Ahoy, squirts! Quint here. I have a really short quickie interview for you folks that I did via email with Guy Ritchie. We were supposed to arrange a phone interview (which would have been a bit less impersonal and tad longer), but because of a brainfart on my end the only place we could reschedule was to do a quick email interview. I'm running this just before I'm set to run out the door for BNAT. Hopefully I didn't fudge up the coding... Enjoy our short chat about his latest film, REVOLVER and a little bit at the end regarding his new one, ROCKNROLLA starring Gerard Butler!
Quint: I know the film was released in a different form overseas. Did it benefit you for the North American release to have a full run in other countries first?
Guy Ritchie: I was happy with the film before the cuts. However, I had time on my hands between the two releases so, we cut out a narrative, which was not imperative, in order to make the story easier to follow. I am happy with either cut, but, I think the second one is easier to follow.
Q: Has there been a vastly different reaction between the two cuts?
GR: It depends on who you talk to. The challenge is the concept, but, has the concept become more accessible? The answer would be yes, but, it doesn’t make it an easy concept for the mind to grasp no matter how easy you make it - it's never going to be vastly popular or accessible, unless you really pay attention. That’s simply the nature of the concept.
Q: Can you talk about working with Luc Besson. What was the process like?
GR: Luc was very helpful. He enjoyed it and he understood it, so, life was easy there.
Q: Revolver is by far your most complex film. Was scripting difficult or was the process exactly the same as the rest of your movies?
GR: I don’t think Revolver is complex, but, it is tricky. I know it is hard to appreciate, but it's simple in the fact that it's about a man recognizing that he is his own worst enemy and, that's really it. The rest of it is commentary, but the mind makes it complex, and, there is a reason the mind does this. The movie is about that reason. If you get the trick the mind is pulling, it becomes a rewarding experience.
Q: There's a definite film noir feel to your film. Do you have any specific influences?
GR: None that spring to mind. I think most of my influences are a sort of subconscious. I steal a bit here and I am inspired a bit there, but, if you asked me from where, I’d be stumped.
Q: You always seem to gather fantastic casts. Your next film, ROCKNROLLA, has, in my opinion, your best cast yet. I'm a huge fan of Tom Wilkinson and Jeremy Piven in particular. Can you give us a taste of what we're in for with ROCKNROLLA?
GR: RocknRolla is about modern London - how it has usurped New York as the new cultural and financial capital of the world. There has been a massive influx of very rich and poor people in the last decade and, this has had massive influence on the way just about everything is done. I am interested in the Russian billionaire thing and the crime that follows it.
Q: Do you have anything else in the pipe-line?
GR: After that, I want to do a war movie.
Q: That's about all I have at the moment. Thanks so much for taking the time to answer these questions.
GR: Thank you my good man. Guy.
-Quint quint@aintitcool.com
