Golden Globe® winner Colin Farrell (2009, Best Actor – Comedy, In Bruges) leads an all-star cast in the comedy SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS, available January 29th on Blu-ray™ and DVD with UltraViolet™ from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and CBS Films. Directed by Academy Award®- winning writer/director Martin McDonagh, the film follows a Hollywood screenwriter and his oddball friends, who all end up embroiled in an outrageous kidnapping scheme gone wrong. The acclaimed cast includes Sam Rockwell (Iron Man 2), Woody Harrelson (The Hunger Games), Academy Award® winner Christopher Walken (1978, The Deer Hunter, Best Actor in a Supporting Role), Tom Waits (The Book of Eli), and Abbie Cornish (Limitless).
Winner of the People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival, SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS also features Olga Kurylenko (Quantum of Solace), Michael Pitt (TV’s “Boardwalk Empire”), Gabourey Sidibe (TV’s “The Big C”) and Harry Dean Stanton (TV’s “Big Love”). The film also received two FIND Spirit Awards nominations for Best Screenplay and (McDonagh) and Best Supporting Male (Rockwell).
The Blu-ray and DVD both come with six featurettes. “Martin McDonagh’s Seven Psychopaths” features the cast talking about both the story and director McDonagh’s vision for the film. “Colin Farrell Is Marty” features Farrell discussing his character from the film, while “Woody Harrelson Is Charlie” focuses on Harrelson’s character. “Crazy Locations” highlights the various filming locations in LA and the Mojave Desert. “Seven Psychocats” is a re-made trailer featuring a cast of seven “psycho-cats,” in which the cast is replaced by cats. “Layers” is a video mash-up of the film set to a rap beat.
From Oscar®-winning writer and director Martin McDonagh comes a star-studded, blood-drenched, black comedy. Marty (Farrell) is a struggling writer who dreams of finishing his screenplay “Seven Psychopaths” and all he needs is a little focus and inspiration. Billy (Rockwell) is Marty’s best friend, an unemployed actor and part time dog thief, who wants to help Marty by any means necessary. Hans (Walken) is Billy’s partner in crime, a religious man with a violent past. Charlie (Harrelson) is the psycho-pathetic gangster whose beloved dog Billy and Hans have just stolen. Charlie is unpredictable, extremely violent and wouldn’t think twice about killing anyone or anything associated with the theft. Marty is going to get all the focus and inspiration he needs, just as long as he lives to tell the tale.
The film was produced by Martin McDonagh, Graham Broadbent (In Bruges) and Peter Czernin (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel). Its executive producer is Tessa Ross (127 Hours). It has a run time of approximately 109 minutes and is rated R for strong violence, bloody images, pervasive language, sexuality/nudity and some drug use.
Blu-ray and DVD Bonus Material:
• 6 Featurettes:
o “Martin McDonagh’s Seven Psychopaths” o “Crazy Locations” o “Woody Harrelson is Charlie” o “Colin Farrell is Marty” o “Layers” o “Seven Psychocats”
2012 was full of memorable movie moments. Moments that moved us, made us think, inspired laughter & tears and moments that surprised. When was the last time Christopher Walken really moved you? When has a Bond film looked so amazing? Were you also concerned when you heard about the casting of Anne Hathaway in both the new Batman movie and LES MISÉRABLES, one of the most beloved musicals of all time? And when was the last time you knew the outcome of a fact-based film but were on the edge of your seat during the climactic scene nonetheless? And what movie moments charmed you the most from 2012 and which ones will you remember for years to come?
In a countdown to 2013, here are some of my memorable moments and I believe at least a couple of yours:
Jack Black’s Music Man bit in BERNIE.
Tommy Lee Jones’ words on the Senate floor in LINCOLN.
Two stellar supporting turns from an actor that I don’t like: Matthew McConaughey (BERNIE/MAGIC MIKE).
Christopher Walken’s understated and touching performance in SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS.
Leonardo DiCaprio’s dinner scene monologue in DJANGO UNCHAINED.
Roger Deakins’ cinematography in SKYFALL.
Anne Hathaway exceeding (low) expectations as Catwoman/Fantine (THE DARK KNIGHT RISES/LES MISÉRABLES).
Robert De Niro and Bradley Cooper’s attic scene in SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK.
The re-enactment & last 20 mins. of ARGO.
The re-enactment & last 45 mins. of ZERO DARK THIRTY.
The return of Sam Jones as Flash Gordon in TED.
Norman getting ready for school in PARANORMAN.
Undeniable chemistry between cinematic pairings of Andrew Garfield/Emma Stone (THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN), Daniel Craig/Judi Dench (SKYFALL), Jennifer Lawrence/Bradley Cooper (SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK) and Jamie Foxx/Christoph Waltz (DJANGO UNCHAINED).
Ang Lee’s masterful use of a cgi tiger in LIFE OF PI.
And I will always remember that Hushpuppy lived with her father in the Bathtub.
From great documentaries to sweet indies to big studio movies, 2012 was one of the biggest years ever. It will be remembered for the reinvention of musicals with Tom Hooper’s LES MISERABLES, the meet-and-greet of horrifying engineers in Ridley Scott’s PROMETHEUS and the toppling of an empire in Lauren Greenfield’s QUEEN OF VERSAILLES.
