saddam Hussein's involvement with terrorist activity, and people were still smarting and in shock over 9/11.  Here was a culprit who was a legitimate bad guy and whom, despite being militarily humiliated in the 1991 Gulf War, many felt had not been dealt with thoroughly enough. Girded by that fact, the memory of our swift victory in '91 [without the memory of the six-month military buildup it took to accomplish that 100 hour victory], and the promise that Iraq would be swiftly liberated and on the way to democracy, we invaded.  By the time the war fever had been tempered and people first began to question the administration's assertions, we were already knee deep in the quagmire that was the inevitable power vacuum in Iraq after toppling Saddam, and the administration had made only the most cursory and feeble plans for this eventuality.  Evil?  I would call it tragic.

                          Darryl

Name:              RE: DEER HUNTER
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

you wrote:
"I wrote that article sixteen years ago, so you'll forgive me if I don't remember my sources anymore.  However, that whole shenanigans with Allan Carr and the one week release were all pretty well known at the time of the film's release and subsequent Oscar wins in 1978."

I don't doubt it, I'm trying to get it on the legitimate imdb trivia section. I did find two other reviews that mention it, although they say it like it's a good thing.

I read Allan Carr never worked in Hollywood again because he fucked up the 61st Annual Academy Awards and got sued by Walt Disney. Alls well that ends well.

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

    I don't disagree with the idea of helping people or meeting struggling citizens halfway, but the past century has shown that our government beaurocracy is NOT the organization to successfully do so.  An office holder who helps pass a bill, that blooms into a social program, that doesn't in fact help as it was intended but does waste billions of dollars and thousands of man-hours of effort, IS in fact making things worse. Ending the Iraq debacle will certainly make things better, but if it's followed up by yet more wasteful domestic spending, that's effort and treasure still lost.
   As for me, I would have to say that in all of this I'm center-right.  I emphatically do not agree with the oppressive attitudes and warmongering of the religious zealots on the far right, but nor do I care for the left creating committees and agencies for every problem under the sun, with the citizens of this country footing the bill.  I also feel that the progressivists would and have thrown away certain cultural traits that I value:  the concept of self-discipline, individual responsibility for one's own actions, and civic and national pride.  Some public and private ethics wouldn't hurt, either.
    I'm sorry for getting off on a political tangent on what's supposed to be a movie site, but you took a definite position and deserve a definite and thought-out response.  It seems that our aims and sentiments are the same; we simply disagree on how to get there.

                             Darryl

Name:              David R.
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

Hey Josh you ever see an old Delmer Daves western called "The Hanging Tree"? I don't think it's very well known but it probably deserves to be. I wasn't much of a fan of Gary Cooper's before this but he gives a really interesting performance (for a particularly interesting character). He is amazingly kind and patient at turns but then distant and hostile at others. Good film!

Name:              Tim
E-mail:             NansemondNative

Josh,

You are right on time with your observations concerning Close Encounters.

I had not seen the original version in so long that I remember asking my wife if she remembered seeing the ship in the desert. She hadn't of course because the scene wasn't in there.

The ship was actually a huge model shot through a forced perspective to create that illusion. A beautiful fit!

The next version of the movie had the ship in the desert and the press conference had been deleted. The press conference featured the old man describing his encounter with Bigfoot. Apparently, Bigfoot had a foot "37 inches long" from heel to toe. Also, you can see all the Angenieux 12-120 zoom lenses on all of the old film cameras that the newsmen had to record the conference. Very cool I thought when comparing that to what is used today.

Garr's performance as the sexy drama queen wife was quite good but I was ready for her to go when she did. I tended to side with Roy throughout the whole thing. I felt she wasn't trying hard enough to understand Roy's experience and in the long run he was better off without her anyway.

One scene that still gets a big laugh is after Roy's encounter he comes home and wakes everybody up to go see the aliens..."It's better than Goofy Golf! C'mon wake up!" The little girl fighting sleep with her butt in the air,the boys hanging off their bunk beds, the trashed rooms and that nosey ass neighbor lady of theirs! Great scene!

What about at the dinner table with the little girl..."I hate these potatoes. There's a dead fly in my potatoes." Hilarious.

You know that when we see the Mother Ship for the first time we are actually seeing city lights shot at night superimposed on the base of the ship coming down. I cannot remember which city but possibly Bakersfield, California.

I could go on and on about this movie but another thing I always found interesting about it were some of the night shots. For example, there are a couple shots where we hear the engine of a propeller plane in the distance and we can actually see small plane lights flashing up in the night sky. Nice touch I thought. The night shadow of one of the alien ships flying over the road and the field was another nice touch.

Finally, I agree with you on Roy's entrance to the ship. We see Roy approaching a state of hyperventilation along with the ensuing light show. I think Spielberg himself acknowledged somewhere he should have left what the inside of the ship looked like to each viewer's imagination.  I agree Stevie boy!

Ok Josh. My term paper on Close Encounters is finshed.

Tim

Name:              DEER HUNTER
E-mail:

Dear Josh:         

On your "What do the Oscars really mean?" essay, you mention a story about THE DEER HUNTER only being released for one week on one screen to qualify for the Academy Awards, then not being released until it won them so that the studio advertising had something to sell it with.

Out of curiosity, what were your sources on this?

