“I Was Cured, All Right”
“I look at these huge movies that come out, and some of them are really, really impressive [but] I think I couldn’t do it,” Magic Mike director Steven Soderbergh recently told Miami Herald critic Rene Rodriguez. “Haywire was really fun to do. I was stretching in a way I was comfortable with. Even though Contagion may not appear that way, it was really fun to make too. That’s all that motivates me now. After Che, I have no desire to make another quote-unquote important movie. I’ve been cured of that.”
Steven Soderbergh during filming of Magic Mike.
In other words, the ‘meh’ reception to Che broke his heart. In response to which Soderbergh began to say to himself, “You know that? Eff this shallow culture that refuses to at least consider and appreciate to some degree something that I know is real and solid and true. I can find more spiritual fulfillment in another line of art.”
“But since Che, Soderbergh has remained as prolific as ever,” Rodriguez writes. “He’s directed several films including Contagion and Haywire. The Bitter Pill, his follow-up to Magic Mike, is already wrapped, and he’s currently preparing to direct Behind the Candelabra, a biopic of the famed pianist Liberace starring Michael Douglas and Matt Damon.
“So what gives? Here’s what Soderbergh said about his recent career choices and why he’s been working on noticeably lower budgets and smaller scales.
“‘In retrospect, the most frustrating thing about Che was that the quality of the discussion wasn’t where I had hoped it would be. It broke out so obviously along ideological lines and nothing else was discussed. I always knew it would be a polarizing movie. I just thought there would be a more wide-ranging discussion.
“After that, I’ve been consciously looking for things that would be more fun to do. With Contagion, I was trying to push into a genre category as far as I could. Even though it came out in the fall, I didn’t want it to feel like important Oscar-bait. I wanted to make something really entertaining. As far as the smaller scale goes, that hasn’t necessarily been by choice.
“I was fired off Moneyball [he was replaced by Bennett Miller] and then got sort of shoved off The Man from U.N.C.L.E.. Those movies were on a larger scale. Contagion was $60 million. When I was on it, Moneyball was $50 million. When you get into those kinds of numbers, the amount of time you spend doing the things you like to do decreases. I like being in a room with actors. But when the scale of a film grows, you are forced to wrangle with a bunch of other elements. And that’s not fun for me.”
A $50 Sears gift certificate to anyone who can identify the source of the headline. No, make it $25.
Google makes it easy to say “A Clockwork Orange”.
Loved Miller’s work on Moneyball, though I’m sure Soderbergh would have delivered a 6-War type of flick as well…But that 20 to what, 80 million dollar film is so scarce. He’ll always get financing for a quick 5 million dollar type of movie since he gets major actors when needed but I’d hate it if Soderbergh turned away from the mid-range stuff completely.
Can’t believe I had to look up the quote. Fuuuuck. Someone else can have a go.
Appalled that two dudes don’t know the famous last line of a Kubrick masterpiece but even more annoyed that NOBODY hear knew what “HAD TO BE DONE” is from.
Wait a minute…even I can’t remember what “had to be done” is from. Wait…is that a line spoken by Marcel whatsisname’s French gunman in The French Connection when he’s talking to Fernando Rey on top of that medieval castle in Act One, before they meet the French celebrity who will soon agree to take the Lincoln Conty to the states?
I remember McDowell opening his mouth extremely wide to be fed and how friendly he briefly looks shaking the minster’s hand before getting all manic-eyed again. But the actual words escaped me for a sec.
Ah, fuckit. I’m appalled, too.
Wells of course FTW.
HAD TO BE is indeed Marcel whatshisname in French Connection, talking about that heinous face-shot in the opener. I think he says it while Rey is scooping out that mysterious stone-oyster-thing that Prager always mentions.
Anyone see that riotous pic of Friedkin in some B-boy breakdancer outfit? Made my day.
I know of people who still want to see U.N.C.L.E., being fans of the tv show, so here’s hoping the window’s not entirely closed on that gig.
Che Guevara was an asshole and Soderbergh should have known better than to try and make a hero out of a cold blooded murderer.
Only douche bags who have no idea what a murderous son a bitch he was wear his t-shirts.
A salute to the Bolivians for taking care of business.
That Soderbergh is even linked to this new dumbass movie is an embarrassment to his legacy.
Only Lex, I mean, kitlaturazero, would think that knowing lines from such iconic films as A Clockwork Orange and French Connection makes him some kind of cineaste. Oh, ho ho, my boy, you sound like some Gen X pudgy whiteboy from flyover country. SMH and laughing, albeit sadly.
Wells to Flash of Dust: Wow
Steven Soderbergh is a pretentious assh*le. As if HE’s too good for important movies. Hahahah. They’re too good for him.
