Ahoy, squirts! Quint here. I saw a really early version of Patrick Read Johnson’s 5-25-77 last night at the Alamo Drafthouse. It was so early that Johnson had literally edited in two new effects shots from ILM an hour and a half before the screening. He was projecting it digitally at the Alamo Downtown.
5-25-77 is about the months leading up to that date, the release date of STAR WARS, but the movie actually has very little to do with STAR WARS itself. In fact, looking back the release of STAR WARS is the least important thing about that day for Patrick Read Johnson.
This is Johnson’s biopic, directed and written by Johnson himself, about how he started his career. You see what his home life was like, you get to know his friends, you see how this small town in Illinois did everything it could to keep him from realizing his dream.
Johnson ended up a filmmaker, starting in visual effects then eventually directing a couple underappreciated gems: SPACED INVADERS (which was a childhood favorite of mine), BABY’S DAY OUT (surprisingly funny) and ANGUS (surprisingly touching).
So, this is Patrick Read Johnson’s ALMOST FAMOUS, essentially. Kind of mix that, AMERICAN GRAFFITI and a big handful of “Geek” and you get 5-25-77.
Austin Pendleton (SHORT CIRCUIT) is Herb Lightman, editor of American Cinematographer and Johnson’s version of Lester Bangs. He’s the one who offers Johnson a foothold into the industry, the one who kind of goads him into taking the leap and becoming the filmmaker he wants to be.
Like I said, the movie was rough. Right now it’s way too long. There are about 20 minutes that need to be taken out of the movie, maybe even a little more.
You can see the small budget they had, but at the end of the day the heart of the movie and intriguing story are what will make this a good film. It’s almost there now, but it needs a lot of editing, especially in the third act. It seems that there are just two or three “life-changing conversations” that happen right in a row, sometimes with people you’re seeing for the first time in the film.
There are so many threads and relationships being juggled (Johnson’s relationship with his girlfriend, his relationship with his best friend, his relationship with his mother, his relationship with his sister, his relationship with the school bully, his relationship with his best friend’s ex-girlfriend, his relationships with a half a dozen school friends, etc). I wouldn’t be surprised if Johnson removes a couple of these threads entirely in his final cut. Right now it’s a little convoluted, so that’s what’ll have to be done… or a complete re-edit that makes it all flow a little smoother.
Pacing and editing issues on this very rough cut aside, I can also see the good movie underneath. Like I said above, this movie has a whole lot of heart and it comes from a genuine place. It’s as much a coming of age story as it is a geek’s nostalgia piece. 2001 gets a lot of time, PLANET OF THE APES gets some love, SILENT RUNNING gets a lot of love. And, of course, STAR WARS.
By far my favorite part of the movie is when Johnson gets the chance to go to Hollywood and Herb Lightman gets him into a studio. All this is a true story, by the way. On this trip he’s looking for Douglas Trumbull, director of SILENT RUNNING and effects god who worked on 2001.
At this time he’s working effects on another space movie. Unfortunately, he’s not around when Johnson and Lightman show up, but always the optimist, Johnson is just happy to watch a real movie shot, so he sits down and sees an effects shot go up. As a young dude crouches next to them, intently watching the shot as well, Johnson asks what movie this is for. Lightman responds that it’s called CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND and Johnson gets immediately excited. He hasn’t heard of the movie yet, but he knows what the title means.
The young dude in the Jaws cap crouching near them smiles at Johnson’s geekiness and offers him a Pepsi. This is, of course, Steven Spielberg.
This segment of the movie also gets Johnson into ILM, where John Dykstra excitedly walks him around, showing off pieces for this new sci-fi movie called STAR WARS.
The way Johnson shoots this is fantastic. You don’t linger at all, you get glimpses of familiar models, but Dykstra is on overdrive and running you through the entire shop. I’ve had similar experiences going through Weta on LOTR and not being able to linger and stare at the Minas Tirith model or the Mouth of Sauron sculpt, etc. And I got that same geeky excitement feeling while watching the ILM segment in 5-25-77.
When everything is said and done and the final cut is delivered, I have full faith that Johnson will have it tight and have found the heart of the film. It’s there and I can already see it in this early cut.
Alright, gotta run. Speaking of nostalgia, I’m about to get on the phone with Peter Cullen to talk Optimus Prime. How geeky is that? Look for that interview soon.
-Quint
quint@aintitcool.com
| 
