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SEX DRIVE's Clark Duke to Mr. Beaks: "I Want to Bring Back Chevy Chase"!
Here's my other last-second, why-the-hell-not interview of Comic Con '08.
As a fan of the internet's "Clark and Michael", I was more than happy to fill the time between Thursday's Fox panel and my Frank Darabont interview by chatting with Clark Duke, who was getting ready (or just finishing?) a panel in support of Summit Entertainment's R-rated comedy, SEX DRIVE (HD trailer here) - about which I knew approximately nothing. No worries. Iced Media's Scott Hurwitz was there to relay the film's premise (high school kid strikes up steamy online romance with seemingly hot chick, exaggerates his physical attributes to keep her interested, then panics when she actually wants to meet), so I wasn't flying completely blind when Clark sauntered over to talk. And yet I still asked him to explain the movie within a minute of starting the interview. Like that asshole Charlie Rose wouldn't do the same thing.
Calling the below a "freewheeling conversation" is a little like saying Warren Beatty "had sex during the 1960s." We discuss SEX DRIVE... a little, talk about the current state of film comedy... a little, and lament the cruel bait-and-swtich of EURO TRIP's DVD cover.... not as much as we should. As was already evident from his online two-hander with Michael Cera (I don't know if I can make that sound dirtier), Clark's a very intelligent, very clever dude; unlike a lot of comics in their early twenties, he seems pretty comfortable with who he is. Also, I like a guy who's willing to take unpopular positions - in particular, his steadfast admiration for Chevy Chase. If Clark thinks he can resurrect the career of the man Bill Murray once disparaged as "medium talent", then good for him! Chase was too great in the 70s and 80s to be relegated to guest appearances on ABC dramas. Get on that shit!
So here's a... hopefully engaging bullshit session with Clark Duke!
Beaks: So you're down here for SEX DRIVE--
Clark: I would've been here regardless.
Beaks: Yeah? Have you been down before?
Clark: I came last year for the first time, and I had a blast. I've been collecting comics since I was five. It's an obsession. This is kind of Mecca for me. So to come down to Comic Con to promote a movie, it's basically a childhood dream fulfilled for me.
Beaks: Sure. You get to go out on the panel and listen to all the screaming chicks.
Clark: Yeah!
Beaks: Mark Wahlberg said something great today. He said doing a panel at Comic Con is like doing a concert in Japan. The girls scream whenever you open your mouth.
Clark: Totally. But I feel like this is my audience, really. This is my community.
Beaks: Has stuff like "Clark and Michael" made it difficult to move freely through the convention center?
Clark: It really did last year. I guess Comic Con was pretty soon after the show had just come out. I don't think all of the episodes were even out yet. And I was very pleasantly surprised; I think the entire audience of the show must've been here, because I had a lot of people come up to me and talk about it. I haven't been on the floor yet, but I'm excited.
Beaks: Tell me a little bit about this SEX DRIVE. I'll admit, it's kind of come out of nowhere for me.
Clark: This is my first... I mean, I had a line in SUPERBAD, but this is my first movie where I'm something like a leading role. I had the time of my life down [in Florida]. I got to skip the winter and hang out down there. It's a fun movie. To me, it's like an 80s throwback; it's like one of those John Cusack/Savage Steve Holland movies.
Beaks: And it's a road movie, too, so it's maybe got a SURE THING vibe?
Clark: Yeah, it's a lot like THE SURE THING. That's what everyone says, but it doesn't have as much to do with the road trip as it does the characters and the shit that happens to them. It doesn't emphasize the road trip - maybe that's because of the movie ROAD TRIP.
Beaks: Or EURO TRIP.
Clark: EURO TRIP confused me. The cover art had Michele Trachtenberg topless, and I'm almost positive that couldn't be in the film. I don't know. I didn't see the film.
Beaks: It's not. I checked.
Clark: Atta boy!
Beaks: Actually, it's a funny movie.
Clark: But I think SEX DRIVE... it's got Seth Green, and he's always awesome. James Marsden, and Jimmy is so fucking funny in it, people are going to be astonished. You just don't expect it from him at all. He was great to work with. I'll probably never have that much fun again.
Beaks: Did you guys do a lot of riffing like they do in the Apatow films?
Clark: Oh, yeah. We had three weeks of rehearsal and, more or less, rewrote all my dialogue. I improv the whole movie. They left pretty much all of it in. There are a couple of things in particular: there's a scene in the film where it stays on a wide establishing shot, and I'm still talking. It's obvious I'm just riffing because there's no coverage, and they, like, left it in. I was so satisfied.
Beaks: You think that's the way comedy is going now? Everyone has seen how well it's worked for Apatow. It's like, "Yeah, we've got a script, but just come on in and do your thing."