There was no shortage from which to choose from at your local cinemas where superheroes reigned supreme at the box office, animated adventures were welcomed by young and old alike, and favorite characters from the various prequels and sequels were embraced like old friends.
As we head into the new year, some of the most anticipated films of 2013 are Zack Snyder’s MAN OF STEEL, J.J. Abrams’ STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS, Shane Black’s IRON MAN 3, Marc Forster’s WORLD WAR Z, Dan Scanlon’s MONSTERS UNIVERSITY, Gore Verbinski’s THE LONE RANGER, Joseph Kosinski’s OBLIVION, M. Night Shyamalan’s AFTER EARTH, Guillermo del Toro’s PACIFIC RIM, James Mangold’s THE WOLVERINE, Neill Blomkamp’s ELYSIUM, Sam Raimi’s OZ: THE GREAT AND POWERFUL, Baz Luhrmann’s THE GREAT GATSBY, Kenneth Branagh’s JACK RYAN, Alfonso Cuarón’s GRAVITY and George Clooney’s THE MONUMENTS MEN.
In our look back at the year that was, WAMG has compiled our list of the ten best films of 2012.
Honorable Mention – SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS
SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS is the second feature film from writer/director Martin McDonogh and the second to show his prowess with smart, dark comedic material. Once again enlisting Colin Farrell, McDonogh throws Sam Rockwell and Christopher Walken into his alchemy and creates an unexpected yet very satisfying reaction. Much like Charlie Kaufman’s ADAPTATION, SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS blurs the lines of reality and fiction, art as life and vice-versa. The main character, a screenwriter suffering a creative block embarks on a dangerous journey into the mind of psychotic killers to research ideas, unaware that he’s living his next film.
10. SKYFALL
It turns out that it’s always possible to reinvigorate a movie series, even after fifty years and twenty-three installments. Sam Mendes, seemingly the most ill-fitting director for the job, ended up making the newest James Bond the best in years, even decades. With a smart script, terrific cast, and astonishing cinematography from Roger Deakins, SKYFALL mixes the best of traditional Bond elements with a fresh sensibility to make a great statement on what James Bond is, and what he could be moving forward.
9. PARANORMAN
PARANORMAN paid homage to some of the best known horror movies. The creative filmmakers behind the lovable CORALINE brought audiences their second stop-motion animated feature. Nominated for 8 Annie Awards, all the films’ tiny food, sets and characters were given great care down to the minutest detail. Directed by Sam Fell and Chris Butler, PARANORMAN is the story of an outcast boy who can see dead people and talk to zombies – all the while being bullied by the kids at school. We loved that Norman found a loyal pal in the energetic Neil. The movie grabbed us emotionally and we cheered Norman on as he became the hero of the town. A pleasant mix of scares for both the kiddos and their parents, PARANORMAN easily found a place in our hearts and on WAMG’s best of the year list.
8. MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS
2012’s biggest box office earner may also be the most fun popcorn flick of the year. After laying the ground work for this team-up flick since IRON MAN in 2008, Marvel Studios did the unexpected. They handed the reins of this new potential franchise (combining four film franchises) over to relative movie director newcomer and TV wunderkind (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) Joss Whedon (who also had a hand in this year’s delightful fright flick CABIN IN THE WOODS). And did he deliver! Of course there are the big action set pieces (like in the classic comics, the Marvel Superheroes battle when they first meet), but the biggest surprise may be the witty, multi-layered screenplay. Unlike many films that feature a large core cast (X-MEN, STAR TREK), each character truly got a chance to shine, even screen newbie Hawkeye. Perhaps Joss’s biggest coup was finally turning the Hulk into a real movie star after two solo features. Let’s hope we hear the rallying cry of “Avengers Assemble” again at the multiplexes very soon!
7. LIFE OF PI
Based on the best-selling novel by Yann Martel, Ang Lee’s fantastic adventure film centers on a young Indian boy named Pi, who survives a disaster at sea and has to fight for survival aboard a lifeboat for weeks on end with another survivor – a Bengal tiger. This is not the story of a boy and his tiger becoming buddies. This is about a boy fighting to stay alive without starving, becoming dehydrated, and most importantly – being EATEN BY A TIGER. Ultimately, LIFE OF PI also the story of a boy finding faith in God. It is a rousing adventure film with breathtaking visuals and spectacular 3D imagery.
6. ZERO DARK THIRTY
ZERO DARK THIRTY tackles one of the biggest man-hunts in history as its subject… The search for Osama bin Laden. The film follows the search following the unspeakable events of September 11th, 2001 and gives Americans a glimpse into how Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 ultimately found, and killed the most wanted man in the world. Although graphic at times, the film offers suspense, intensity, and fantastic writing. It’s a must see for 2012.
5. DJANGO UNCHAINED
Quentin Tarantino often talks of quitting as a filmmaker, but when he continues to turn out work as vital and alive as DJANGO UNCHAINED, I hope that remains the idle chatter between each recharge of his battery, because his voice is one of the true treasures of modern movies, with this newest, the melding of Blaxploitation and classic Westerns, simply the latest entry in one of the most interesting filmographies today.
