(L to R) Oscar Isaac, Guillermo del Toro, and Mia Goth speak onstage Netflix TUDUM 2025: The Live Event at The Kia Forum on May 31, 2025 in Inglewood, California. Photo: Amy Sussman/Getty Images for Netflix.
We already know that he’s pushing ahead with a new animated project, adapting Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2015 historical fiction novel ‘The Buried Giant’ for Netflix, but it would seem he might also be setting his sights on another live-action film (especially since ‘Giant’ is being crafted in stop-motion and will likely take years to see the screen).
And this other movie is one that del Toro has wanted to make for more than a decade: an adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic tale ‘Frankenstein’.
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Who does Guillermo del Toro want for ‘Frankenstein’?
According to Deadline, del Toro is in the early stages of finding his cast for this new adaptation. He’s reportedly had talks with Oscar Isaac, Andrew Garfield and Mia Goth for the three lead roles, though the trade site is quick to caution that there are no formal offers out to the actors but all three are eager to work with del Toro.
And who can blame them? The director won two Oscars for ‘The Shape of Water’ in 2018 and has long been considered an inventive, entertaining filmmaker.
What has del Toro said about ‘Frankenstein’ in the past?
“The only way to do the Shelley novel is to actually do a four-hour miniseries,” he told MTV in 2008. “But I think there permutations in which you can tell the myth in a different way.”
Obviously, he’s clearly found a way to make the story work as a movie –– though he’s still figuring out the script.
It’ll need to be something fresh –– Shelley’s book has been adapted many times in many ways for all sorts of media. But we can trust del Toro will bring his distinctive stamp to the story of the doctor who reanimates dead bodies and the creature he creates that faces hatred from the local villagers.
It’s the sort of subject that del Toro does so well –– finding the humanity in the monstrous and the monstrosities among humans.
This would be a high-profile cast for the director –– Isaac was most recently seen in the likes of ‘Dune’, ‘Big Gold Brick’ and Marvel’s ‘Moon Knight’ series. He’ll be heard as Miguel O’Hara in ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’, due in theaters on June 2nd.
The new erotic-horror-thriller stars Alexander Skarsgård (‘The Northman’) as James Foster, a troubled author enjoying a vacation at a tropical resort with his estranged wife Em (Cleopatra Coleman). Eventually they meet the mysterious Gabi (‘Pearl’s Mia Goth), and her husband Alban (‘Tell No One’s Jalil Lespert), who invite them on a day trip to a private beach outside the resort, which is forbidden by the local government for guests to visit.
After an unfortunate accident leaves James facing a zero tolerance policy for his crime, he discovers an expensive loophole that allows foreign criminals to live as long as they are first cloned, and then witness their own clone’s execution. This leads James to question his own mortality, as well as his marriage, as he experiences violence, hedonism and untold horror with Gabi, Alban, and their wealthy friends.
The result is a truly crazy movie experience that explores themes of mortality and sexuality, while grounding it in the horror genre. Cronenberg’s direction is impressive, but the screenplay falls apart in the third act, and while Alexander Skarsgård gives a strong performance, it is Mia Goth that truly shines and steals the film.
Mia Goth as Gabi in Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Infinity Pool.’
It’s very hard to know exactly what type of movie ‘Infinity Pool’ is going to be from the first 20 minutes. It starts off very “normal,” never hinting at the sci-fi or horror elements yet to come. In the beginning, it almost seems like a noir film, or that it will turn out to be about an affair, and ultimately a ‘Fatal Attraction’ type thriller. But once the idea of cloning is introduced as an actual thing, you realize that all bets are off as the movie gets stranger and stranger (in a good way) and ultimately is more like an updated ‘Eyes Wide Shut.’
I should have known that the film would go in that direction, and while Brandon Cronenberg introduces elements and themes similar to his father’s movies, the two directors are quite different. I was very impressed with Brandon Cronenberg’s direction, and the unique camera angles and composition of shots that he and his cinematographer, Karim Hussain, crafted. In fact, the film opens on an eerie shot of the resort’s pool and then quickly inverts the landscape. The filmmaker uses this technique throughout the film and it adds to the mood and tone of the movie.
Cronenberg uses other interesting camera and editing techniques during the party scenes where the characters are using hallucinating drugs. Along with the actors performances, this technique really relates the feeling of being under the influence of these drugs and the out-of-control state of mind of the characters for the audience.
In addition to being an erotic thriller and eventually dipping its toes in both the sci-fi and horror genres, the movie also addresses the themes of class and privilege. Other than the film’s more salacious or outrageous moments, this is where the movie’s message works best, when James begins to examine his own privilege and that of the wealthy people he is associating with.
But the film also deals with the idea of, who are we? As its never quite clear if the real James still exists, or if the James we meet at the beginning of the movie was secretly replaced with his own clone each time the “clone” was supposedly killed. Cronenberg navigates this well, never truly giving us an answer, but leaving the clues for the audience to decide themselves. The movie also explores the question of mortality, and what it does to James to repeatedly watch “himself” die.
