A CONVERSATION ON FILM

BY ALESSANDRA FABIANI

© ALESSANDRA FABIANI 2020

June 1, 2020

As the majority of us are tucked away inside our homes during this cataclysmic pandemic, we have been forced to discover ways to spend our new-found downtime. Time, in general, is something many Americans are not accustomed to having in abundance, let alone at all. Many of us have perpetually insisted that if we had more time we would finish books we started, learn a new language or a new instrument, maybe even take up a regular yoga practice. However one way we have all been spending our time is by watching movies— a lot of them. The modern day accessibility of the medium provides the obligatory social distancing while still allowing us to feel connected. Watching a film is a magnificent way to temporarily suspend ones belief for an hour and a half or more and in doing so, release the stress accumulated from a day of pandemia. The magic of film has continued to entrance Americans for more than a century and shows no signs of stopping. I discussed this phenomenon with my colleagues, director Jay Russell (My Dog Skip, Tuck Everlasting), actress Tracie Thoms (Rent, The Devil Wears Prada), director Matt Porterfield (I Used To Be Darker, Sollers Point), Director of the Maryland Film Office Jack Gerbes and New York City based theatre and film actor Chris Tabet in a conversation about one of America’s favorite pastimes.

Can you name an actor and an actress whose work in film has stood out to you in particular?

JAY RUSSELL: Consistently, I am overwhelmed by Joaquin Phoenix’s work - I’m prejudiced, of course, because I worked with him, but his commitment to a part is unlike anything I have seen. There are so many other actors’ work I love and admire, but Joaq’s work is reliably stunning. As for female actors, particularly given her early work, I have to go with Meryl Streep, who like Joaquin, has an amazing ability to disappear into a part. There are so many moments in her films when I think - that is in no way Meryl, that is another human being - the character.

MATT PORTERFIELD: I’ve always said that Laura Dern is my favorite actress. I think she’s an incredibly versatile and brave performer and I’m happy she’s on such a hot streak of late. To start, I’d recommend all of her work with David Lynch, Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women, the series Enlightenment, and most recently Marriage Story. As far as actors go, I am obsessed with Denis Lavant.

TRACIE THOMS: There are too many to name! Philip Seymour Hoffman and of course Meryl Streep come to mind, but Joaquin Phoenix was pretty stunning in Joker last year.

CHRIS TABET: There are so many actors whose work has stood out to me, and many who I keep going back to for a reminder of why I love Acting. Al Pacino in Dog Day Afternoon…that was one of the movies that made me want to become an actor. Philip Seymour Hoffman in Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead is one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. Daniel Day Lewis, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Nicholson, Anthony Hopkins, Robert De Niro. As for female actresses, I’d have to say Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine and Emma Thompson.

JACK GERBES: I have always loved Al Pacino, especially in his early roles. I can watch him in Dog Day Afternoon over and over again. Probably my second favorite Pacino movie would be Serpico. Back in the eighties, I saw him in “American Buffalo” at Circle in the Square theatre in NYC. Sat in the second row. That was a real thrill.

What was the first film you can recall seeing that made an impact on you?

JAY RUSSELL: Actually, the very first film I saw with my parents probably had the most impact because I loved the entire experience of going to the cinema and watching a story unfold on the big screen. What was that first movie? I can’t remember exactly, but it was probably a Disney comedy of that time, most likely starring Dean Jones or Kurt Russell. But then later, there were many, many films which had an enormous effect on me - an epic like Lawrence of Arabia, or a wry satire like The Graduate, or the sweeping family drama of The Godfather and The Godfather Part II. But it was love at first sight for me with that very first movie.

JACK GERBES: My recollection of the first movie I saw in a theater was Ben Hur with my father. I must have been six or seven and was probably too young to go see it. We sat in the balcony of the Broadway theater in my hometown. I really don’t know why, but watching the chariot race scene and the leper scene with my Dad remains in my memory to this day. I’m sure I must have gone to a Disney film before then, but I really don’t recall. Another movie I remember seeing with him was The Longest Day at a Drive In. Maybe it was the scale of those two movies that made an impression. My Dad was a movie fan, and we used to go to Saturday matinees. When I began working at the film office, he was happy that I was doing “something with the movies”, but he never did understand exactly what I did. Some days I’m not quite sure myself!

MATT PORTERFIELD: I’m pretty sure that Lili, from 1953, starring Leslie Caron and Mel Ferrer, was the first movie I ever saw. It certainly made an impact on me. My Dad used to borrow a 16mm print from the library and a projector from the middle school where he taught and screen it regularly at our house. I loved the music and the characters, the whole “world” of the film. And Mel Ferrer’s character reminded me of my Dad.

TRACIE THOMS: The Wizard Of Oz. It’s still my favorite movie. It made me believe in magic.

Were there any particular films that directly inspired a project you worked on, whether that be in regard to the film performances themselves, the writing or the cinematography?

TRACIE THOMS: Hmmm. This is a tough one. Ok, the cinematography of Carol inspired a proof of concept I worked on two years ago called “Say Goodnight and Go.” The content was inspired by every rom-com known to man.

JAY RUSSELL: Two films that were direct references for me while I was making My Dog Skip were Cinema Paradiso and To Kill A Mockingbird, with a little bit of Old Yeller, and My Life as a Dog in the mix.

MATT PORTERFIELD: I was already studying film when I saw Harmony Korine’s Gummo, but it inspired me to try and tell a story about the neighborhood in Baltimore where I grew up. Pedro Costa’s film In Vanda’s Room was a big inspiration for my second feature Putty Hill, particularly the way he worked with his actors in a controlled but documentary space. And I was thinking about The Chronicle of Anna Magdelena Bach by Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet as a reference for the way we depicted music in I Used To Be Darker.