4. AMOUR
AMOUR is, as promised by its title, a movie about love. It’s hard to watch, not least because Austrian director Michael Haneke does not intend for the audience to be passive spectators. Rather, he wants us to feel uncomfortable as uninvited guests to the private intimacy shared by long-married couple Georges and Anne. Before we have a chance to feel familiar with them, Anne suffers a stroke that begins the unraveling of her mortal coil. Haneke shows her and Georges’ loss of dignity with dignity. This movie is not an auteur’s opinion of love; it is the offering of an artist who asks us to contemplate what love means to us so that our lives may be enriched.
3. LOOPER
LOOPER is an entertaining science fiction thriller that neatly blurs the line between suicide and murder, it’s a narrowly conceived yarn about victims sent back in time to be bumped off by assassins called loopers. Rian Johnson, in his third feature, keeps the action going while trying to maintain interest in the long arc of a story about Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a man assigned to kill his 30-years-older self (Bruce Willis). LOOPER is mostly set in a seedy metropolis that doesn’t look all that different from sketchy neighborhoods in some big cities today; there are derelicts, bombed-out buildings, ruined cars and enough other signs of urban ills to suggest that, in Johnson’s view, things will just gradually decline over the next three decades. There really is no sense in the time-travel in LOOPER, but no less sense than in any other film in this genre. Johnson makes up for it with narrative force, mesmeric fascination and a sense of a profound taboo being broken.
2. LINCOLN
LINCOLN is a stupendous film. It will later be considered an important film in Spielberg’s career. As a film about a beloved president, it is subtle and power. After reading many books on Lincoln, including ‘Team of Rivals, which this film is partially based on, I think that there has never been a more authentic and realistic portrayal of the president seen in a motion picture. Steven Spielberg’s direction is first-rate and very restrained here. I love his skill with the camera and cinematic visuals, but here he allows the history to shine through! The screenplay stays true and authentic to the period—the 1860’s. I didn’t catch any dialogue that seemed wrong…or a piece of set design, which was glaringly unreal. Historically, nothing egregious appeared in the film that took me out of the story. Daniel Day Lewis is almost supernatural in his ability to transform into a character. He brings the word ‘Art’ into the realm of acting once again, which is cool in a world in which ‘Stars’ without talent who denigrate the craft. As for the subject of the film: Lincoln was a genius, in my opinion, able to show great compassion, but also leadership powers akin to a tightrope walker, able to contain a ‘Team of Rivals’ within his own cabinet; he was very rational, able to tell a witty story one minute and give a beautifully written speech the next. On all these levels, Daniel Day Lewis is able to bring out the most accurate Lincoln I have ever seen. And, from what I’ve read, the voice Daniel came up with for Abe is spot-on and as accurate as it is possible to be. Whether it was Daniel’s role in the brilliant, ‘There Will Be Blood’ or his early performance in ‘A Room With a View,’ this is one hell of an excellent actor. It isn’t just the performance of Abe, either. All the actors, including Sally Field as Mary Lincoln, are perfect. As far as history goes, no piece of dialogue, no part of a set, no performance seemed to betray the 21st Century. This film is almost a time capsule of one of the most glorious, terrible and revolutionary times (The Civil War and the final eradication of slavery) in our country. As a motion picture, I cannot think of a more worthy film deserving of the ‘Best Picture.’ It is super that there are films out there that break the limits of censorship, that entertain us with often-entertaining, weird and offensive subject matter, BUT I also demand that there be ART in motion pictures. I want to know that my interest isn’t just made up of bilious, though fun, garbage. It is wonderful that a serious movie was made so skillfully about a man and subject so important, poignant, brave and vital.
And our number one film of the year…
1. ARGO
ARGOtells the recently-declassified true story of a CIA agent named Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) who concocted and led a scheme involving a fake movie production to get six U.S. embassy workers out of Iran during the Iranian Revolution and the resulting hostage crisis. Mendez is brought on as an advisor and when he learns how bad the CIA’s plan is to extract them, he comes up with an outlandish plan: pass the workers off as members of a Canadian film crew on a location scout for a sci-fi Star Wars ripoff called Argo. Look for solid, funny performances by Alan Arkin and John Goodman. Also directed by Affleck, ARGO is intense with it’s nailbiting ending and hilarious as it pokes fun at Hollywood.
SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS hit theaters over the weekend… (in a funny, bloody, and shock-tastic way), and WAMG, along with a few other members of the press, were invited to sit down and speak with Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell in a round table discussion about the film.
Written and Directed by Oscar winner Martin McDonagh , the comedy Seven Psychopaths follows a struggling screenwriter (Colin Farrell) who inadvertently becomes entangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends (Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell) kidnap a gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) beloved Shih Tzu. Co-starring Abbie Cornish, Tom Waits, Olga Kurylenko and Zeljko Ivanek.
Check out our roundtable discussion here.
Well, you guys have both worked with so many directors throughout your careers. What did you see from Martin’s sensibilities that suited you well in working with him?
Christopher Walken: I don’t know. That would be more of a question for this guy(Points to Sam Rockwell). But no, I like him very much, and they say casting is some big percentage of movies… and I think that’s true. If the casting is right… then you don’t have to work as hard because whatever you are is what they’re looking for. So, I don’t know…I know there’s something about my personality that’s suited for this movie. Just something about Martin’s taste I guess.
On the subject of casting, Mr. Walken, were you always offered the role that you took in Seven Psychopaths or did you look at some of the other roles, too?
