Christopher Guest discusses Peter Sellers and Dr. Strangelove
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- Опубліковано 11 жов 2024
- The A.V. Club’s comedy festival wrapped up last weekend, featuring comedians like Patton Oswald, Aparna Nancherla, and Mike Judge. Among those guests was actor, writer, and director Christopher Guest, who is probably best known for his work on the 1984 film This Is Spinal Tap. Taking part in the festival’s Modern School Of Film live-event series, Guest talked about his love for Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove and why this particular Stanley Kubrick film resonates with him.
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Best line in that movie.
Gentlemen. You Can't Fight In Here. This is The War Room.
Runner-Up: "Well how do you think I feel, Dmitri?!"
My favourite was George C. Scott objecting to letting the Russian ambassador into the War Room, because "He'll see the Big Board!", like that was some National Secret or something, like the Russians don't have their own version of it at the Kremlin or whatever.
I am now 55 and love BOTH Peter Sellers as well as Christoper Guest !! Classic laughs !!
In relation to 2001, and the comment on actors, Kubrick had one of the finest comic actors playing a minor non comic role at the start of the film, that being the brilliant Leonard Rossiter
I could listen to Nigel Tufnel tell stories all day!
I love how he says he's not an impressionist after all the dead-on ones he did on the Lampoon Radio Hour.
This is so above my head...but I adore both Peter Sellers and Christopher Guest.
Peter Sellers was a comedic genius.
but an extremely odd character,there is a book called Behind the Mask and I recommend it to you
Claire Quilty, although a small role, was among his best.
boring
The issue is that Christopher believes film is an extension of the stage and theater, and thus should be character-centric, so acting makes the film.
That does not at all do justice to the variety of film philosophies that developed throughout the 20th century. It is a visual medium, with the unique elements of editing and camera perspectives. Kubrick was one of those who understood his role in moving the art form forward, and that means its not all about acting and plot. It's about exploring the potentials for the camera and the editing room to describe new, unorthodox angles on events, shifting the audience's situated perception to not identify with a human character but say consider the worldview of an A.I. system, or an off world entity with superior intelligence. Or to construct entire worlds within a single film that are in conflict with each other in a grand chess game (2001 does all this).
Christopher Guest basically said he walks into movies looking for acting inspiration, so he's the last person int he world to ask opinions on great innovative films.
Such a perspective is also biased toward much of post war experimental theater.
The lighting was brilliant. Production value was top- notch.
not a Sellers line but still a fav: "Of course I love you, sug. One day I'm gonna make you Mrs. Buck Turgidson..."
Quite a fan of Mr Guest's - got to see him perform live on the Mighty Wind tour - but strongly disagree with his take on 2001. But you can't make someone like something they don't like.
When Dr. Strangelove makes his first appearance, he's smoking a cigarette and, as he wheels himself into the light, we see the ashes all over his suit. It's the little things and subtle nuances that make someone a comedic genius...like Chris.
Love a comic genius speaking about another comic genius who was his inspiration. ❤
Guest is a genius.
I've always heard that Kubrick was generous in his praise for other directors. I guess that Guest--who apparently doesn't know that Kubrick never went to film school and financed his own first features--is on the other side of that divide as well.
Guest is referring to Kubrick's penchant for having a vision and hoping the actors finally get to where it he wants them after 80 takes. Kubrick was notorious for not giving direction beyond "try it again". Kubrink clearly had a brilliant vision but getting there wasn't easy for anyone.
Loved Strangelove AND 2001. l also loved Mad Magazine and their take on 2001; "201 minutes of Space ldiocy."
I smoked dope (and did more) when watching 2001 multiple times as a teenager in the theaters. I did not giggle, I was in awe of the scope of the film; it was almost a spiritual experience. I considered it the best movie of my life until a couple of decades ago. It is most certainly dated now.
Our Peter! ☯️
And of course Peter Sellers himself said Kubrick and Terry Sothern were fantastic
I’m sorry, this clip was cut so badly, I don’t understand the points he was making. The only point I understood was about going to 2001 stoned and even then, why would anyone want to see 2001 stoned?
2001 is great
2:38 I thought he was talking about H.A.L.
>I.B.M.
I thought so too, but then he said "Keir Dullea" talking about the actor.
Me too. Seems like he missed the point.
I respect that he doesn’t tow the line and say everything Kubrick touched was gold, like everyone else says. You’re expected to say Kubrick was a god, period, and all his films are masterpieces. Chris doesn’t feel that way.
Hi guys where is the full interview?
Whereas 2001 was a movie where people would "smoke ‘dope’ and go to the theaters," Dr. Strangelove was a movie where Peter Sellers would smoke ‘dope’ and go to the set 😅
He sure has a lot to say about actors working with Kubrick, being an actor who never worked with Kubrick. Stanley was a highly collaborate director, even with his actors.
