Workout of the Day: Guy Pearce

Guy Pearce is no stranger to having his shirt off for a flick but he's usually looking pretty skinny. I remember thinking he had a pretty solid but slim build in 2000's Memento and wasn't surprised when I learned he had done some bodybuilding as a teenager. His mom would take him to the gym and while she took a swim, Guy was pumping weights and doing circuit training. That lead to winning a local contest at age 16 but nothing much more came of it. Cut to 2012 and after years of headlining some really random movies and embodying eclectic roles like L.A. Confidential, Ravenous, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Dessert and Bedtime Stories, Pearce went full action hero mode for Lockout.

More or less a sci-fi mash up of Escape From New York and Die Hard, Lockout didn't light the box office on fire but remains a visually interesting and entertaining action flick. Having just played a vain playboy in The King's Speech, Pearce's Snow is a vast change of pace being a smart ass anti-hero type, a guy who has a quip for every question and walks around with some yoked out pipes. There's fist fights, space fights, shootouts and one liners galore. Nearly every piece of press on the film focused on Pearce's transformation. In an age when getting in shape lands you lead roles (hello, Chris Pratt), I was surprised Pearce didn't land on the cover of Men's Health, Fitness, Journal, Diary whatever talking about bulking up. Maybe he did but I didn't see it on the ol' internets.

While definitive workout plans remain elusive, Pearce constantly referred to his youth in the gym and muscle memory coming into play. The only real details gleaned are that he spent a month prior to shooting hitting the weights after directors and writers James Mather and Stephen St. Leger dubbed him a bit skinny. While on location in Serbia for the 3 month shoot, Pearce says he worked out 5 days a week in the gym and consumed lots of protein powder and local meat. Like fellow actors Ryan Reynolds and Daniel Craig, Pearce has some great genetics and a build that easily accommodated an extra 20 pounds of beef. Pearce did many of his own stunts, hanging from wires, getting burnt by a ricochet shell casing and roughing around with stunt guys who all compared him (unfavorably) to Gerard Butler who had just left town. Apparently Pearce didn't lift as much weight or drink as much booze or party as late as Butler.

Pearce is in shape again for the just released Results, a weird, pseudo romantic comedy about personal trainers. He looks great in the flick, muscular and cut with the extra weight in his face taking away some of that menacing angular-ness. Again, working out was a key topic for promotion but Pearce again chalked it up his past in the fitness realm but worked on upping his cardio for the running scenes. Having buffed up for the under performing Lockout and already appearing in a comic book movie as a villain in Iron Man 3, we'll see what next role will find the 47 year old Australian hitting the weights next for.

Call Me Snake: Sideshow Sixth Scale Figure

Oh man just got a knock on the door and opened up my Sideshow Collectibles Sixth Scale figure of mother fucking Escape From New York's Snake Plissken.  Brought to life by Kurt Russell in John Carpenter's 1981 classic futuristic action thriller, Snake and Escape set the tone for the "cool asshole who doesn't give a fuck" anti-hero and action flicks for a generation.  A less well received sequel was produced in 1996 with comic books carrying on the Plissken name as a video game and anime stalled out in the mid 2000's after the death of producer Debra Sand.  A remake has been in the works for years with Fox picking up the rights just last week with plans for a new trilogy.

Sideshow Collectibles is a specialty manufacturer of movie and comic book figures designed for the high end market.  I pre-ordered the Snake figure last spring and more or less forgot about it until recently when notices about shipping started going out.  This is my first purchase from Sideshow and probably my last.  That's not to say it's not a quality product, I just don't know what else to do with things like this besides add them to my shelf of awesome swag and figures.  The box(es) are beautiful with an excellent painted mural of Snake kicking back being the most striking.  Inside were layers of toy goodness with trays holding multiple sets of hands and oh so many accessories.  You literally get everything Snake has in the movie from the leather jacket, silenced Uzi, revolver, tracker, wrist timer, cigarette, throwing stars, walkie talkie and extra ammo magazines.  A stand is included to hold Snake up at the crotch.  Even though the product images show him standing on his own power, the figure's boots are too stiff for that in real life.