Christopher Walken: Nah, there was really one role I could play; I’m much older than the rest of them. I suppose I could have played the Tom’s part… maybe… but it’s better with him.
Or even Woody’s part…
Sam Rockwell: Yeah, that’s the part you’d usually be playing.That’s why it’s genius… that it’s not you in the movie.
Christopher Walken: Yeah, if I was that old and that crazy about my dog… Well… geez! (Laughs) This movie would have ended up an entirely different animal, I think.
Sam, can you talk about your character and his relationship with Colin in the film? A lot of the comedic moments in the film come from the relationship between you guys. What was the approach you both took in fleshing out these characters?
Sam Rockwell: Colin and I had met each other ten years previous, but we didn’t really know each other all that well. Chris and I already knew each other from a play that we did together… so he wanted Colin and I to bond, so… so the three of us all went to Joshua Tree and rented a house there. At one point, we stopped at a rest stop and Colin picked out the bear hat, the one I wear in the movie… yeah, like that one. (Points to the replica hat on the table. He found it and put it on my head so he told me to eat Cheetos and chocolate milk. That might even be in the movie (Laughs). But yeah, I had always thought that while working on it… we were just talking about how Chris was part of the original stage production of “Hurlyburly,” the part that Sean Penn plays in the movie. It was the relationship between that character and Chazz Palminteri’s is very similar to the relationship between Billy and Marty in this movie. The out of work actor and the struggling writer who are sort of co-dependent on each other.
We were talking to Martin about your unusual pronunciation of the word “hallucinogens” in the film… and he wasn’t quite sure if that was how you would normally say it or that was purposeful on your part?
Christopher Walken: Oh- you mean “hallucinogens”. I mean… I come from a time where that’s the correct way to say that word.
Sam Rockwell: You mean British? (Laughs)
You both are known for creating such memorable characters, what for you did you find memorable about these characters in particular?
Sam Rockwell: Wait, can you say that again?
You both are known for playing memorable characters…
Sam Rockwell: Okay, good. I just wanted to hear that part again (Laughs). No but seriously… Thank you.
Christopher Walken: I know what you’re saying. I always get told that by a lot of people who have seen it… but… we’re all kind of in the business in this movie so I’ll be interested to see how regular audiences react. You know, I had to go to the dentist two mornings ago, and when I walked in, the dentist says to me, “Looking forward to October 12th.” I said, “What? What’s happening then?” (Laughs) I knew the movie was opening in October, but then he says to me, “You know, your movie is opening,” and I said, “Oh yeah, right.” So when him and his family go and see the movie, that’s when I can get an impression about this movie. When I’m on the road making a movie in another city, on my day off I always go to the movies. Always.
Sam Rockwell: He saw Puss in Boots while we were making this. (Laughs)
Christopher Walken: I did, I did… I liked it. But… I love going to the movies. You get a ticket… you sit there… and to me it’s very interesting to be around people who aren’t personally invested in you in any way. They’re just going to the movies.
Were there any movies in particular that inspired you with this role, this performance?
Sam Rockwell: I think there were. I actually watched Colin in IN BRUGES a couple of times because I thought the rhythms and the characters were similar. There’s tons of stuff that this guy has done throughout his career. You know, I’m like Spider-Man… stealing things from actors to put in the web arsenal (Laughs). They become like spider webs, ready at any moment. I did watch that documentary GRIZZLY MAN. I thought watching that guy was helpful to watch. Also, Kathy Bates in MISERY. I watched that because her obsession with James Caan…
Christopher Walken: GRIZZLY MAN… that guy was crazy!
Sam Rockwell: Oh yeah… when he talks to the park rangers (Laughs). With bananas or something like that…
Christopher Walken: Disturbing.
Sam Rockwell: But yeah, I actually found that helpful for when I did the play with Martin because my character in that was a nerdier version of Billy. He was a hotel clerk and his character was a bit more like Woody’s character here.
Christopher Walken: You know, there was this desk clerk once where when you’d take the elevator, you’d come to find out that he would go up the stairs and get off on your floor while you’re on the way up. Then he’d follow you down the hall to your room… I just remember that guy so vividly and he reminded me of that character in the play.
Sam Rockwell: Oh yeah; that character, again, was more like Woody’s character or like Ralph Fiennes in IN BRUGES. The gasoline… the whole thing… and a suitcase of cut off hands.
Christopher Walken: I said to Martin once in rehearsal, “How did you ever come to write a play about a guy who goes around with a suitcase filled with cut off hands?” and he said, “You know, I was just sitting there one day and thought to myself, ‘I wonder what it would be like for a guy who went all over the place with a suitcase filled with hands.'” It’s as simple as that.
What did you guys find to be the most surprising aspect of the script?
Christopher Walken: The whole thing is surprising; whenever you read a script that has big chunks of intelligent and juicy dialogue, you know… that’s pretty unusual. I have a lot of trouble with scripts, I have a lot of trouble imagining things while I’m reading them. Sometimes if you’re lucky before you start shooting the actors will sit around a table and they read the script out loud. For me, that’s a big moment because no matter how many times I read a script before I get there, I can’t see it. But the moment that I get there, that’s when I finally can see it.
Obviously, this was a terrific script but I couldn’t imagine it.