That’s some pretty weak sauce, right there. “The quality of the discussion wasn’t where I had hoped it would be.” Bah. (Translation: no one will finance my bigger pictures unless they star Julia Roberts, George Clooney and Brad Pitt.)
Whatever happened to the days of Coppola mortgaging himself to the eyeballs, heading into the jungle and saying, “I’m making this fucking movie. See it or don’t, I don’t give shit. But I’m climbing this mountain or I’ll die trying.” (See also: Herzog, Werner)
Want to improve the quality of the discussion? Make the movie you want to make and drag the troglodytes by their noses. Or, you could quit and make movies about male strippers. Hooray.
(BTW, I miss the “what’s that line” feature from the old days of HE. This one was pretty easy, but then CO is one of my favorite films.)
WHAT’S THAT LINE?
“Tension breaker…had to be done.”
“I think he says it while Rey is scooping out that mysterious stone-oyster-thing that Prager always mentions.”
MYSTERY SOLVED!!!!!!!!!!!
“Charnier picks up from the water something called a moule, which is a mussel…”
at 00:19:50:
http://youtu.be/-IdnXmI0pVo
“Tension breaker…had to be done.”
Chainsaw from Summer School?
“Whatever happened to the days of Coppola mortgaging himself to the eyeballs, heading into the jungle and saying, “I’m making this fucking movie. See it or don’t, I don’t give shit. But I’m climbing this mountain or I’ll die trying.” (See also: Herzog, Werner)”
Really have to agree. I thought the whole point, with movie directors that we revere, was that they go into the ring and try to make the earth move every time out. Not get cold feet after one bummer and then just make “interesting”, perfectly watchable, but nothing spectacular genre diversions like Contagion and Highwire.
The problem with Che isn’t political. It’s that it leaves out most of the key events, and is five fucking hours of people walking around in the jungle.
Only real cinematic purists are going to sit through that to discuss properly, while everyone else will simply use the Cliffs Notes of what they already think of Che, if they do at all.
“Soderbergh should have known better than to try and make a hero out of a cold blooded murderer.”
I suppose if you ignore the fact that Che spends half of the movie literally wandering around in circles in Bolivia and getting absolutely nothing accomplished you could say that Soderbergh “makes a hero” out of Che. But if you don’t take such a deliberate misreading of the film, not so much.
came late to the party today and knew both quotes ( can’t proove it though) as for Soderbergh, it’s not that Che was polarizing, it’s rewally that his whole fucking filmography is polarizing. Soderbergh is capable of wonderful movies Out of Sight, King of the Hill ,The Limey and also the most pretentious crap, Full Frontal, Bubble, the aforementioned Che and His breakthrough Sex lies and Videotape.Anyone watch that overpraised piece of detrius lately? (lord save us from Andie MacDowell) and therein lies the problem. I think he has a smaller case of Orson Welles syndrome because everyone must love whatever he does because the critics are still buying new underwear over S L & V. Oh Yeah the Oceans Films? Same as the Original l A bunch of like minded folks having a good time and as a sidebar making a film.only I bet Frank, Dean, Sammy et al has a hell of a lot more fun.
had more fun, Sorry for th4 typos using a droid in the carribean.
Ain’t that a kick in the head.
I’m thinking FlashDust may be first in line when Purging Season comes along.
Also, weird confrontational post from York “Budd” Durden towards Kit. I’ll assume you did not get your blowjob today. I’m hoping that calling him kitlaturazero rather than KitLatura1 was some kind of sad attempt at a joke/putdown.
Magic Mike is about male strippers, eh? Kakihara will certainly be there opening day.
’cause he’s a homo!
Good for you, Soderbergh. However, please don’t forget that both HAYWIRE and CONTAGION are extremely forgettable.
SUMMER SCHOOL it is!
Didn’t Lem Dobbs and Soderburgh talk about B-Movies and how nobody makes good ones anymore on the commentary track of THE LIMEY?
Bozzuffi.
Here’s the final scene of Clockwork. God what a great ending:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pFqQKaniK8
The problem with CHE is that Soderbergh directed it.
There was no way someone as white-bread American as Soderbergh was going to have the balls to present a warts-and-all portrait of one of the late 20th Century’s most charismatic and flawed political leaders. Of course, not sure what anyone involved was thinking when they hired the writer of JURASSIC PARK III and ERAGON to co-write their “important” movie.
An artist should always push themselves, but even the great ones suffer glorious failures (GANGS OF NEW YORK anyone?) far into successful careers.
Bizarre footnote: as I was writing that last sentence, The Isley Brothers “It’s Your Thing”popped on in the Starbucks I’m writing this from. And if I need to tell you which movie that is the closing music for, you are at the wrong fucking site….
How to lose weight fast
http://www.fastfatburningprogram.com
Good for you, Soderbergh. However, please don’t forget that both HAYWIRE and CONTAGION are extremely forgettable.