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

   I was feeling bitter when I wrote that last post, and I should've been more clear that I was referring to my specific academic experience, not national politics.  By 'leftist,' I meant the progressive educational policies of American schools that have become entrenched in the last thirty years:  the feel-good mentality of holding back the smart kids so that the slower or lazier kids won't feel bad about not performing as well; the constant dumbing-down of academic achievement tests so that more students pass and the schools can boast better test scores; and specific to history (my major) the changing of the course curriculum to no longer require students to memorize specific dates or events, but rather to comment on general 'movements' and 'trends' in human history.  I hold these policies to blame for the erosion of learning in American public schools, and the appalling spectacle of high school students graduating with diplomas that they cannot read.
   As for community college, much of what you say is true.  However, I still found that going to Gateway Community College in New Haven, Connecticut, at night was more rewarding than attending the University of Connecticut up in Storrs.  While some of the professors were losers, many were reputable professors moonlighting from other universities.  The ones I spoke with said they did it not for extra money, but because the community college students were more mature and goal-oriented and often worked harder than students at the big schools.

I hope I clarified my statement.

                            Darryl

Name:              Jim Beaver
E-mail:             jumblejim@prodigy.net

Dear Josh:         

The Robert Shaw who has a record on his star is not the actor/playwright, but a musician.

Name:              Carol Golembiewski
E-mail:             redcarol57@yahoo.com

Dear Josh:         

I'm currently working on a screenplay called "Two From the Cubist Mist".  It's a sci-fi type film that revolves around the art work in the near future.

My question is this.  If my work should get optioned and resold, is there anyway to structure the contract so that I'd still be able to have the Screenplay Writers Guild acknowledge my work and let me in.

I'm thinking that with the Guild having fought for writers to get a percentage of DVD sales, it would be a total rip if they wouldn't acknowledge my contribution should my script be developed and produced.  I know it's a long shot, but I'm wondering about that.

Thanks in advance,

Carol Golembiewski

Name:              Darryl Mesaros
E-mail:             simonferrer102@yahoo.com

Dear Josh,

   Your reply to my academic post gave me some food for thought in terms of politics, which I felt was better reserved for a separate post.   I'm not denying the egregious and glaring faults of the Republican party in terms of this war:  they're facts and thus undeniable.  I served in Iraq and still don't believe that we should've invaded. The intelligence on WMD was hazy at best, trumped up bullshit at worst. Also, democracy is not for everyone, and the Iraqis in my experience are far too corrupt, violent, and plain old ignorant to make a go of it in this generation. Change is happening, but at a rate much slower than expected.  For it to have any lasting permanence, we would have to sit out a tectonic cultural change and the passing of at least two generations of Iraqis.  That seems to be more effort than most Americans are willing to invest, particularly in a country that doesn't seem to want to pick itself up [we spend a trillion dollars to rebuild Iraq, and the Iraqi government is sitting on almost $300 billion dollars of surplus oil revenue.  You'd think if they were serious about getting their shit together and getting us out of their country, they'd start footing the bill for some of their own problems].
   But the left also has it's faults.  Whatever good intention for which they were conceived doesn't balance out the cost of the Democrat's poorly designed social engineering programs over the years:  welfare in all its varieties (which has created a whole government dependent subclass), social security (mismanaged and overdrawn to the point where I must still pay into it, but most likely will never see a Social Security check when I retire), affirmative action (government sponsored race quotas), and finally the entire concept of beaurocracy being the solution for every social ill.  Not to mention that Democrats are also capable of escalating an unpopular war [anyone remember Lyndon Johnson?].
    The current candidates for President reflect these party problems. McCain is an authoritarian, and actually wants to increase the U.S. presence in Iraq.  Hillary and Obama want to pull out and focus more on economic issues, one by using tax dollars to bail out U.S. mortgage firms while forgiving mortgage payers their debts [and some people thought Reaganomics didn't make any sense], while the other wants to cure world poverty by giving a big chunk of the U.S. GDP to developing nations and signing multiple free trade agreements (say goodbye to the last of your industrial base, America). As I see it, arguing over which one of these clowns would make a better President is like arguing over which venereal disease you'd like to have:  gonorrhea, syphilis, or genital warts.  All of them are going to be uncomfortable, get in the way, and make your life worse.  Sorry for the long post, Josh.

                           Darryl

P.S.  Whatever the candidates say about pulling out of Iraq quickly, they are either ignorant or lying if they're talking about speedy troop withdrawals.  To accomplish a complete stand down and withdrawal of all U.S. forces and assets in Iraq (to include millions of tons of heavy equipment which must be funneled through limited Iraqi and Kuwaiti port facilities onto ships) would take at least a year of unceasing effort. Like it or not, a withdrawal will take time.

Name:              Tim
E-mail:             NansemondNative

Good Morning Josh.

On the subject of the atom bomb I find it extrememly interesting that H.G. Wells was talking about them 30 years prior to the Gadget test in 1945.

Little Boy , which was about the length of two dining tables put end to end and about 2 feet or so in circumference,destroyed an entire city. Tens of thousands were literally turned to ashes in an instant. If you watch the Bikini footage in slow motion you can quickly ascertain that by the time you see the flash it's all over. Everything destroyed in the mile range. That is 21 kilos. Our world governments have multi-megaton bombs. The flash you see in those megaton tests produce fireballs 3 miles wide by the time you blink your eyes. That is some truly sobering shit Josh. When you factor in some of the dipshits that control the keys to the missiles it is even more terrifying.

I think you have recommended the book before but if not I would throw in "The Elements of Style" by Strunk and White as excellent educational material on writing. Strunk also stresses brevity Josh. Also, though it is somewhat dated, I would say that "The Liar's Club" by Mary Karr is a good read. I had never heard of the book until about 2 weeks ago. Interesting human relations study.

I have not