Mr. Walken, you just mentioned those juicy bits of dialogue; is that something specifically you seek out? So many of your performances have these… these really great dialogues.
Christopher Walken: You always look for good stuff. What I meant when I said that was that very few scripts have that kind of focus on what people are saying. Movies can be a lot of things, but they’re usually not about dialogue; you know, the kind of dialogue that tells you where you are and where you’re going.
But you don’t get really smart, fun stuff to say all that often.
Sam Rockwell: Fun stuff to say? Yeah, but I think good material seeks him out because he’s so good at those monologues. Like BILOXI BLUES… TRUE ROMANCE… PULP FICTION… with the watch shoved up the… Man, he’s great at that.
Christopher Walken: Yeah, but there aren’t a lot of screenwriters who do that.
Sam Rockwell: Oh I know they don’t do that, but when you have a specialty… and you’re good at that… so they find you. That’s no accident.
Christopher Walken: Yeah, I suppose that’s true, but I’ve also made four studio movie musicals over the years… and these days they just don’t make those kinds of movies now. If you’re an actor and you can tap dance a little bit, you can be in that movie.
Since SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS is about to hit theaters (in a funny, bloody, and shock-tastic way), WAMG, along with a few other members of the press, had the opportunity to sit down with writer/director Martin McDonagh in a round table last week.
Written and Directed by Oscar®-winner Martin McDonagh , the comedy Seven Psychopaths follows a struggling screenwriter (Colin Farrell) who inadvertently becomesentangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends (Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell) kidnap a gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) beloved Shih Tzu. Co-starring Abbie Cornish, Tom Waits, Olga Kurylenko and Zeljko Ivanek.
Check out our roundtable discussion here.
So, you know, what is the attraction to psychopaths, killers and rabbits?
Martin McDonagh: Ahh… Rabbits? That’s the definite one, I love them (laughs). Psychopaths and killers… not so much. I guess I share Colin Farrell’s character’s feelings towards psychopaths and violent people in the film. That I know how cinematic they are and how interesting films can be with them, but kind of question… question the morality of only having films about guys with guns. So… it’s that, playing those two ideas off each other is my interest in them. Also, I was thinking about this the other day, if you’d written a film called “Seven Accountants” you wouldn’t really get much interest. (Laughs)Christopher Walken wouldn’t be quite the same in that part. (Laughs)
As a demented IRS agent maybe…
Martin McDonagh: There you are. That could be… but they all are…
This movie operates on so many different meta levels. I’m curious, was this the story you set out to actually write from the beginning?
Martin McDonagh: Yeah, this is exactly how it kind of developed. There wasn’t a time when it was just the central story and I was looking out for it. No, I think I had the Quaker’s psychopath as a short story, and then I had the title of this, and then I was stuck with Colin’s character and didn’t know how to come up with the others, but wanted it to be about love and peace, then his two friends show up and the dog thing it just kind of snowballed and snowballed. It kind of developed naturally like that and then the meta things came. If you’re writing a film that’s about a writer in Hollywood that doesn’t want to write a film called “Seven Psychopaths” it’s going to be meta no matter what you do.
You’ve got great theatrical staging with the production itself. Did that come into play to aid you as a director stepping behind the camera?
Martin McDonagh: I saw IN BRUGES more that way. That’s basically three characters walking around a stage. The stage being Bruges. But this, I felt , I felt like I had gotten away from that a little bit. That it was broader and… you couldn’t… there were only a few scenes set in a room, you jump to the desert then… I’m not sure. There’s a lot of, it’s dialog heavy like the plays and like BRUGES, and I like that, but I think it’s more cinematic than the last one. So, I see more of the cinema of it. Also, jumping back and doing the short stories, I don’t think you could ever do that on stage.
Were you actively trying to move away from a play feel?
Martin McDonagh: Um, I think just in writing the scripts I’m trying to be as cinematic as I can on film, that you couldn’t do on stage. I think more and more you I’ve gone in that direction. I mean, I’m gonna go back to writing plays too. I think the difference between the two are becoming more and more polarized. If it’s a story and it’s going to be basically set in a room, it’s going to be a play. If there are going to be rabbits and dogs and stuff, (Laughs) then it’s going to be a film.
You’ve worked with Colin before. How much of the cast did you have in your head as you were writing this?
Martin McDonagh: As I was writing, none of them really. It was actually written seven years ago; just after I wrote the script for IN BRUGES before I made the film. I mean, I’ve loved all the actors in this from a long time ago. Maybe Sam Rockwell; sometimes I write with Sam’s voice in my head because I love him as an actor and I love the way he can go from comedy to darkness on a dime. But, no… I never dreamed I’d be in a place where I’m doing a film with Christopher Walken or Tom Waits or Harry Dean Stanton, ever. But, I did a play with Sam and Christopher about 3 years ago in New York, so I knew them. Woody I met like 10 years ago because he’s kind of a theater guy too; we almost did a play together in fact. And Tom Waits, we almost wrote a musical, a kind of fucked up musical kind of thing, which we might go back to.
So, like first day of shooting was like family, was like a little revery company of people I knew, so it wasn’t as terrifying as working with a cast this big might appear to be first.. It was fun every day on set. I think it’s kind of palpable in the film how much fun we were all having. No one was heavy or starry; there were no issues from anyone.
