Imagine

[Thelma]

Imagine you are the director, producer and everything of a film which is an adaptation of a book you are reading or of your favourite book. Who would be the actors you would choose to play the part of your favourite characters?
I sometimes can't help doing this imagination exercise while I'm reading a good book. I sometimes say to myself while reading: hmm, Liam Neeson ( or some other actor) would be perfect in this. Have you ever tried to do the casting for the book you are reading? If not, I guess I saw too many movies and my imagination is a bit sick.
For example, I can imagine The Portrait of Dorian Gray with Jude Law as Dorian and Ralph Fiennes as Lord Henry. And so on, almost every book I read has my own casting, what about you?

 

[novella]

I don't do this a lot, but I distinctly remember when I heard Kitchen Confidential (restaurant kitchen memoir by Anthony Bourdain) was optioned for film, I thought "Lou Reed IS Bourdain."

I always have a vivid picture of the character in my head. Sometimes this is tainted by a film of author's earlier work. For instance, can anyone imagine George Smiley as other than Alec Guiness now? Or Rumpole of the Bailey as anyone but Leo McKern (sp?)? Will the real James Bond please stand up? (Sean Connery).

And sometimes I have to reject a movie outright when they get it wrong. Whoever cast William Hurt as Arkady Renko (Martin Cruz Smith's Russian detective) oughta get a new job.

I've had an autobiographical story optioned, so I do think sometimes about who will play ME.

Novella

 

[Martin]

I do think sometimes about who will play ME.

Who'd you have in mind?

I very often think of who could play this and this part. However, I hardly ever come to a definitive conclusion. When I read, I never have a crystal-clear picture of the character - it kinda changes when the situation changes, I guess (it's hard to explain).

Cheers

 

[bobbyburns]

I thought elton john should've played dr. octopus in spiderman 2.

it could've even been a musical.

 

[novella]

Martin,
Yeah, I guess with Bourdain's book there was a definite image because it is true autobio, so you know the guy.

Hollywood is such a limited universe, there are hardly any actors I can think of who I would want to see play my favorite characters.

English actors are so much more diverse, in their abilities, ages, looks, etc. And they are so much more professional, in the sense that they give what the role demands, not what vanity demands. I'll take any actor from the usual English rep over the American pretty-people set.

Think of a middle-aged or older guy who actually can still command good roles and who do you come up with: Michael Caine, Connery, and guys like that. They make Richard Gere look like a shampoo salesman.

Novella

 

[Wabbit]

And you think that Michael ( same face and accent no matter who he plays ) Caine and Mr ( plank of wood ) Connery are good actors

I might have agreed with you if you had picked somebody such as Gary Oldman... but THOSE two??? *giggles* You are joking me, right?

 

[bobbyburns]

novella, c'mon there are plenty of american actors who, in spite of having grown old, can still put on a great performance, like bill murray, robert deniro, harvey keitel, christopher walken, david carradine, jack nicholson, martin sheen, christ, even dustin hoffman (he just hasn't worked with a decent director in years). there are a lot of great english actors too, but I don't think being born there somehow makes them more genetically inclined towards commanding better roles.

 

[novella]

Well outta that list I have to object to deniro, hoffman, and especially Jack. I think all those guys are hackneyed egotists who haven't done anything decent in decades. What is it about Jack Nicholson that gets people so excited? He was good in Easy Rider and 5 Easy Pieces, then he just started playing himself. Ditto Al Pacino.

Walken, on the other hand, is a crack-up. He's my favorite of that list by far. And Bill Murray is irreplaceable. So, yeah, you're right. In fact, even when those guys are bad, they're good. And Harvey Keitel is a pro. Give me him over deniro any day.

I'm not a big fan of Caine or Connery, I didn't mean to give that impression. When I say the English rep I mean guys like Tom Bell, Peter Posthelwaite, Hugh Laurie, John Thaw (Helen Mirren, Zoe Wanamaker)--any one of them can go from Royal Shakespeare to Wodehouse to cop drama and still be worth watching.

 

[bobbyburns]

I thought deniro was priceless in jackie brown.

 

[Martin]

That was due to Tarantino's directing and Leonard's dialogue.

I can only agree with Bill Murray!

Cheers

 

[bobbyburns]

I have the special edition dvd and in one interview tarantino says that deniro pretty much blew his socks off.

 

[Martin]

He's sucking up, as he's known to do.

Cheers

 

[bobbyburns]

if you say so.