Cleopatra Coleman as Em in Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Infinity Pool.’
Cleopatra Coleman is fine in her role as Em, but is not given much to do other than warn and then watch James on his downward spiral. French actor Jalil Lespert is very entertaining as Gabi’s husband, who is an outgoing and funny character. Rounding out the supporting cast is German actor Thomas Kretschmann (‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’) as Detective Thresh, the policeman that arrests James and offers him the cloning deal. The actor completely sells the cloning concept, even though it takes a certain amount of suspended disbelief from the audience to accept in the movie which is otherwise grounded in reality.
Alexander Skarsgård, who is coming off an absolutely excellent performance in last year’s ‘The Northman,’ gives another strong performance in ‘Infinity Pool,’ and helps anchor the film’s believability. The actor, who often plays heroic or “cool” characters marvelously transformed himself into a much meeker man, someone that could easily fall into Gabi’s mental traps. James is having a breakdown, not only in his marriage, but also in his own understanding of who he is as a human being, and it’s fun watching Skarsgård portray that in the movie.
Alexander Skarsgård as James Foster in Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Infinity Pool.’
But its Mia Goth’s performance as Gabi, that really shines and makes the film worth watching. The actress made a real name for herself last year starring in both of director Ti West’s horror movies ‘X’ and ‘Pearl.’ Again here, Goth gives another performance as a troubled and mysterious woman in what could be considered a horror movie, but her role is so much more complex than that.
She must beguile both James and the audience from her first scene, convincing us to trust her innocent character. Goth’s pleasant demeanor and kind attitude is more than enough to mask her character’s true intentions and the massive threat that she presents. Goth gives a sweet and innocent performance at first, but can more than handle the sudden flip in her character, once Gabi’s true intentions are revealed and she “goes nuclear.”
In the end, ‘Infinity Pool’ is an interesting and thought-provoking film that works on several different levels, but never really pulls it all together. Brandon Cronenberg is an impressive director to keep an eye on, and Alexander Skarsgård gives a performance unlike anything we’ve seen from him before, but it is Mia Goth who makes the movie truly worth watching.
(L to R) Mia Goth and Alexander Skarsgård star in Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Infinity Pool.’
When a tragic accident leaves them facing a zero tolerance policy for the crime, they discover an expensive loophole that allows them to live as long as they are first cloned, and then watch their clone’s execution, which leads James down a path of violence, hedonism and untold horror.
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Alexander Skarsgård and Mia Goth about their work on ‘Infinity Pool,’ their first reaction to the screenplay, their approach to playing their challenging characters, and working with writer/director Brandon Cronenberg.
(L to R) Alexander Skarsgård and Mia Goth star in Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Infinity Pool.’
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Skarsgård and Goth about ‘Infinity Pool.’
Moviefone: To begin with, Alexander, what was your first reaction to Brandon’s screenplay?
Alexander Skarsgård: My first reaction was, “A movie called ‘Infinity Pool’ set at a resort? Yes, I’ll do it.” Because I read it when I was about five months into ‘The Northman,’ and I was very wet, very cold and bruised on a windy, rainy mountaintop in Ireland. So it sounded like a great idea.
Then when I started reading the script, I was just mesmerized and hooked because it’s so out there. It was so wild, and it was so refreshing to read something so unique. I had seen ‘Antiviral’ and ‘Possessor,’ so I was a big fan of Brandon’s work. So this was a very exciting opportunity.
MF: What was your approach to playing this character and was it challenging getting inside James’ head?
AS: I wouldn’t say challenging, but it was part of the reason I was so attracted to the character, that his journey is extraordinary. To be a character who’s confronted with his own mortality, and in this case, literally face-to-face with his own death. He has to watch his clone get executed, and to psychologically try to understand that, what does that do to a human being, and what does that evoke and trigger in James was really exciting.
Alexander Skarsgård as James Foster in Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Infinity Pool.’
MF: Mia, can you talk about your approach to playing your character, and why Gabi chooses James? What does she see in him that she’s attracted to?
Mia Goth: My approach to the character, it’s a process. The prep that’s involved, and looking within yourself and turning certain things up and turning other things down, because it’s all really you at the end of the day. You have to find the character within yourself, I think, to make it as honest as possible. So that all comes with the prep.
I think when she’s at the resort and she meets James, this is something that she’s been doing for a very long time, and James is just the latest victim of hers. Actually, I think he’s probably one of the easier victims that she’s had in her experience. I think she just sees a very insecure man who clearly has issues with his wife, and there’s an easy opening there for her to lure him in.
MF: Finally, what was it like working with Brandon Cronenberg, and was there one scene in particular that was really challenging where he gave you some direction that really helped you with that scene?