Clark: Yeah. I think that's why you hire a comedic actor. You want someone who elevates and adds to the material. I work on this show, too [Greek], and it gets kind of frustrating because they don't encourage that as much. It's TV, and there's such a strict time limit with how they cut it. But [in film], that seems to be the direction it's going, and that's fine by me. That's the root of all my heroes: Chevy Chase, Belushi, and all those guys.
Beaks: Chevy Chase?
Clark: Chevy Chase is my hero, man.
Beaks: Really? That's not a very hip thing to say anymore. I mean, he was incredible back in the day, but he's treated like a punch line now.
Clark: Yeah, but his stuff on SNL and his movies in the 80s... they still hold up. I want to bring him back. You know what it was? Chevy Chase and the original SNL guys were cool. It seems like that's missing from comedy now, that you can be funny and cool. Even in stuff coming out right now. Chevy Chase was cool. And he was hysterical.
Beaks: He had that smug distance that somehow worked for him.
Clark: Those guys were like rock stars. Comedy was on the edge in the way music was. I'm so drawn to those guys. And, you know, Ricky Gervais and Larry David. I'm mainly just ripping off Ricky Gervais. (Laughs)
Beaks: Rip off from the best! But I like that you say the SNL guys were rock stars. I kinda see you guys as indie rock stars. It's shifted.
Clark: That's a pretty good analogy. The underground comedy guys are like Death Cab for Cutie. But Death Cab is huge now. Maybe we're like... I don't know...
Beaks: The New Pornographers?
Clark: But Porno's pretty big now. They're played at Starbucks. We're the Davendra Banhart's. But we didn't date Natalie Portman.
Beaks: Pity.
Clark: I actually know Davendra. He's a very sweet guy. It was the strangest thing: he came up to me and said he was a fan of "Clark and Michael". We saw him at this mexican restaurant, and we were like, "Holy shit, it's Davendra Banhart!" But then he's like "Due, I love 'Clark and Michael'!"
Beaks: Saved you the awkward, "Dude, I love your music!"
Clark: (Laughing) Exactly. Like "I love 'Cripple Creek'!" (Pause) Not "Cripple Creek". That's The Band. I love The Band. I'm sorry, I'm way off topic here.
Beaks: No, that's good. Keep it loose. But I'm impressed. You're throwing out references that... I mean, most guys your age wouldn't be talking about The Band.
Clark: Most of the stuff I love was over with before I was born.
Beaks: Is that a parental influence?
Clark: No. (Laughs) Not really, dude. They're not that hip.
Beaks: Back to the idea of improv dominating film comedy, do you think it's here to stay or do you think it'll run its course?
Clark: If you're being realistic, most trends do run their course. But maybe it'll be something like method acting, where it just completely took over. I don't know how you could go back to broad, non-naturalistic comedy after this. It would just seem really forced. I don't know. It remains to be seen.
Beaks: Well, that's when the next Noel Coward pops up.
And that's pretty much it! Maybe we can do something more substantive with Clark when SEX DRIVE junkets in September. I'm sure he'll be totally up for it after reading this.
SEX DRIVE is currently scheduled for wide release on October 10th. Perhaps I'll be done transcribing Comic Con interviews by then.
Faithfully submitted,
Mr. Beaks
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+ Expand All
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I haven't liked that guy's work since CHRISTMAS VACATION. And that was a long time ago. Let him go.
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When I was 6...
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and you're not. Which means you must not be a "first-class asshole"
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awesome. Seriously
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He does seem like a dick but I'd still like one more Clark W. Griswold movie. Hawaiian Vacation maybe?
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Good shit.
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Yeah, me neither.
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I mean he was pretty good on SNL and his movies with Goldie Hawn and the Vacation movies (the first 2)were solid funny flicks. He was also good in Fletch and a few other movies. It all started crumbling around him when his late night show was a disaster and also that Howard Stern incident made him seem like a dick even though Howard has 0 talent and was also being a dickhead. Now that Howies an old man and is marrying that horse faced hag he will be treated much like most people treat Imus.
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Chevy Chase rocked. We NEED him back in the world of comedy.
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..I'm sure Chevy Chase could do some good work still. And what's up with Midnight Meat Train?!!
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And I thank god every day for that.
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Dan Aykroyd was the one who said Jane you Ignorant slut.
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Last thing Chevy Chase was in where he was funny was Dirty Work, tried watching Funny Money but it was too atrocious to watch more than 10 minutes of it.
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Jul 31, 2008 6:27:32 PM CDT
"I'll have a Bloody Mary, a steak sandwich, and...a steak sandwi
by la_sith
WAS great. Now absolutely sucks dick. Reduced to guest spots on Brothers and Sisters. Why? No longer on drugs and NOT FUNNY ANYMORE.
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not the movie but his part, of course. there's a snapshot of the 3 guys from this sex movie in ew's comic con coverage and in it clark duke looks like "it's pat". he seems like a cool guy though.