Messing with the figure took me back to playing with Barbie dolls at my babysitter's house in 1st grade.  So many joints in the arms and shoulders but his real cloth pants are too tight to move his legs much.  Surprisingly Snake bends at the waist for easy sitting.  Hands come off quick and easy so you can hold a cigarette, a gun, point at something or just have a balled fist. The detail is immense, from veins and finger nails to the revolver having a movable chamber with 6 easy to lose bullets and a Velcro fly on his camouflage pants.

Born Ready: Kurt Russell

Not only was this past Monday St. Patrick's Day, it was also the birthday of one titan of cinema and life: Kurt Russell.  While Russell didn't inspire me the way Jean-Claude Van Damme or Arnold did as a kid, his films and attitude were definitely a big part of my formative movie watching years.  Always a perfect mix of funny and physical with a rough around the edges charm, Russell just effortlessly comes off as a cool guy.  After hearing stories about him and then seeing him in person last year, I can definitely say I still believe it to be true.  A few weeks ago I opined that America doesn't have many leading men of the durable and capable variety and I would argue that Russell was one of our last.

Coming off a string of television work and Disney features, Russell transitioned to Hollywood leading man the help of directors like Robert Zemeckis, John Carpenter, Mike Nichols, Garry Marshall, Ron Howard and Roland Emmerich while playing a multitude of iconic characters like Snake Plissken, R.J. MacReady, Jack Burton, Gabriel Cash, Captain Ron and Wyatt Earp.

Let's take a trip down memory lane, shall we?

Used Cars - Probably Russell's funniest and most dialog heavy role of all time where he plays salesman Rudy Russo, a small time hustler/charmer trying to raise enough money to join the Senate and skim all the graft he knows is waiting.  Socially irresponsible with some great practical car stunts.

Escape From New York - The B-Movie classic that helped launch his career and a character that has lived on through a sequel, comic books, toys and more.  The ultimate wise ass anti-hero before there were wise ass anti-heroes.

The Thing - Drinks whiskey, plays computer chess, flies a helicopter, wears a huge sombrero and blows shit up.  What more could you ask for from an arctic set, alien thriller with Cold War paranoia?

Big Trouble In Little China - Arguably my favorite Russell flick since the time I saw it late night on TBS then bought the VHS at Saturday Matinee in the mall.  Russell's turn as blowhard trucker Jack Burton is hilarious and shows his gameness for not giving the audience what they expect as he's actually the sidekick but doesn't know it.

Tango & Cash - A beautiful love story between two hard working men just trying to make it in life.

Captain Ron - Good times.  Again shows his willingness not to be pigeonholed as he seemingly plays a buffoon in this broad family comedy who isn't actually an idiot.

Tombstone - The master class example.  Russell plays legendary lawman Wyatt Earp in this popcorn western action classic that nearly fell apart but was saved and came out a winner unlike the bloated attempt by "serious" actor and Oscar winner Kevin Costner.

Executive Decision - Showcases Russell's ability to play heroic but not cartoonish as an intelligence analyst thrown into a combat/hostage scenario after leader Steven Seagal plunges to his death aboard a Stealth Bomber 1/3 of the way into the movie.

Breakdown - Russell plays regular here, very regular as a guy moving cross country with his wife and becomes the target of a kidnapping scheme run by truckers out in the middle of nowhere.  Very freaky and became my mind's worst case scenario when thinking of pulling up stakes and driving cross country to California.

Soldier - Is it a good film?  That's debatable.  Is Russell awesome in it?  Yes.  As a silent career soldier facing his younger replacement, Russell is built like a tank in this science fiction action flick set on a near deserted trash planet in the same universe as Blade Runner.

Mr. Russell had taken a hiatus from filmmaking as he and life partner Goldie Hawn have been busy running a winery and producing their own label.  He's slowly coming back as Canadian heist flick The Art of the Steal has rolled out this year and a part in the latest Fast and Furious chapter is in the works.  Russell had already turned down an offer from friend Stallone to appear in The Expendables, citing he wasn't interested in ensemble acting or looking back.  While it would be nice to see him in one of the 90's reunions, you gotta respect the fact he doesn't need the work and is still setting out to do his own thing.

