FILM 1933: VELVET BUZZSAW

FILM 1933: VELVET BUZZSAW

TRIVIA: When Dan Gilroy was asked by Vanity Fair what he wants audiences take away from the film, he said: "I hope people look at art in a slightly different way. Any time you listen to a piece of music or look at a sculpture or a painting or a film, you realize the artists behind that have invested what I believe to be their creative soul into the work. To me, that's a bit of a sacred thing and I think we've lost that a little bit. I would love it if we could return to that."

Dan Gilroy was struck by the idea for Velvet Buzzsaw after having visited the Dia contemporary-art gallery in Beacon, New York in 2017 and hours after came up with a rough plot. In an interview with Vanity Fair he described: "It was the Tuesday after Christmas, at about 5 o'clock in the afternoon, and no one was there. I was wandering around this huge, empty warehouse with all this rather disturbing contemporary art. And I wound up in the basement in a video installation with, like, dentist chairs and rats running around. And I just thought, 'Man, this would be a great place for a horror movie.' The idea that artists invest their souls in their work and it's more than a commodity--that has always interested me. I suddenly saw a way of incorporating it all, to explore how, when art and commerce are dangerously out of balance, bad things can happen. It clicked very quickly."

After Dan Gilroy's debut film Nightcrawler (2014), as well as his sophomore movie Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017), this is his third feature film set in Los Angeles. Gilroy often praises the city for having such natural beauty to it, and even more importantly, people that have been working there for ages who are all experts on their various crafts.

FILM 1897: BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN

FILM 1897: BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN

TRIVIA: Heath Ledger declined to go to the one month cowboy camp that had been organized, as he had grown up on farms in Western Australia. Jake Gyllenhaal was required to attend, however, as he needed "roughing up".

When asked if he had any fears about playing a gay man, Heath Ledger replied that he was not afraid of the role, only that he wasn't mature enough to do it justice.

According to Producer James Schamus, the movie cost so little to make, that it recouped its cost during its first week of limited release.

Heath Ledger, uncertain about the role when he was first offered it, was encouraged by his then girlfriend, Naomi Watts, to take it, immediately after they both read the script. After reading the script, Ledger said he would have flown to Taiwan to meet with Ang Leein order to be hired for the role.

According to reports, Heath Ledger nearly broke co-star Jake Gyllenhaal's nose while filming a kissing scene.

Writer Annie Proulx sent both Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger an original, autographed copy of her story. When she signed the copy to Jake she wrote "To Jake..." but when she signed the copy she had intended to give to Heath she signed it "To Ennis". After writing out her personal message, she realized what she had done, and decided to let it be. At a private screening at Arclight in Hollywood, California, she reflected that Heath Ledger really was Ennis. She left the signed copy that way, because she had felt the actor embodied Ennis in every way she had imagined him.

Michelle Williams requested that her two male leads kiss in front of her to help her get to the right emotional place for her character, Alma. As she was involved with Ledger in real-life, too, she felt that such a thing would help with her portrayal. She had to goad both men as their first few attempts were far too half-hearted for her liking.

One of Daniel Day-Lewis' favorite films. He cites the reason for this as being Heath Ledger's performance. After Ledger's death, Day-Lewis dedicated his SAG award for There Will Be Blood (2007) to Ledger's memory, mentioning in particular the final scene in Ennis's trailer being "as moving as anything I have ever seen."

There was an audible gasp at the Academy Awards when presenter Jack Nicholson read out Crash (2004) as 2005's Best Film over this film, much fancied. Nicholson himself admitted to being shocked as he too had voted for Ang Lee's film.

During its first weekend of release (playing in only five U.S. theaters), this set a record for the highest per-screen gross of any non-animated movie in history.

Director Ang Lee gave Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal copies of the book, "Farm Boys: Lives of Gay Men from the Rural Midwest", by Will Fellows, a book that had been mentioned by both Annie Proulx and Diana Ossana as an excellent reference source, to help them understand their characters. Noting what he learned from his reading, Gyllenhaal said, "I don't think that these two characters even know what gay is."

In March 2006, Randy Quaid filed a lawsuit against Focus Features, alleging that the company had misled him into thinking that the film was a low-budget, art-house film, with no prospect of making money. He saw this as a ruse to get him to lower his salary. At the time of the lawsuit, the film had earned more than 160 million dollars. Quaid dropped the lawsuit in May, seemingly after Focus agreed to pay him a bonus. Focus, however, denied that any such payment ever took place, and Focus spokeswoman Adriene Bowles was quoted as saying, "the circumstances of him dropping the suit are as mysterious as the circumstances under which he filed his claim."

Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die", edited by Steven Schneider.

FILM 1819: THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW

FILM 1819: THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW

TRIVIA: 20th Century Fox invited a group of scientists to preview the film, to test their reactions to the science used in the film. None of the scientists were impressed with what they saw, although most conceded that the movie was enjoyable nonsense.

The river crossing scene was actually filmed on the US-Mexico border, and the extras really were crossing the Rio Grande into Mexico.

The consultation by NASA scientists was requested before the filming of the movie, but NASA stated that the events in the film were too ridiculous actually to occur, and hence denied the request. NASA sent a memo out to all of its employees stating that they were not allowed to comment on the likelihood of the events portrayed, but later rescinded this restriction.

In 2008, Yahoo! Movies listed the film as one of the Top 10 Scientifically Inaccurate Movies.

Two library-bound survivors ask whether they should burn the works of Friedrich Nietzsche, whose "The Antichrist" states in its preface: "Only the day after tomorrow belongs to me. Some are born posthumously." Part of this line provided this movie's title.

