Bullseye
10-27-2007, 02:17 PM
http://www.playboy.com/blog/2007/10/raimi-rap.html
Raimi Rap
When we sat down with director/writer/producer/actor Sam Raimi in his office on the Sony lot in Culver City, California, the talented filmmaker had just seen both the DVD and Blu-ray final product for Spider-man 3 and was eager to sing their praises. We talked candidly about all things Spidey as well as the future of his Evil Dead series, if critics’ remarks sting, and how he feels about possibly directing The Hobbit.
Spider-man 3 comes out on DVD on October 30 alongside the Blu-ray version, which is also available packaged with the first two films in a high-def boxed set. How involved were you in the process of bringing them to home video?
I was deeply involved in the process of supervising every aspect of bringing the feature film to the DVD and Blu-ray, such as individually timing each and every shot with my editor. And when it wasn’t in its original widescreen presentation I supervised the reframing of the shots along with my director of photography, Bill Pope. Then I specifically supervised the mix, and I approved its final representation on the Blu-ray disc format. A movie is a living thing that needs to be adapted based on how the new technology enables you to hear or see it.
Did seeing your Spider-man 3 in high definition blow you away?
In some theaters I’ve been in I could not see the picture as clearly as I saw it on Blu-ray nor could I hear the range of sound with the fidelity that I’ve received on the Blu-ray. So I’m incredibly impressed with it. All I can say is the Blu-ray compared to the original DVD that I’m familiar with has six times the resolution and it looked like it. It looked like I put on my glasses for the first time. It was incredible. So I’m very excited. I could read things like little notes that were on Aunt May’s refrigerator that I couldn’t read in the theater. So it was startling.
Spider-man 3 was the highest-grossing film of the year, yet it didn’t get as many high marks from critics as the previous two. Did that bother you?
The second one got so much love, but the critics’ reactions were fairly negative I thought to this picture. I wanted the critics to like it more than they did, to put it simply. I make these films for the entertainment of people. They’re not supposed to be standalone interpretable artistic statements that are incomprehensible to most. When people and critics slam them as they did this last one—the critics are always right, of course, and I’m not saying this sarcastically—it hurts because I want them to like it. I feel like I let them down and I wanted them to enjoy themselves watching the picture. I hope that the fans liked it more.
Your three Evil Dead movies are cult favorites. Are there any plans for another sequel?
My partners Robert Tapert and Bruce Campbell and myself really love making those Evil Dead movies. One day, I really want to make a fourth one because I love working with Bruce and Rob, and I really like that character [Ash]. I just haven’t had time to really work on the script yet, and the other idea that’s been out there is that Robert and I were exploring having a young filmmaker re-imagine the first Evil Dead movie. Very few people have seen it on the big screen and it was made in 16 millimeter at the time, and I’m sure a young filmmaker could come in now and really do a simple ghost story much more justice than we did at the time.
You transitioned from shoestring-budget flicks like Evil Dead to mega-budget movies like Spider-man. Do you ever get tired of big-budget films and the corresponding pressure?
No. It’s a great honor and privilege to be able to be part of that elite club for this short time that I’ve been allowed in, and I know very quickly I’ll also be ushered out of this elite club of those few people that are allowed to make these big-budget pictures. It offers you tremendous opportunities to work with talent, to have schedules that allow you the option of great tools at your disposal—the camera cranes, visual-effects teams that are the best in the world, great-sized orchestras. At the same time, it’s like conducting the world’s finest symphony orchestra when in actuality I really just started out as a guy who loved to play guitar. And there’s a personal connection with a smaller project when you don’t have all the tools. So honestly I’d like to do both.
There was a rumor circling around on the Internet about you possibly directing The Hobbit instead of Peter Jackson. Care to comment?
Right now I think New Line is talking to Peter Jackson, and I think they’re probably going to offer him The Hobbit. I’m not really in touch with him. I think Peter Jackson is the right guy to do it because he’s so brilliant. We all love his Lord of the Rings trilogy so much. But if he decided he didn’t want to do it, and it ever came to where he thought that it would be appropriate for me to do it and New Line wanted me, under those conditions it’d be a great project to consider.
What would it take to get you back in the director’s chair for another Spidey sequel?
Well, Sony is planning to make many more Spider-man films, which I think is great because the character is very rich and can be interpreted so many different ways as it has been for the last 45 years. I’m going to be one of the producers for Spider-Man 4, and I’m going to help select a writer to come up with a fresh new take for the film, and I’ll be supporting him in his writing of the screenplay. After that I don’t know what’s going to happen. Like any picture I just have to see if that was something I was passionate about. I mean, I love the character but unless I know what the story is, what his personal journey is, and feel that his growth in that particular tale is meaningful then it wouldn’t be right for me. You need to see if you fall in love with what it becomes.