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That said, Chris's films couldn't be more generous to his actors.
No, he couldnt achieve anything with actors, thats why he made them do dozens and dozens of takes, he simply couldnt direct actors.
You just couldn't move the bottom of the screen up another foot could you?
Sorry he didn't understand "2001," but it isn't that hard.
Kubrick was a great film maker, but I never thought he gave a damn about actors, or at least, they were a necessary evil of film making. The visuals, the lighting, the technical aspects, the take after take to get the look right. I love his movies, but the actors seem like an extra thought thrown in.
Actually, from some of the things I've watched about kubrick and making ofs, he was pretty collaborative, and would take ideas, but he was also manipulative, and would do things and treat the actors in a way that he thought would be effective in getting the performance he wanted.
yeah that's bullshit. kubrick was a master at showing human nature on film, actors were a conduit for that. It really depended on the part - alex delarge (malcom mcdowell) got all of the freedom in the world because he wanted a carefree psychopath. shelly duvall got the shaft because he wanted a nervous wreck.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Baron Christopher Haden-Guest! [The FIFTH Baron Haden-Guest.] He wears his royalosity lightly.
whats he taliking about kubricks films have some of the finest acting performances ever in the history of cinema timothy carey, kirk douglas, adolph menjou, george macready, laurence olivier, charles laughton, shelley winters, peter sellers, james mason, sterling hayden, george c scott, keenan wynn, malcom mcdowell, jack nicholson, shelley duvall, mathew modine, lee ermey, vincent d'onofrio, tom cruise nicole kidman , and so many others
Make way for Lord Guest 🧐🥃
2001 wasnt about actors, but film
Itself, no wonder self centered actors dont “respond” to it
"Stay down there for a hundred years" Thus he premise for Fallout was created.
My fuhrer sorry I mean Mr president so good
2001 is just trying to show us how cool the future of spaceflight will be
Kubrick and co and many artists of our times have been creating a whole series of scenarios upon which this historical period is supposed to play out. Seller's Dr. Strangelove could be interrupted in the real world as being Dr. Henry Kissinger and so on. The character that PS liked the best in that film was the RAF character, simply because he was RAF. That's the sheer silliness of acting and films and art altogether. I think many of our artistic folk have run out of material that fills that need of scenarios for this historical period and so we think that it's all been said and done. Well, is Dr. Hank gonna blow up the world? Is that it? Is that a wrap? Or.....
Yes. He gets it just about right at minute 3:56. I'm so bored. Awaiting a director, a brilliant actor . . . Or on the other hand, a brilliant director, waiting to command a brilliant actor . . . I think that's just about it. I still feel something's missing. Maybe in the ascending it's the cartoon.
This 4 minute clip was incoherent. Was it edited by a child?
...or by Christopher Walken....
I think of theatre directors as being more like Jesus and film directors as being more like satan, in the sense that theater directors are like Michael Cane in Noises off in the scene where he finds a way to tell Christopher Reeves why he must come back and retrieve a bag of groceries. I believe that some film directors do understand human emotions but usually they worked first in theatre.
MAYBE he would be qualified to carry Keir Dullea's shoes.
Who? I mean, Chris Guest is a genius in hs own right. SNL, Spinal Tap, the movies he has directed? He didn't need Kubrick and he was a hell of a lot more fun.
Chunky chip on the shoulder
Is Guest in a wheel chair?
Did you just rag on Keir Dullea? I think you did... little bit.
*Oswalt
I love Guest's work and always will, but he comes off as a cranky old man here. All of his movies combined haven't had the influence on moviemaking that 2001 had, and the nasty swipe at Keir Dullea was just...cranky old man.
Chris Guess has some sort of insecurity that forces him into a persona of that cranky old man. He should rejoice that he found a niche that people are willing to pay to see his products. If you have viewed some of his interviews, then it is likely that you'll find this isn't an anomaly: he likes being an ass. He owes David Alan Grier an apology for his appearance on Grier's talk show.
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Guest’s mockumentaries were the darlings of hipsters for a New York minute. The Kubrick legend lives on.
He didn’t say it was bad. He just said he didn’t respond to it. If he didn’t he didn’t. And it’s true back in the day people were baffled by it and it became mostly a stoner movie, even though it was brilliant. If you didn’t read the book good luck understanding it. I sure didn’t when I saw it at the theatre.
@@sblack48 He said more than that. "That was a movie where people smoked dope, went to the movie, and laughed…giggled." And: "The main actor was not considered to be an actor that you would study and say, I wish I could be Keir Dullea." These are sneers, in my view. (Hard to believe someone who made Spinal Tap would mock a movie because its patrons get high and laugh…no wait, make it giggle, that sounds stronger.) He sounds to me like someone who considers himself a venerated, once-in-a-generation giant who can be forgiven, even admired, for droll deprecations. I repeat, I've enjoyed his work, but he oversteps himself.