When the camera pulls away from the Earth after the astronaut exclaims "the air is so clear" the image of the Earth is a modified version of the "Blue Marble" picture created by Robert Simmon. The Blue Marble picture is comprised of thousands of satellite photos, and some of the clouds are duplicated. The Apple iPhone uses the Blue Marble picture as the default wallpaper.

FILM 1800: ZODIAC

FILM 1800: ZODIAC

TRIVIA: The Zodiac case was re-opened after the release of the film.

The only real comment that Robert Graysmith said about the finished screenplay was, "God, now I see why my wife divorced me."

The shooting script was two hundred pages long. To prevent any problems with length, that such a long script might cause, Director David Fincher decided to ask his cast members to speak faster.

The producers hired a private investigator to track down the real-life Zodiac survivor, Mike Mageau.

Hair was digitally added to the close-ups of Jake Gyllenhaal's knuckles as he draws or holds letters. David Fincher felt that Gyllenhaal's hands "were too hairless and pretty".

When Mark Ruffalo met David Toschi, the investigator he plays in the film, he was very impressed to learn that Toschi had perfect recall of every detail of every case.

Robert Graysmith and Paul Avery were not actually friends. Their relationship is fictionalized for the film.

David Fincher was always first choice to direct, based on his work on Se7en (1995).

Jake Gyllenhaal shares one of the film's creepiest scenes with Charles Fleischer. In real-life, the two have known each other since Gyllenhaal was three years old.

Anthony Edwards was cast as Armstrong because David Fincher wanted him to be played by a thoroughly decent person. Fincher already knew him, not so much from his work on ER (1994), but because he was a neighbor.

Because he wanted the film to be as accurate as possible, David Fincher decided not to depict any of the alleged Zodiac murders for which there were no surviving victims or witnesses.

In order to save time, David Fincher decided to digitally add all the blood in the murder scenes.

Robert Downey Jr. was so unaccustomed to the experience of both David Fincher's multiple takes, and the process of filming digitally, that he rebelled against David for "having no time to get my shit together in my trailer" by hiding mason jars full of his urine on set.

(At around thirty-three minutes) Dave Toschi, in real-life, was the inspiration for Steve McQueen's performance in Bullitt (1968). In the film, Graysmith mentions that Toschi wears his gun like Bullitt. Avery replies that Bullitt got it from Toschi.

Dermot Mulroney had to wear a fat suit for his few short scenes, because David Fincherfelt he was in far too good shape for his character.

David Fincher's template for the film was Alan J. Pakula's All the President's Men (1976).

South Korean film Director Joon-ho Bong has classified David Fincher's film as a "masterpiece," writing that "There was really nothing to find fault with about it, down to the cinematography, art direction, and action."

Daniel Craig was first choice for Paul Avery.

(At around fourteen minutes) The bar Paul Avery frequents in the film, is called Morti's. Mortis is Latin for death.

Two of the lead actors, Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey, Jr., would go on to co-star in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as The Hulk and Iron Man respectively.

The historical Paul Avery did not withdraw from working at the San Francisco Chronicle to a life of reclusive obscurity, as the film suggests. In 1974-75 he did reportage on the kidnapping of Patricia Hearst which he turned into a high-profile published book, "The Voices of Guns" (1976); he was also married with two daughters, a fact the film does not mention.

FILM 1678: LIFE

TRIVIA: Actress Rebecca Ferguson who plays Dr. Miranda North, British, Quarantine Officer, originally turned down the role. She thought she would not live up to standards. She was nervous and scared. She told it to the producer and was advised to talk with the director of the movie Daniel Espinosa. His philosophy and ideas for the film impressed her and decided to change her decision and eventually take part in the movie.

Second film to be written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick and feature Ryan Reynolds. The first was Deadpool (2016)

FILM 1602: NOCTURNAL ANIMALS

TRIVIA: Focus Features paid $20 million for global distribution rights after a heavy bidding battle in Cannes. This is the highest amount ever paid for a film at a festival.

Based on the book: "Tony and Susan". The book that Tony writes in the book is called "Nocturnal Animals" (so the writer chose that title).

Amy Adams and Jake Gyllenhaal have been cast in another project called 'Ezekiel Moss' which would have been directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman. However, the project was scrapped after Hoffman's death in 2014.

Although he is known as a fashion designer, Ford chose to leave the costuming in the film strictly to the costume designer. Not a single Tom Ford product appears in the film, as Ford "didn't want a commercial."

FILM 1533: END OF WATCH

TRIVIA: As part of their training, Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña spent five months doing 12-hour ride-alongs with on-duty LAPD officers. During Gyllenhaal's first ride-along, he witnessed a murder.

The scene where Janet and Brian are singing in the car during a road trip was unscripted. Jake Gyllenhaal and Anna Kendrick were driving around with the director in the back seat filming different scenes for the movie. At one point between takes, 'Hey Ma' by Cam'ron came on the radio and Gyllenhaal and Kendrick started to sing along and the director began to secretly film them. Both Gyllenhaal and Kendrick were completely unaware that the moment had been caught on camera until they watched the movie at a screening.

Most of the crude banter between Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña was improvised by the two.

The word "fuck" is used 326 times, making it seventh in the all time profanity list. (It has since been pushed down to number 9 – see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_that_most_frequently_use_the_word_%22fuck%22)

After Taylor and Zavala pull over the male in the pickup who tries to shoot Zavala, Taylor holds up four fingers to Orozco when she asks, "Are you good?" This is often used by police to signal "Code Four," meaning "I'm okay; no additional assistance needed at this time."

In the beginning briefing sequence, as the officers get out to their cars, everyone keeps yelling out, "Faster, BOOT" in reference to the rookie officer Sook. In Law Enforcement lingo, "BOOT" is term for a rookie or new officer.

In the trailer when they are speaking Spanish before they drink they say "Arriba, abajo, al centro, y padentro" which loosely translates as "up, down, to the center and inside".