Apr 13th, 2004, 01:29 AM
A SKETCH I WROTE: Interviews with Talent: Max Lucas
A Host of a television show sits on the set of his show. He talks to his studio audience.
Host: Hello, and welcome to Interviews with Talent. Tonight we have a film-maker's work that you may not have heard of, but you will. He lists his biggest inspiration as being the 1997 Made-for-Cable-TV movie "Elvis Meets Nixon," based on the historical photograph [The famous Photo of Elvis meeting Nixon appears on screen for a moment] lets take a look at a clip:
[CLIP]
Nixon: Sooo... How about those basketball teams huh?
Elvis: Yeah. How about them.
Nixon: Yep.
Elvis: They're really big, aren't they?
Nixon: Yeah, I heard they're doing well, too. Except that one team from that one place...
Elvis: Oh yeah, that one place! I've been there. It's really warm there. In the warm season, that is.
Nixon: Yeah.
[/CLIP]
Host: Let’s bring him out, Film-maker Max Lucas!
Max Lucas enters, sits down
Host: Oh what a delight it is to have you here. Sir, Mr. Lucas Sir.
Max: Just call me Max.
Host: Max... Tell us about your first feature: "Dewey Defeats Truman"
Max: Well, I had just seen "Elvis Meets Nixon" and I just really loved the idea of recreating historical photos, and I felt I could bring something original to that whole idea of uh... well I just thought I could bring something unique to the whole process. [The famous photo of Truman holding the paper reading "Dewey Defeats Truman" is breifly shown on screen] The first photo that came to mind, naturally, is the photo of Harry S. Truman holding the newspaper announcing his false defeat.
Host: Brilliant, just brilliant. Let’s look at a clip:
[CLIP]
Reporter is off-stage, Truman holds the paper up like in the photo, puts it down then looks at it, still smiling and chuckling to himself
Reporter: President Truman!
Truman: Yes?
Reporter: Sooo... How about those basketball teams huh?
Truman: Yeah. How about them.
Reporter: Yep.
Truman: They're really big aren't they?
Reporter: Yeah, I heard they're doing well, too. Except that one team from that one place...
Truman: Oh yeah, that one place! I've been there. It's really warm there. In the warm season, that is.
[/CLIP]
Host: Yes. Max, let me ask you a question. Did you go to film school?
Max: [Laughs] Well, first of all, I'm no intellectual, all right? I call it MOVIE school.
Host: I'm very sorry Max
Max: Aw, don't be.
Host: So did you go to Movie School?
Max: No.
Host: So tell me about Dewey Defeats Truman’s success. How did it do at the box-office
Max: It has a, uh, cult fan-base.
Host: Brilliant, you're very brilliant, Max. Now tell me about your second film. "Muhammad Ali vs. Sonny Liston" [The photo of Muhammad Ali standing over Sonny Liston appears on screen for a moment]
Max: Ah yes. This movie was ALSO based on a historical photo. I was trying to appeal to the sportsfan crowd; you know so many sports films came out in 1999.
Host: Oh yes, like what?
Max: Well... uh... [Pauses to think] American Beauty. That’s the big one.
Host: Ah.
Max: And I guess this is my attempt to cash in on that craze.
Host: Here's a clip from "Muhammad Ali vs. Sonny Liston"
[CLIP]
Muhammad Ali: They're really big, aren't they?
Sonny Liston: Yeah, I heard they're doing well, too. Except that one team from that one place...
Muhammad Ali: Oh yeah, that one place! I've been there. It's really warm there. In the warm season, that is.
[/CLIP]
Max: I forgot to mention the context, of that clip... in case you aren't familiar with the history behind that photo... they had been fighting before that. just thought I’d make that clear.
Host: So how did this do at the box office?
Max: Well... not as good as "Dewey Defeats Truman" But you know, that should be expected, I guess. The second film is always the hardest, and I've made many second films since then and it gets harder each time.
Host: Now your next film seemed a little unorthodox at the time.
Max: Oh yes... they say third times a charm and I thought I could be ballsy and just go for something really uhh... uh...
Host: unorthodox?
Max: Yes, unorthodox. Though it didn't exactly start out that way.
Host: The film we are talking about is "Goreboth and Doombringer’s Birthday Party" [A photo of two dogs wearing birthday hats is shown on screen] Now, Max, are these your dogs?
Max: actually it turns out they are... see what happened is I THOUGHT I was looking at some photojournalism books, but I was actually looking at some old family albums. I THOUGHT this picture of my dogs birthday party was a historical photo. You can understand my mistake... By the time I realized it wasn't a historical photo I was already a week into production. I thought "screw it, might as well finish it!"
Host: it seems as much of a momentous occasion as any of the other photos you have made films of... tell me, do both of these dogs actually have the same birthday?
Max: Well no, Goreboth, the one on the left, is 2 months older than Doombringer, on the right there. I just celebrate them at the same time you know, to make things easier.
Host: And here's a clip from "Goreboth and Doombringers Birthday Party"
[CLIP]
Two Dogs sit and stare at the camera
[/CLIP]
Max: Dogs don't talk!
Host: And how did this film do at the box office?
Max: This film was actually not released. Which is good and bad. It's the only one of my films that I actually OWN. NO company owns it! But that also means very few people get to see it.
Host: Now after this movie you became depressed. After 1 long week of depression, you finally bounced back with your next film.
Max: yes, I was running out of ideas for photos to make into films, until I found this photo. My eyes just lit up, you know, there seemed to be such an interesting story behind it, and I wanted to tell it.
Host: [The Saigon Execution photo from the Veitnam war is shown breifly] And now a clip from the Max Lucas film: "Saigon Execution"
[CLIP]
Executioner: Sooo... How about those basketball teams huh?
Executed: Yeah. How about them.
Executioner: Yep.
Executed: They're really big aren't they?
Executioner: Yeah, I heard they're doing well, too. Except that one team from that one place...
Executed: Oh yeah, that one place! I've been there. It's really warm there. In the warm season, that is.
[/CLIP]
Host: Now, tell me, how exactly could such a film fail?
Max: Well apparently that picture came from something called the Vietnam War.
Host: Oh so you didn't even know what that picture came from?
Max: Well see, that's not really my style. I like to create stories, but how can I really do that when I have to be true to some stupid history thing, you know?
Host: That would partly be one of the mishaps involved with your next project- entitled "Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy"
Max: Yeah I thought that it was a historical photo, but it turns out that it was actually just a still from another movie...
Host: Did you get sued?
Max: I got very VERY sued.
Host: Let’s look at a clip.
[CLIP]
CLIP REMOVED DUE TO LEGAL REASONS
[/CLIP]
Host: Max, what do you have in store for the future?
Max: I have one more movie on the horizon, and then I'm going to have to call it quits. I'm done with the whole movie business.
Host: This new film, what is it called?
Max: It's based on the famous photo of Billy Idol & Charles Manson meeting each other, and it's titled "Manson with Myself" Look for that in the Summer of 2004.
Host: What do you have planned after that?
Max: I'm going to get into photography, I'm planning on recreating famous films through photographs, more specifically, my films.
Host: Max Lucas it is always a pleasure.
Max: Thank you.
Host: When we come back, Miss Manners is going to show us all the proper way to have a food-fight. I'm the nameless host, keep it here.
|
Linear Mode