As a writer, when you have Christopher Walken saying the words you wrote, and he has such an interesting cadence in the way that he delivers his lines, are you constantly surprised? Like, are you “you know, I had a period there?”
Martin McDonagh: It’s the periods and the commas that you forget about. (Laughs) But question marks, it’s… But then conversely, he sticks… like I said, we did a play together, he sticks to, he memorizes the script word for word like six months beforehand. And the words never change. The intonations change. You can never dream that a line or a word even could be pounced in that way, like “hallucinogens” how he does. Where does that come from? But it’s still the words you wrote, you know, so there’s a joy and a surprise to all that kind of stuff. And now, you know, like after the play and after this, I can’t imagine any other way to say those lines. Like “hallucinogens” is not funny on the page, but he says it like that and it’s funny. It’s crazy, and he’s the only one in the world, really, that can do that I think.
Does he do something like that intentionally, or is that just how he pronounces it?
Martin McDonagh: Um, I think you’ll have to ask him, but I don’t think that’s how he… I think he knows how screwed up that stuff is. (Laughs) How can he not. Yeah, I’m pretty sure… because if it is an accidental thing, I think it would be different on each take, and it’s not. It’s always deliberately wrong on each take. So, yeah. But I’ve learned the trick. The next time if I want him to ask a question, I won’t put a question mark there because he’s going to do the opposite of everything. And if I don’t want it to be a question, I will put a question mark there. But don’t tell him that. (Laughs).
There’s quite a lot of humor throughout this. How important, because this story couldn’t have been told without this kind of humor… How important was it to interject those beats of humor throughout?
Martin McDonagh: Um, very much. Most of my work is that way. Like IN BRUGES was probably more sad and melancholic than this is, but it’s still hopefully very funny throughout. This is almost more fun than… this was always a comedy, a black comedy on the page, but I think it’s come out as more outrageously funny because of the actors. It’s the way I kind of think about the world and the way I like to tell stories. I don’t think you should get too heavy, but there’s enough out there in the world, with violence et cetera that you should question. So, I think that comedy leavens the heaviness of talking about those topics. It doesn’t feel like you’re preaching if you can say something in a joke, which is where this film is coming from.
Because you wrote this way back before you did IN BRUGES and stuff, did those experiences affect the script at all?
Martin McDonagh: Not so much in that way really. If they did it was just about tightening scenes up and feeling like you didn’t have to go on ad infinitum. I think, like, the editing process of a film is quite shocking as to how much you can easily get rid of that you never thought you could on the page. Conversely, when we started shooting I, you know, had trimmed it down, and I thought “Well, there’s not a scene that we can lose from the script.” So we shot every scene. But again, in the editing process loads and loads of scenes were cut. There’s probably like 25 minutes of material cut from the first cut of this which will probably end up in the DVD extras. But, like when they go to the desert, there’s another 20 minutes of really fun scenes but it just slowed everything down. It really was like the film was put on pause and they were just chatting in the desert. You can do that for a little bit, and we do that for a little bit, but you’ve got to get Woody back, and set him so strongly. So no, in script terms it didn’t change much after IN BRUGE but I guess I did learn how to work with actors from my experiences making that film which is ideal for something like this.
Talk a bit about the casting, and not to go into too many spoiler territories, but there are a lot of really small parts played by fantastic known actors. I’m curious about that choice and also the casting those parts.
Martin McDonagh: Ahh, yeah. Well, the… Olga and Abbie… Their parts work… there was probably more to their characters both on the page, and we shot at least four extra scenes with them. But the focus in the edit of the story became more about, um, Colin and Sam’s love affair (Laughs) Their story, being as their… and particularly with Abbie’s character being as there was more about their break up and his alcohol problems in relation to her, but it just… That wasn’t what this story was about. So it wasn’t an intentional…
But even Michael Pitt and Michael Stuhlbarg…
Martin McDonagh: That was different. That was just that first scene. I wanted to, for the audience, and we haven’t really publicised this much that they are in the film, so as an audience member you should go “Oh, fuck. I didn’t realize they were in the movie!” BANG. They’re not in the movie. Harry Dean was just a dream to get him to play that part, and we screened it in San Francisco I think, and we haven’t really advertised too much that he’s in it, and it was a first ever audience and he popped up and everyone went “Ah, Harry Dean’s in it!” and it was good, that’s what we were going for. He was ideal. I never thought in my wildest dreams I’d one day make a film with Harry, Christopher and Tom Waits. Like, when I was ten, they were icons of American cinema and music, so that was kind of joyful.
Now, working with animals always presents a challenge in and of itself, but on top of the multitude that you have, you’re also shooting out in the desert… in some protected areas out in Joshua Tree. What kind of challenges did all of those combinations present for you as a director, and for Ben Davis, your cinematographer when planning out what you were going to do?