In your opinion, what is unique about film that theatre does not offer?

JAY RUSSELL: Film offers a layer of distance, which in my opinion, allows one to completely give over to the storyteller. There is something about the psychology of the brain knowing the images are shadows on the wall, which gives the viewer a freedom to become deeply involved because we know it is an image of reality, but not in the room with you. The theater is exciting in a different way because it is live and happening in real time. An actor giving a live performance can evoke a broad range of emotions for the opposite reasons than film. It is the proximity and the reality of it, knowing that this performance is unique, and while there may be similar other performances, it will never be the exact same. That is also incredibly involving, but film has an unique ability to suspend time and place, which theater does not - for me personally.

MATT PORTERFIELD: I think what makes the language of film unique is montage, which allows you to manipulate time and space in a way that you really can’t in the theatre.

TRACIE THOMS: In film you have the opportunity to focus on one part of the story at a time, while in theatre, you have the entire journey every night.

CHRIS TABET: The first thing film offers is accessibility. Films are affordable and available worldwide, unlike Theatre, which claims to be for the people, while simultaneously charging them $150 for a ticket. The second is a real, thoroughly developed environment that seamlessly transports an audience outside of the movie theater. Close up in film offers the audience a direct view into the eyes of a character, where we can see all of their thoughts and feelings left unsaid.

JACK GERBES: I enjoy going to the theatre, but I’d rather see a film in the movie house. Personally, I think films can take you to another time, place and situation much better than a play can. Whether it’s close ups of actors in emotional scenes, or vast panoramas or great special effects, movies have more of an impact on me. It may also be that much of my job is finding locations for films, so I really enjoy seeing unique and interesting locations on screen. I can appreciate a good theater set as much as the next guy, and I know that artistry that goes into designing and building the set, but I’d rather see a great location or a large scale set in a film.

Please name one film that you think everyone MUST see at some point in their lives.

MATT PORTERFIELD: Au hasard Balthazar by Robert Bresson. As a study of the human condition, I think it’s flawless. Plus, it contains one of the most moving screen performances of all time and it’s by a donkey.

JAY RUSSELL: I can’t name one. Because there are a hundred, at least, that everyone MUST see.

JACK GERBES: Probably Citizen Kane. Although many of the filming techniques were used in previous films by other directors, Orson Welles combined those with new filming ideas to enhance the film, not as gimmicks. The use of flashbacks was taken to a new level, as was the editing and sound. I think all the movie magic pulls the viewer in, rather than distracts, it strengthens the story and its simple message.

CHRIS TABET: I don’t think there’s just one movie everyone should see. I don’t think art should be limited to one “greatest” or “best” [piece of work]. I think everyone should watch all movies that honestly explore what it means to be human, in order to better understand their own thoughts of mortality, love, loneliness, greed or any other powerful feelings that propel as well as define us.

Do you feel particular films have been more successful than others when they were initially released because they addressed current political issues or social trends?

MATT PORTERFIELD: I think Parasite arrived in a perfect cultural and political moment. I don’t say that to diminish its excellence, but I think the timing had a lot to do with its global success. Also, especially in North America, if you look at big festivals like Sundance, the prizes usually go to the films deemed most politically and culturally relevant. Those films, in turn, tend to be given wider release.

TRACIE THOMS: Yes, of course. Many films thrive because they are politically relevant. Joker, actually, was pretty socially relevant.

JAY RUSSELL: Some films are so specific to the time frame and socio-political circumstances of when they were made that they might not be as relevant now as when they were released. Although it has become timely again because of current politics, I think recent generations might not have understood the context of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, for instance. But there are others, which were maybe not as appreciated at the time as they are now because the truths presented by the films were not understood at that moment. Citizen Kane for instance was not an initial success and most likely due to the fact that William Randolph Hearst was alive when the film came out and it might have been too specific to him for the general public.

How do you think movie-going will change post pandemic?

TRACIE THOMS: I think the VR (virtual reality) experience will be the next boom. It feels like you’re in a theatre even though you’re sitting in your living room.

JAY RUSSELL: I think smaller, independently owned movie theaters will, unfortunately be a thing of the past. They have been [on life support] for some years now, and I’m afraid the economic realities of the pandemic will provide the fatal blow - and that deeply saddens me. I also believe that people have gotten so used to watching Netflix, HBO etc. during this time, that it will forever alter the way a lot of people see films - again, sad, but I believe it is a reality.

CHRIS TABET: I think theaters are going to phase out indie films to a straight to streaming model, while blockbuster movies will be the main income source, taking on a tiered experience based on pricing.

MATT PORTERFIELD: This is obvious, but we’ll be watching even more online. I’m worried about my favorite cinemas and all the theatre workers who have been laid off. I’m hoping smaller independent cinemas can survive by offering a combination of exclusive on-site and online programming. In some ways, they may be more resilient than the giant multiplexes because their overhead is less. But in order for them to have a leg up over dedicated streamers like Netflix, some kind of “theatrical window” will need to be preserved post-pandemic. Really, the only thing I’m looking forward to is the return of the drive-in movie experience.

JACK GERBES: Right now, most of my focus is more on how movie production will resume post pandemic. We had a Showtime series in Maryland that needed to stop production after its first week of filming due to COVID-19. I know that studios, producers, Unions, Guilds and State governments are working hard to come up with a plan to safely get crews and actors back on set and cameras rolling. It can’t come soon enough for me and Maryland’s film industry professionals, but it needs to be done in a safe manner. Until we can all go to a movie theater, while staying safer at home, watch a movie made in Maryland! Go to marylandfilm.org for the list of films.

Alessandra Fabiani is a Baltimore native, actress and writer who resides in Los Angeles and New York.