There’s a reason that this long interview with Vulture‘s Mary Kaye Schilling is getting so talk online. It’s because it’s great, candid, and moves in directions I never would have expected (e.g. Soderbergh loves reading US in airports).
Film Crit Hulk:
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BUT IN ALL THE PRESS THAT HE GOT TO DO FOR THE FILM, THERE WAS SOMEONE HE REFERENCED TIME AND TIME AGAIN, AND INSTANTLY HULK SAW THE ENTIRE THROUGHLINE.
HOOPER IS OBSESSED WITH KUBRICK.
AND THEN IT ALL MADE SENSE…
HOOPER DOESN’T KNOW FUCK ALL ABOUT WHAT KUBRICK WAS ACTUALLY DOING.
Critic Todd VanDerWerff nails the unevenness of “The Phantom”:
Some of what hampers “The Phantom” is, surprisingly, Weiner’s direction. He’s done such a fine job with all of the previous finales—even nailing the tricky tone of “Shut The Door. Have A Seat”—that I’m surprised at how weirdly flat this episode feels, confined by lots and lots of unimaginative shots and brusque directing that might have been standard on any TV drama. The pacing is all off in the first half of the episode, as everything jumps between storylines somewhat haphazardly, and though Weiner comes up with one magnificent image toward the end—the five partners of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce in their new office space, looking out toward what’s to come—so much of the rest of the episode feels like it’s trying to fit three or four episodes’ worth of plots into one hour and just barely pulling it off.
There were clearly some highlights – Roger’s mixture of happiness and genuine melancholy with Marie, Pete’s final speech to Beth – but I found this to be a pretty unsatisfying finale. Compared to the eloquence of Season 1’s “The Wheel”, or the surprise and movement of Season 3’s “Shut the Door. Have a Seat” and Season 4’s “Tomorrowland”, it was a pretty tame episode.
Crazy to think how Bobcat Goldthwait, probably best known as Zed in the Police Academy series, has evolved into a independent (and very dark) film director. A wide ranging interview with Goldthwait appears on a recent Vice post, where he gives frank advice:
My point is this—if you want to be happy in showbiz (or any creative field), listen to that voice inside you. Even if it says “Fuck it” sometimes. Work with your friends. Avoid chasing fame or money. Just do what you want to do, when and how you want to do it. And if it’s not making you happy, quit. Quit hard, and quit often. Eventually you’ll end up somewhere that you never want to leave.
Looking through this list late one night over the weekend, I’m first struck by both the number of repeat directors, and how some of the most repeated and talented in the bunch end up directing both some of the best and worst episodes of the series. Exhibit A: Jennifer Getzinger. She’s directed what I felt was a crazy weak episode, “My Old Kentucky Home” from Season 3. Yet she also directed Season 3 highlight “The Gypsy and the Hobo” and Season 4’s “The Suitcase”, the latter of which has one of my favorite scenes in TV history.