Martin McDonagh: Um, the animals were, honestly they were a dream. Bonnie the dog was, maybe you’ll meet Bonnie later, is lovely, and quiet as a mouse. I mean, was quiet then, and there was never a peep out of her. It’s like she was on marijuana or something. (Laughs) Which would make two cast members… um… (Laughs) Kidding! Um, and the rabbits were great. And the desert was freezing cold for all of the night shoots. Like, minus 16 for half of the night shifts, and there were a lot of nights in the desert. But, we shot one day in the Joshua Tree National Park itself, because as you said, there were so many restrictions on what we could do there, that we had to find places that looked very similar where you could explode a car, or have a car chase, or um, have a gun fight. So, um Ben Davis was fantastic and I think the film looks beautiful. And that’s all due to him really. We storyboarded an awful lot before we started, I did like six months before we started prep even, but that kind of got my head around the whole desert shoot out.
You selected to shoot on film and not go digital with this. Was there a particular reason for that?
Martin McDonagh: I’m kind of old school. I just think it looks better. Until it’s proven beyond a reasonable doubt that digital looks better… I don’t think digital really speeds things up and I definitely don’t think it looks better. I don’t think it’s cheaper yet, when you add in all the extras that you need. So yeah, I just think film looks better.
There is a great scene where Sam is going on his explanation of the story, and it felt like Chris Walken and Colin were a test audience for him. It got me kind of thinking, being the writer, being the director, were there things from your own experiences that you kind of got to pepper in?
Martin McDonagh: Not so much, but that was probably one of the most fun scenes to do because it’s about a 10 minute monologue… And Sam had it off by heart. I actually went around, and we had about two weeks of rehearsal before we started, and I went around to he and his girlfriends house… and he acted out the whole thing, you know, from start to finish. He was getting down on the floor to get shot, and was coming back up. Just watching it, I was in hysterics. It had kind of been written that most of that was going to be voice over. So, we were going to film all of the actual cemetary shoot out, and you’d hear bits and pieces of it and you’d see a couple images of Sam doing that, but it was so good… you didn’t want, you could have just had the camera on him, and Colin, and Christopher’s reactions. That would have been equally valid. But, because he was so good, it’s kind of half and half now. We’re back with Sam just as much as we are in the cemetary. I think the good thing about the cemetery was continuity didn’t matter. It didn’t matter if it looked stupid, or fake, or phoney because it’s Billy’s idea of the ending. So it didn’t matter if it’s completely over the top, or bordering gratuitus, but it’s not me… it’s Billy.
Was the Walken gag coming out of the coffin in the script, or was that something you guys did on set?
Martin McDonagh: It was kind of a vague thing in the script but one of those things when I was storyboarding it I thought, “That would be a good idea.” We didn’t tell Christopher about it until the night and I was kind of dreading it. We built the coffin and it was like 1 in the morning for him to see it and I was hoping, “God I hope he thinks it’s okay.” We had the stuntman show him it was completely safe. I said, “Chris, do you think you could…?” “Yeah, cool!” We did it in one take, so he had to come up, boom, and the squibs went off perfectly. It was one of the most joyful bits. We showed it to him back at the monitor and he just smiled when he saw the bloody heads and how cool he looked. It’s one of my favorite images from the film, I think.
On the subject of the cemetery shoot, and feel free to call me crazy… I could have just been seeing things, but did I see that it said “Rourke” on one of the gravestones? (LAUGHS ALL AROUND)
Martin McDonagh: Um yeah, we just happened to be filming in a graveyard that happened to be full of Rourke’s. (Laughs)
So, should I press further bout that situation…
Martin McDonagh: You’re the first one who’s spotted it… so, um… That’s your scoop. (Laughs)
IN BRUGES received such a great critical reception and the film has found its fans throughout the years. I’m curious, was there a degree of pressure on you following that up?
Martin McDonagh: No, I’m really lazy anyway (laughs). After Bruges, I just kind of went off and traveled. I wrote a play and we did it in New York and that’s where I got to work with Sam and Christopher the first time. I remember saying to Colin, “It’s going to be three years at least before the next one.” I think he believed me, but his people were thinking “But this movie is a success; why would you do that?” But it’s going to be the same after this one, too. I’m just going to travel and write and grow up.It doesn’t feel like four years since the last one. I think it’s more so I won’t get burned out. This was an enjoyable experience to do. I can’t imagine doing them back to back… because pretty much, this has been two solid years working on this, at least a year and a half since I started checking out locations here and finalizing the script and it was exactly, i think, a year ago this month that we started shooting and the editing has been almost every day since then. So, yeah, it’s not like it’s hard work… like a coal miner or a nurse or something… but it’s concerted work, and I don’t like concerted work (laughs). So, I do have a script that’s ready to go for the next one… but I just know it won’t be ah… for a while, but I’m fine with that.
And will you direct the next one yourself?
Martin McDonagh: Yeah. Yeah. If I can be bothered. (Laughs).
Do you see yourself directing someone elses…
Martin McDonagh: No. No… because it takes so much time… I think, you’ve only got so many stories to tell and you should just stick to your own stuff. And I feel confident that I can keep coming up with stories and…
At the end of the day, what have you personally taken away from the experience of making this film.
Martin McDonagh: Well, I think after In BRUGES, like… I was really happy with how it went, but I did think it was kind of hard work… but after this, it felt more fun than, and we had an awful lot of fun on BRUGES too, but I feel like I love working with actors , coming up with… I just like working with actors and coming up with… I wouldn’t have dreamed of working with these kind of actors. And now, I know them, and they like how it’s turned out, and as far as our relationship turned out, it was good and I know they’d be happy to come back and do more stuff with me. So, that’s the main thing I think I’ve taken from it.