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... in terms of overall talent. They were both mediocre, yet they had one signature gag. Chevy fell off of things, Kevin does that long outdated "subliminal" gag. Maybe they could team up and do a Mediocre SNL Star Reunion film.
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My respect for this guy has just grown tenfold! I implore all of you guys who aren't familiar with his music check him out.
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actually everyone was great in that excellent movie!!!!!!!
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that's Dan Ackroyd
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I can live without Chevy.
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Just sayin'
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Chevy Chase is essentially gone.
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"He's not gonna pork her Russ...he may porrk her, Russ."
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That was 'pork' not 'porrk'. What the fuck is 'Porrk'?! Could be some cheap ass imitation-mystery-meat-pork-substitute like Spam.
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Get him down to a lean, mean 270lbs and he's still got it going on (otherwise he'll only be good for the John Candy biopic).
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when aykroid and chase rule. They were awesome, but now they are doing shit like snowday and loser. I think sandler is trying to save aykroid, but chevy is all alone. I'm a mexican i dont know what happen with stern, aomeone please explain me, thanks
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thanks
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The original National Lampoon's Vacation and Fletch are two of the funniest comedies ever made. The scene in Fletch where he hijacks the toast to Fred "The Dorf" Dorfman is genius. If Adam Sandler or some other other one of today's lowbrow twats tried to do that scene, they wouldn't know what to do to make it funny, and would fall back on tired crap like talking in a foreign accent or screaming. We want CHASE!
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Looks ehhh alright
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As what? A prop?
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After his talk show bombed (actually you can go a step back - the failure of Memoirs of an Invisible Man, which signaled to him that folks didn't want to see him act or do something slightly more serious), he just phoned it in. The irony is, a few of his post talk show movies were hits - Snow Day, Man of the House... but they sucked and were for kids. Someone get him a Bucket List style comedy that embraces his age and he will be back.
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I saw him live about a year ago and he's pretty damned funny.
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I will be the first to admit that Chevy is WAAAAYYYYY past his prime. The dude should just retire and go away. He's such a prick and unless he's funny, it's just not worth having him in the spotlight.
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for anyone to talk about resurrecting anyone's career but their own... seriously, he's basically saying he's got the power to do shit. you made a movie. congrats. now go make a few more then call back after you grow some pubes.
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Chevy Chase had a great run but dug his own grave career-wise. Watch "Funny Money" if you can find a copy and then look me in the metaphorical eye and metaphorically tell me that Chevy Chase is fit to act. Plus, something about the aging process has totally washed away any trace of the bad boy Fletch persona and replaced it with something wobbly and unfunny.
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But James Marsden's kick to the garage was.
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Cmon it's like bad form not to release a red band trailer now.
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Why, he's not fit to do anything at all but receive acclaim for his dramatic work, make 9-figure-grossing films and create a production company to keep his less-successful SNL buddies from going hungry. What a jerk!
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Chevy should replace Michael Caine in the next Batman. That would make it really scary.
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What about him putting some snazz into the character of Dumbledore?
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ok maybe a little...I think Chevy has the possibilty of making a comeback, but it'll have to be with someone who knows how to embrace his presorna, who gives him something to work with and who actually directs him. Look ath the directiors who gave him his great performances, Ritche, Rietman, et alWhat Chase needs is a Bill Murray style comeback where some young smart director who knows how to tap into him can work with him (Anderson to Murray) or some indie director with some cred and intelligence (Jarmush to Murray), that is what Chevy needswhat disturbs me more in this article was the stement, "yeah I pretty much rewrote my whole part by riffing" and the assertation that this was going to be the next "method acting", basically what this guy is saying is, "I'm smarter and funnier then the writer" whilst studing drama one thing my professor always told us was don't go off the script you haven't earned it. If the writer is on set and says "hey that's a good idea" it's a good thing, when the writer gets ignored then it has the possibilty of being a disasterwith Aptow and crew it works because most of the time the writer is either the director or star or supporting actor in the movie, that's fine they can control it a little more.I guess my fear is someone is going to get the bright idea to remake the Odd Couple and decide it's ok to riff on Neil Simon or something. And no, scripted comedy isn't dead, nor is broad comedy, people still like seeing other people getting hit in the balls (see the continunted success of America's Home Videos and the ___ Movie(s)) and I'm sorry if Woody Allen decided to make another scripted comedy then it's probably going to work
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The NRFPTP never had the solidarity that the Pythons did; they made movies with 2-3 of them together, but they never saw themselves as a team like the Pythons. If they weren't all so old - and some so dead - I would be up for a NRFPTP "Meaning of Life" type movie with a bunch of skits strung together with an underlying thread.
And fuck Seth Green - how did this guy ever get into the movies?
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