Intermission

[Find Your Magali]

Irish equivalent of Magnolia?


From //www.news.scotsman.com...
 
Beauty in the eye of the beholder

JAMES MOTTRAM


WITH the likes of Sam Mendes and Stephen Daldry blazing trails from London's West End across to Hollywood, it's a brave acolyte who follows suit. But, defying the inevitable comparisons, that's exactly what Irish-born John Crowley has done with his stunning debut Intermission, a film that deserves all the success heaped on his peers' American Beauty and Billy Elliot.

While its dark nature may prevent it from achieving the mainstream glory of either, when it made its world premiere in August at the Edinburgh Film Festival, Intermission more than justified the daunting advance word that it was an Irish equivalent to Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia and Robert Altman's Short Cuts.

No wonder 33-year-old Crowley is being heralded by industry insiders as the most exciting prospect to emerge since Mendes, his former mentor at the Donmar Warehouse theatre.

This year he has already steered On An Average Day, starring Woody Harrelson and Kyle MacLachlan, to success in the West End, and last week, his production of Martin McDonagh's play The Pillowman opened at London's National, featuring Jim Broadbent in his first stage work for years.

But it's Intermission - which won four prizes at the Irish Film Awards last month, including Best Director for Crowley - that will really set his career alight.

Based on a dense and devious script by playwright Mark O'Rowe, and featuring an ensemble cast that includes Colin Farrell, Shirley Henderson and Colm Meany, it follows a series of overlapping tales set in Dublin.

The film's title refers to a hiatus in the relationship of shelf-stacker John (Cillian Murphy) and his girlfriend Deirdre (Kelly Macdonald), just one of several dysfunctional unions we get to observe first-hand.

But the film is no dreary social commentary. Bursting with frantic energy, wry humour and a multitude of voices, it might be best described as a romantic comedy-thriller, but even this fails to capture its sparkling originality.

Despite such a diamond-cut screenplay and cast, Crowley found crossing the chasm from theatre a leap almost too great to make. Funding collapsed for the film at crucial moments.

"People were reading the script, and no one would question the talent behind the film, but were unsure of the grimness, the violence and the package as a whole," he says when we meet.

"What kind of film would it be? It's not like Trainspotting - it's not about drugs. It's not Roddy Doyle, or happy-go-lucky Irishmen. They couldn't get around how you would put it in the marketplace."

In particular, claims that the script - notably with Farrell's thuggish character Lehiff - was offensive to women dogged the financing.

"I don't think its misogynist," counters softly-spoken, youthful-looking Crowley. "I think there are characters in it who are, but in a weird way it's quite conservative.

"There's a black-and-white moral universe, but the thing that creates the chaos in it is love. If you fall in love, everything will unravel around you."

It was only after he directed his two American stars in On An Average Day that the money finally fell into place. But such a wait had, at least, given Crowley the opportunity to study Mendes' path closely. "Watching Sam did help me focus my mind - in that I didn't want to go to LA and make an American film like he did."

Brought over to the Donmar some seven years ago to direct a production of Jean Genet's The Maids, after Mendes had seen one of his productions in Dublin, Crowley watched his stablemate falter at the starting gate several times.

"I knew him for maybe four or five years before he did American Beauty, and I watched him go through various projects to the point where he'd almost make them, and then pull out.

"It got to the point where the word was going around that he was the thoroughbred who wouldn't jump the fence. He was attached to two or three that were literally about to get made - but he was right to wait. He wanted to leapfrog over the bad English film phase; he didn't want to make English television.

"But for me, it was different - I was able to go back to Ireland, and find a guerrilla approach to making my film."

Raised in Cork, Crowley began directing plays as a student at the town's university - but freely admits he has always been "in denial" about his love of cinema.

Influenced initially by his film buff elder brother who worked as a set designer in theatre, and later the "very cinematic theatre" work of Canadian Robert Lepage, Crowley notably infused his Donmar version of Sean O'Casey's Juno and the Paycock (which later transferred to Broadway) with a similar vibe, basing the sepia-set design on the Little Italy flashback from The Godfather Part II.

Now waiting for O'Rowe to finish a second script for him to direct - "there was one extraordinary moment in it that sent a chill down my spine", is all he will say about it - Crowley admits he thrives on the pressure working on a film brings.

"You don't have the luxury on a film set you have when rehearsing for theatre. Sam Mendes said the same to me - 'You have to know everything on a film set. You can't bullshit.' And he's right."

[ono]

It's set for a March 19th, 2004 release date according to IMDb.  It appears to have already been screened at Telluride and Toronto back in August, so I'm surprised I haven't heard anything more about it yet.  Still, I'm looking forward to it now, marking my calendar.

[Tictacbk]

Wish this was showing near me, maybe it will eventually.  Anyone see it?

[SiliasRuby]

Irish equivalent of Magnolia?

Roger Ebert Said in his review that I read today that it reminded him of Tarantino's Writing

[MacGuffin]

Trailer here.

[cowboykurtis]

does anyone know if this was shot digitally -- reagardless it looks like shit.

[RegularKarate]

It's shot on 16, but yeah... didn't even finish the trailer... snore

[godardian]

It's shot on 16, but yeah... didn't even finish the trailer... snore

There's Wonderland, though, which was shot on 16 and blown up, and it looked right and actually really beautiful... for the story.

[cowboykurtis]

It's shot on 16, but yeah... didn't even finish the trailer... snore

wasnt a fan of all those lilttle snap zooms. the film as whole just didnt look good -- didnt finish trailer either.

[RegularKarate]

It's shot on 16, but yeah... didn't even finish the trailer... snore

There's Wonderland, though, which was shot on 16 and blown up, and it looked right and actually really beautiful... for the story.

I'm just saying the trailer was boring.

Shooting on 16 can look good.  
Leaving Las Vegas was a 16mm blow-up too and it looked good.

[Just Withnail]

I kinda liked the trailer. Doesn't look like anything earthshattering, though. I'm seeing it next week.

[Chest Rockwell]

It seems OK. The only thing I hated about the trailor was that Irish rendition of Bobby Fuller Four's 'I Fought the Law.'

[mogwai]

It seems OK. The only thing I hated about the trailor was that Irish rendition of Bobby Fuller Four's 'I Fought the Law.'

what are you talking about? that version is so funny!

[BonBon85]

If you pause the trailer at the end it says the "I Fought the Law" cover is by Colin Farrell.

[El Duderino]

"I fought the Lawr and the Lawr won"