Ask Me a Question: Escape From New York (part III)

Welcome back to Ask Me a Question (pokes finger into your chest), my look at special screenings for anniversaries, Q&A's and the like.  Tonight's feature is John Carpenter's 1981 futuristic action classic, Escape From New York (applause), presented by The Arclight Cinema's How It's Made series.  Other titles in the series include 1984's A Nightmare on Elm Street and 1999's Fight Club.  On this Monday night, Director of Photography Dean Cundey (Back to the Future) and Larry Franco (Batman Begins) were scheduled to participate in a session following showings of Escape and 1982's The Thing.  Unfortunately, Mr. Cundey didn't make it due to a scheduling conflict.

If you've never seen Escape From New York but are still here, again, I applaud you.  This would actually be my third time seeing it on the big screen in as many years.  Los Angeles continues to spoil me as the first time was a double feature with it's awesomely bad sequel, 1996's Escape From L.A. with John Carpenter speaking in between.  The second was just this past summer as part of the Cape Town festival where Kurt Russell made a rare public appearance, confirming his spot as one of the coolest guys on the planet.

What has always made the movie great, still resonates; the story, atmosphere, cast, music and pace all create the perfect B-Movie masterpiece.  Kurt Russell's portrayal of former war hero turned bank robber turned President rescuer Snake Plissken is a cinematic landmark.  He's tough but not macho, quick on the draw and with the verbal barbs.  In a world where young, good looking Thundercats with no presence play superheroes, it's nice to see the classics still hold up yet sad to know we'll never have another crop of convincing big screen heroes a la Russell, Arnold, Van Damme, Bronson or Stallone.

After the movie, first assistant director and producer on Escape, Larry Franco, was introduced by a really nervous young man who delivered some of the worst moderating I have ever seen.  And I've been to a lot of these things.  This is where fandom backfires, just because you like something doesn't mean you should be the mouthpiece for it.  In this case, the moderator had no real plan of attack and there was no synergy or flow to the conversation, just a lot of Um's and awkward pauses.

But Franco is a pro, having worked in the film business since the 1970's as an assistant director, "working his ass off" to the point people trusted him to get a movie made and hired as a producer.  Since his first Producing credit on Escape, Franco has worked with Carpenter 7 times on classics like Big Trouble In Little China and They Live, with Joe Johnston on The Rocketeer, Jumanji and Jurassic Park III then Tim Burton on Batman Returns, Mars Attacks and Sleepy Hollow and now with Roland Emmerich on 2012 and White House Down among dozens more.  Even with the less than stellar moderating, he was funny and informative through the 30 minute session.


- Was a young assistant director who had just come off Apocalypse Now when then brother in law Russell told him about a TV movie he was doing called Elvis.  Franco shrugged off the tip, stating he didn't work in TV.  Russell's father came on to the movie and Kurt was insistent on making it a family affair and that's how Franco met John Carpenter.
- Making a movie is like going to camp, with crazy, like minded people who will always go beyond the call of duty.  They're all that one person who would fight back if a bank was being robbed.
- AVCO really wanted Tommy Lee Jones for the role but Carpenter went to the mat for Russell.
- St. Louis had never had a big movie film there so the locals bent over backwards to accommodate them.  Were given free reign on 4-5 blocks of fire damaged buildings and used trash from the dump to dress it.  The bridge in the final chase was an abandoned one outside the city.
- Played each of the 12 parts in The Thing for pick up shots as a hand, a foot, a shoulder, etc.
- Loved making The Thing as everything was real and employed crazy techniques like building upside down sets, running film through camera in reverse, etc.
- Can't remember reception of Escape but remembers The Thing was a huge disappointment.  Cost in the neighborhood of $24 million or maybe $15.  Escape's budget was $7.1 million.
- In those days, prepped a movie for 10 weeks, shot for 10 and had 20 weeks of post production for a total of 60 weeks then would take a few months off. 
- On Batman Begins, was in England for 19 months.
- Used real helicopters in Escape but today would be digital, build one, have built one thousand.
- Dean Cundey was a one man band, had a truck and lights and could do everything himself.  Had a
great working relationship with Carpenter and knew what he was trying to accomplish.

Looking back on it after a night of sleep, it was an enjoyable session but really a missed opportunity.  Mr. Franco has worked on some of the greatest genre films in history and has a career spanning 30 some years, working with some of cinema's most successful directors.  Hopefully he does something like this again and really gets a chance to open up.

Making Of: