“The only difference between reality and fiction is that fiction has to be credible.”  

– Mark Twain

In an interview, Ben Affleck said that this movie could have never been made if it hadn’t been a true story.  He said no one would have ever believed it because the story was, simply, so unbelievable.  It is so true.  You sit through the whole movie knowing full well that they all make it out of there alive but for some reason you are sitting there in agony, grabbing onto the seat or the person next to you (Sorry, Caroline!) thinking THERE IS NO WAY… NO WAY THAT THEY ARE GOING TO MAKE IT OUT OF THERE ALIVE!

The movie was incredible.  The story is so incredible (Well done, Mr. Mendez!).  There is so much I could say but I don’t want to take up too much of your time.  So, I will speak to one of the scenes that really spoke to me.  (It is pictured above).

The “film crew” has made it through 2 out of the 3 airport check points, but has now been stopped and taken into a small room for further questioning by some very scary Iranians with machine guns.  It starts with a lot of YELLING.  There is a lot of lost in translation going on too, as they are yelling at them in Farsi.  The intensity is boiling rapidly at this point!  It doesn’t look like they are going to get out of that little tiny room.  That’s it, they are all going to die in that airport!

But then Joe Stafford, the “associate producer” who is fluent in Farsi, steps forward and begins to connect with the Iranians.  He starts telling them the story of Argo.  He appeals to their imagination, their curiosity, their sense for adventure and fantasy, and maybe even appeals to their childish side.  He shows them the pictures and makes noises and sound effects of explosions and flying objects.  The mood lightens.  He has made them believe.  He connected with them as human beings on a human nature level… and saved all of their lives.

This is what Hollywood does best. This is why they are so powerful and influential.  Their ability to connect with human beings.  The movies, music, tv shows that they produce connect with our souls, our emotions, our dreams, our sense for adventure, our hearts. They have hooked us.  More to come on this in a future blog post.

BEN, THE DIRECTOR

Dear Ben,

I have a very special place in my heart for you and Matt Damon.  I like to think of you two as my homeboys from Boston.  Good Will Hunting is one of my favorite movies.  I went to go see The Town, in theaters a few years ago, and I remember at the end of the movie, one little tear stream down my face because I was so proud of you.  I felt like you “got your groove back”…like Stella did.  And now after Argo, it is safe to say that you have found your groove/place/calling in Hollywood and in life.  There is nothing more exciting than that!  BRAVO!

Your homegirl, Allison

P.S. Alright yes, I stole the Dear Ben idea from JLO’s This is me… then album!  Sorry to bring her up.

 

And now, an Acting Lesson from Ben Affleck…

There is a scene in the movie where Tony Mendez is giving the hostages their cover stories or “characters”.  He tells them…

“These cover identities were created specifically for each one of you. What you need to do is memorize everything that’s inside. Who you are, what you are, where you’ve been, complete bio.”

Side Note: As actors, you need to know your character’s bio.  Just like you yourself would know your full name, your birthday, your parents’ names, where your were born, religion, etc… Information that you don’t think twice about.  It is who you are.  The facts.

He then says…. (THE MOST IMPORTANT PART)

“And then add to that; where do you vacation, what are your allergies, who you had an affair with. The only way this works is if you believe that you’re these people so much that you dream like them.”

This is the most important part of an actor’s job!  This is the KEY to making your characters come to life.  IT IS ALL THE OTHER STUFF.  THE STUFF THAT MAKES YOU TICK.  OUR JOB IS TO CREATE A HUMAN BEING… NOT A CHARACTER.  These insights will influence behavior.  We get to use our imagination.  It is our job to create truthful behavior.  For the 6 hostages, it was life or death.  For us, it is career or no career.

Rating: A+

* Photo 1, 2, 3, 4 *

WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY:

In an effort to see as many Oscar nominated films as I can before the Oscars, I went to see the highly controversial Quentin Tarantino film, Django Unchained, this weekend with Caroline.

First off, it is shocking to me that people are shocked that a Tarantino film is shocking.

You should know what you are in for when you go to one of his movies!  Wit – Controversy – Scandal – Persuasion – Blood – Gore.  Yes, there were horribly offensive moments.  For the record, I don’t support racism… but I don’t believe Tarantino intended his movie to be racist.  (And I don’t want to offend anyone with the fact that I liked this movie.)

With that being said… I applaud Mr. Tarantino for bringing us another movie full of characters that you love to hate and hate to love, witty dialogue that you want to playback, a soundtrack that is so unexpected (loved that rap songs were mixed with original folk songs), memorable scenes (some of which I think he throws in just for his own entertainment) and a plot with twists, turns, hard lefts, hard rights and explosion!  Well done!

 Won the Golden Globe for Best Screenplay – Quentin Tarantino, and Best Supporting Actor – Christoph Waltz.

My favorite characters – Dr. Schultz and Django

I loved these two.  The development of their relationship and friendship was so fun to watch!  Their relationship was that of teacher and student (never owner and slave).  It is often said that only the best teachers produce students who excel past the teacher’s own abilities.  In this case, Dr. Schultz was the most amazing mentor.  He gave Django all the right tools or “weapons” to do just that.

If you don’t like blood and gore… I wouldn’t suggest seeing the movie!  I had to close my eyes in some scenes.  Tarantino did exaggerate the gore (lots of squirting blood), which made it almost funny and easier to watch because you knew it wasn’t real!

Acting Lesson

Mr. Tarantino was kind enough to write a scene that in itself was an acting lesson… for all those actors out there.  It is a scene where Dr. Schultz explains to Django that he will be playing a character on their bounty excursions… He tells him, “And during the act, you can never break character”.  

Never Break Character.  One of the Cardinal Rules of Acting.

And then Schultz tells him to pick his costume, which is another important part of an actor’s character work.  It immediately cuts to Django in this frilly, blue costume above!  Funny moment.  It was a stark contrast from the beginning scenes where Django was enslaved in only chains.  From rags to riches!

Rating: A

* Photo Credit 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 *