I agree that Space Odyssey is problematic. You really do have to read the book to understand it. That is a fair critique. But that isn't a point he made.
Why are his ears bright red?
He’s right. While I admire Kubrick, too many of his films feel like movies made by a robot that knows the nuts and bolts of movie making, knows what humans are, and knows that humans watch movies. In short, astounding amounts of ambition and technical ability, but filmically, Kubrick is a technician with no actual connection with humans, on screen at least.
This is horribly cut together. Maybe my expectations of AV were too high. Also, is there a profit motive behind your unwillingness to share the whole thing? Because if so, very stingy.
I instantly wanted to find the full video too.
Age wow is us ..
Baron Christopher no less.
You don't fuck with Cristopher Guest.
Poops on Kubrick's 2001 and using cannabis. #elitist #grump
He has moved from the position of the person that spoofs to the person that is spoofable.
The interviewer - who I’ve also seen interviewing Paul Schrader - seems like a very arrogant person.
90 seconds in and this is so badly edited... criminal.
I agree. I hated 2001 the first time I saw. I have come to appreciate some aspects of it, but still find it incredibly boring.
Same here. I recall wandering off to make a sandwich during the "stargate" part (vcr copy).
Pretty stupid the way he shits on 2001. I like his films, but they are structured improv performances. What makes them good are the actors and their improvised dialogue.
Fun, but not even remotely in the same class as 2001. I guess he thinks Keir Dullea should have improvised some funny banter with HAL.
😂
I was so surprised and delighted to hear him say he didn't respond to 2001. Everyone goes on and on about that movie, but for me, nothing. Of course, I didn't get stoned to see it. So the long psychedelic sequence at the end is just a boring cliche to me.
can't agree with you about Kier Dullea, Mr Guest....I'll let you know when you're the main in a movie as important as 2001. Too bad you let your dope smoking friends ruin it for ya.
@bad1dobby sure I can agree with that. Whether it's a computer, dog or even a child, many actors have had their spotlight stolen by others in a movie. Also I understand Christopher maybe not using Kier as an acting role model but his comment seemed flippant and insulting..."a movie you smoked dope and laughed at"...it wasn't Animal House, or most of HIS movies which ARE movies you smoke dope and laugh at. Peter Sellers IS a great role model for an actor but Guest needn't waste too much of his time trying to emulate Sellers. He hasn't the personality nor scope for it.
@bad1dobby yeah ! and what a grandiose vision it is ! 2001 A Space Odyssey...tackling huge themes like Man venturing into the unknown, vastness of space and attempting that great leap with the aid of a self-constructed technology that threatens to unravel and destroy the whole effort ! Expanding cinema in way never before experienced with a incredible soundtrack and special effects to boot !! OR you could spend all your time and effort making FUN OF A DOG SHOW. But what do the two have to do with one another ?? Which was my point all along...the jab at Kier Dullea was, simply put, a cheap shot and completely unnecessary. Comments like that just make ya look bad....
WTF is wrong with that guy? .... He made pretty much ZERO sense there didn't he?
Lol he didn't say get incoherently wasted and then watch...
@@billharris1847 It's pretty pathetic how often trolls who are NOT funny will consistently "lol" THEMSELVES. ... isn't it Bill? ... I was as sober as a Judge when I wrote that. ... Cristopher Guest was a pompous disinterested prick in this interview, his answers were pointless ... and YOU my friend are just too fucking dumb to see that apparently... cheers dummy
@@markmarsh27
these outtakes were badly pasted together, it's no wonder they don't make sense
if you actually had some basic understanding of pictures, you would realize a bad edit can fuck things up, which happened here
So before you criticize a director that criticizes a director, maybe, just MAYBE, you should first learn some basic observation skills first
@@Nightdare it's a bit sad that you would suggest I don't "understand film" or "how bad editing can mess things up," just because I said something negative about Guest. ... (Fanboy much?) .... I'll happily admit that the guy turns my fucking stomach --- he is the most stuck up asshole in all of Hollywood, (and that's a tall order to fill). .... He never shows any kindness to interviewers, never smiles, just holds that Dead-Inside-Look on his face throughout to communicate, "I DON'T fucking wanna be here!" ... consequently, I can't STAND THE PRICK. ... that's fair isn't it? .... now maybe you can piss off and play your stupid cowardly anonymous Troll Games with somebody else? ... "editing?' ... you're a fucking IDIOT.
@@markmarsh27
Not a fanboy. came here for the Peter Sellers story
And I didn't say you don't understand film
I said this was cut up in a shitty way
and apparently you lack the ability to see that, so how the fuck you can not notice that, but yet consider yourself any kind of authority on movies compared to a guy that actually has directed movies is beyond me
But hey, keep wallowing in your arrogance