Raimi Rap
When we sat down with director/writer/producer/actor Sam Raimi in his office on the Sony lot in Culver City, California, the talented filmmaker had just seen both the DVD and Blu-ray final product for Spider-man 3 and was eager to sing their praises. We talked candidly about all things Spidey as well as the future of his Evil Dead series, if critics’ remarks sting, and how he feels about possibly directing The Hobbit.
Spider-man 3 comes out on DVD on October 30 alongside the Blu-ray version, which is also available packaged with the first two films in a high-def boxed set. How involved were you in the process of bringing them to home video?
I was deeply involved in the process of supervising every aspect of bringing the feature film to the DVD and Blu-ray, such as individually timing each and every shot with my editor. And when it wasn’t in its original widescreen presentation I supervised the reframing of the shots along with my director of photography, Bill Pope. Then I specifically supervised the mix, and I approved its final representation on the Blu-ray disc format. A movie is a living thing that needs to be adapted based on how the new technology enables you to hear or see it.
Did seeing your Spider-man 3 in high definition blow you away?
In some theaters I’ve been in I could not see the picture as clearly as I saw it on Blu-ray nor could I hear the range of sound with the fidelity that I’ve received on the Blu-ray. So I’m incredibly impressed with it. All I can say is the Blu-ray compared to the original DVD that I’m familiar with has six times the resolution and it looked like it. It looked like I put on my glasses for the first time. It was incredible. So I’m very excited. I could read things like little notes that were on Aunt May’s refrigerator that I couldn’t read in the theater. So it was startling.
Spider-man 3 was the highest-grossing film of the year, yet it didn’t get as many high marks from critics as the previous two. Did that bother you?
The second one got so much love, but the critics’ reactions were fairly negative I thought to this picture. I wanted the critics to like it more than they did, to put it simply. I make these films for the entertainment of people. They’re not supposed to be standalone interpretable artistic statements that are incomprehensible to most. When people and critics slam them as they did this last one—the critics are always right, of course, and I’m not saying this sarcastically—it hurts because I want them to like it. I feel like I let them down and I wanted them to enjoy themselves watching the picture. I hope that the fans liked it more.
Your three Evil Dead movies are cult favorites. Are there any plans for another sequel?
My partners Robert Tapert and Bruce Campbell and myself really love making those Evil Dead movies. One day, I really want to make a fourth one because I love working with Bruce and Rob, and I really like that character [Ash]. I just haven’t had time to really work on the script yet, and the other idea that’s been out there is that Robert and I were exploring having a young filmmaker re-imagine the first Evil Dead movie. Very few people have seen it on the big screen and it was made in 16 millimeter at the time, and I’m sure a young filmmaker could come in now and really do a simple ghost story much more justice than we did at the time.
You transitioned from shoestring-budget flicks like Evil Dead to mega-budget movies like Spider-man. Do you ever get tired of big-budget films and the corresponding pressure?
No. It’s a great honor and privilege to be able to be part of that elite club for this short time that I’ve been allowed in, and I know very quickly I’ll also be ushered out of this elite club of those few people that are allowed to make these big-budget pictures. It offers you tremendous opportunities to work with talent, to have schedules that allow you the option of great tools at your disposal—the camera cranes, visual-effects teams that are the best in the world, great-sized orchestras. At the same time, it’s like conducting the world’s finest symphony orchestra when in actuality I really just started out as a guy who loved to play guitar. And there’s a personal connection with a smaller project when you don’t have all the tools. So honestly I’d like to do both.
There was a rumor circling around on the Internet about you possibly directing The Hobbit instead of Peter Jackson. Care to comment?
Right now I think New Line is talking to Peter Jackson, and I think they’re probably going to offer him The Hobbit. I’m not really in touch with him. I think Peter Jackson is the right guy to do it because he’s so brilliant. We all love his Lord of the Rings trilogy so much. But if he decided he didn’t want to do it, and it ever came to where he thought that it would be appropriate for me to do it and New Line wanted me, under those conditions it’d be a great project to consider.
What would it take to get you back in the director’s chair for another Spidey sequel?
Well, Sony is planning to make many more Spider-man films, which I think is great because the character is very rich and can be interpreted so many different ways as it has been for the last 45 years. I’m going to be one of the producers for Spider-Man 4, and I’m going to help select a writer to come up with a fresh new take for the film, and I’ll be supporting him in his writing of the screenplay. After that I don’t know what’s going to happen. Like any picture I just have to see if that was something I was passionate about. I mean, I love the character but unless I know what the story is, what his personal journey is, and feel that his growth in that particular tale is meaningful then it wouldn’t be right for me. You need to see if you fall in love with what it becomes.