The La Brea Tar Pits of Southern California are a long way from St. Louis, MO. You can imagine my surprise when Bonny arrived on the front porch in a little pet carrier. This girl has seen better times – and on the Red Carpet! The canine star of CBS Films’ SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS attended the film’s Midnight Madness screening at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.
Costello’s “I NEED YOUR HELP PLEASE” plea fell on deaf ears once my pups, Dutch and Sally, saw there was a new pooch on the scene and gave Bonny the once-over sniff. I tried telling them she was not a chew toy.
Rest assured Charlie Costello – Bonny will be here. *Cough* Stockholm Syndrome *Cough*. Waiting and resting comfortably. Guess the Man and Dog massages you mentioned over on Twitter for Columbus Day will just have to wait. https://twitter.com/PsychoCostello
Before you see the film next weekend – and you’ll really want to as it has one of the best final standoffs on film – check out this behind the scenes video with director Martin McDonagh and stars Colin Farrell, Christopher Walken, Sam Rockwell, Abbie Cornish and the great Woody Harrelson. I’m a huge fan of IN BRUGES, another of McDonagh’s films. Starring Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, the movie scored a BAFTA award and saw an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
Written and Directed by Oscar®-winner Martin McDonagh, the edgy, clever comedy SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS follows a struggling screenwriter (Colin Farrell) who inadvertently becomes entangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends (Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell) kidnap a gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) beloved Shih Tzu. Co-starring Abbie Cornish, Tom Waits, Olga Kurylenko, Gabourey Sidibe and Zeljko Ivanek, the film hits theaters October 12th.
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Written and Directed by Oscar®-winner Martin McDonagh , the comedy Seven Psychopaths follows a struggling screenwriter (Colin Farrell) who inadvertently becomesentangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends (Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell) kidnap a gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) beloved Shih Tzu. Co-starring Abbie Cornish, Tom Waits, Olga Kurylenko and Zeljko Ivanek.
Woody Harrelson and Christopher Walken. Photo Credit: Chuck Zlotnick
Check out the latest red band trailer for Academy Award winner Martin McDonagh’s (IN BRUGES) – SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS – in theaters October 12, 2012. The film stars Woody Harrelson, Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Tom Waits, Christopher Walken, Olga Kurylenko and Abbie Cornish.
A screenwriter (Colin Farrell) struggling for inspiration for his script, SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS gets drawn into the dog-kidnapping scam of his oddball friends Billy (Sam Rockwell) and Hans (Christopher Walken). When a psychopathic gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) Shih Tzu goes missing, Marty finds he has all the inspiration he needs, as long as he can live to tell the tale.
Action-packed thrillers, nerve-wracking chillers and pitch-dark comedies will bewitch audiences at the Toronto International Film Festival®, with a Midnight Madness programme chock full of shocking and rocking cinematic experiences. Nine world premieres stack this slate of international works programmed by Colin Geddes, guaranteed to awe even the most devoted genre fans.
“Audiences clamouring for this highly anticipated lineup can expect wild rides and crazy adventures into the most chimerical and wicked worlds imaginable,” said Geddes, TIFF Programmer. “Expect everything from outrageous horror comedies to mock-doc ecoapocalypse thrillers, featuring trans-dimensional bugs, lewd Catholic priests, meat monsters and dog-napping psychopaths that will animate the Ryerson Theatre when the clock chimes 12.”
The Midnight Madness selection includes films from Don Coscarelli (Phantasm, Bubba Ho-Tep), Academy Award® winners Martin McDonagh (In Bruges) and Barry Levinson (Diner, Rain Man), JT Petty (The Burrowers, S&Man) and heavy-metal horror maven Rob Zombie. Onscreen performances feature Clancy Brown, Abbie Cornish, Colin Farrell, Paul Giamatti, Selena Gomez, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Eli Roth, Tom Waits, Christopher Walken and Karl Urban.
Photo Credit: Chuck Zlotnick
A screenwriter (Colin Farrell) struggling for inspiration for his script, ‘Seven Psychopaths’ gets drawn into the dog-kidnapping scam of his oddball friends Billy (Sam Rockwell) and Hans (Christopher Walken). When a psychopathic gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) Shih Tzu goes missing, Marty finds he has all the inspiration he needs, as long as he can live to tell the tale.
From Academy Award winner Martin McDonagh, writer-director of the acclaimed hitman comedy ‘In Bruges,’ the film will be in theaters November 2, 2012.
Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson and Christopher Walken star in these new images in CBS Films’ SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS.
A screenwriter (Colin Farrell) struggling for inspiration for his script, ‘Seven Psychopaths’ gets drawn into the dog-kidnapping scam of his oddball friends Billy (Sam Rockwell) and Hans (Christopher Walken). When a psychopathic gangster’s (Woody Harrelson) Shih Tzu goes missing, Marty finds he has all the inspiration he needs, as long as he can live to tell the tale.
From Academy Award winner Martin McDonagh, writer-director of the acclaimed hitman comedy ‘In Bruges,’ the film will be in theaters November 2, 2012.
Woody Harrelson and Christopher Walken. Photo Credit: Chuck Zlotnick
Colin Farrell and Sam Rockwell. Photo Credit: Chuck Zlotnick