MG: I’ve been a fan of Brandon’s for a long time. Likewise, I’ve seen ‘Antiviral’ and ‘Possessor,’ and I was a big fan of his work. So I was very excited to be working with him. I found Brandon gave me a lot of space actually on set, and I really like that kind of direction actually, where there are parameters, but it’s pretty wide open. He really just lets you play and discover the character as you like.
I find the directors who micromanage you in such a way, and want you to hit the line at that point and then look in the light when you say that line, it actually just tenses me up. It was just a wonderful experience working with him. I couldn’t pinpoint one direction that Brandon gave me. The entire experience was just incredibly fulfilling.
Mia Goth as Gabi in Brandon Cronenberg’s ‘Infinity Pool.’
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Those who have yet to see Ti West’s latest horror movie, ‘X’, which hacked its way into theaters back in March might want to skip reading anything much about the new prequel movie ‘Pearl’. Just for the sake of avoiding spoilers.
But if you’ve seen and become a fan of West’s 1970s-set horror thriller, you’ll no doubt be happy to see the director revisit that story but explore it from an angle set years before.
And yes, in case you were wondering, West shot ‘Pearl’ almost concurrently with ‘X’, which explains why he’s been able to get this movie to theaters so quickly.
‘X’, of course, was set in the 1970s, and saw a group of filmmakers and actors traveling to an isolated farm to shoot a cheap porno movie. It’s there that the likes of producer Wayne (Martin Henderson, girlfriend and aspiring starlet Maxine Minx (Mia Goth), writer/director R.J. (Owen Campbell), his girlfriend and sound operator Lorraine (Jenna Ortega), and actors/couple Bobby-Lynne (Brittany Snow) and Jackson (Scott Mescudi) have rented the place from owner Howard (Stephen Ure).
Howard, though, seems none too pleased to have the crew on his property, yet the filmmakers are able to start work. The real problem comes from Howard’s wife, Pearl (Goth in a second, prosthetics-heavy role), who tries to seduce several of the crew, but slaughters them when they rebuff her. The movie opens and closes with the police arriving and discovering the bloody carnage that has gone down.
‘Pearl’ – which actually got a first teaser during the credits of ‘X’ – naturally digs into Goth’s character’s younger life.
Set in 1918, the movie follows Pearl who, trapped on her family’s isolated farm, must tend to her ailing father under the bitter and overbearing watch of her devout mother. Lusting for a glamorous life like she’s seen in the movies, Pearl’s ambitions, temptations, and repressions all collide in a murderous spree.
“Part of the idea of this movie that’s cool to me is that there is a bigger thing to it all,” West told Bloody Disgusting earlier this year. What I can tell you about ‘Pearl’, because we’ve already made it and it’s done, is it is very much a story about Pearl. So you will learn more about her. It is stylistically very different from ‘X’. You do not need one without the other, but they enrich each other in a specific way. In the way that ‘X’ is affected, let’s say by 1970s horror independent filmmaking and Americana cinema, ‘Pearl’ is influenced by a very different era of filmmaking. If we do the third one, it will be affected by a different type of cinema.”
Yes, a third is at least in development, though West isn’t saying what it might entail. We do know that Maxine is revealed to be the daughter of a preacher who has been hunting for her, but we’ll wait and see whether that ties in.
‘Pearl’ will be in theaters from September 16th.
Mia Goth as Pearl in director Ti West’s ‘X’ prequel, ‘Pearl.’
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In ‘Mayday,’ a woman named Anna (Grace Van Patten) finds herself transported to another place and time, where she and other women are fighting a war. Grace Van Patten, her co-star Soko, and writer/director Karen Cinorre recently spoke to Moviefone about their new movie.
(L to R) Mia Goth, Grace Van Patten, SoKo, and Havana Rose Liu in ‘Mayday’
First up, Grace Van Patten describes her character and what it’s like to be in every scene of a movie.
Moviefone: Could you start off telling us a little bit about your character, Anna, in this movie?
Grace Van Patten: Yes. Anna is a very fragile, broken girl when you first meet her and really goes through this journey throughout the movie in finding her inner strength and power to move on. It’s really told in such a fantastical, unique way that I was so drawn to when I read this script. It’s really a beautiful story about sisterhood and female empowerment. I’m so excited for the world to see it.
MF: I’m curious as to what the script read like when you first read it.
Van Patten: I’ve never read a script more than I read ‘Mayday.’ I read it so many times over and over because it’s a bottomless pit of meanings and different interpretations, and you could really go anywhere with it. Definitely, a big part of it was making sure all the girls were on the same page because it really, it could go in so many different directions, which is a reason I loved it, that I think anyone can find their own meaning in it and their own interpretation. The tone was so unique, and I thought it had this eeriness to it, a magic and a fantasy. It’s just nothing I’ve ever read had or seen before, really. Karen really brought what she wrote to life. It translated almost exactly how she wrote it and how she spoke about it, which is such an ode to her because that’s so hard to do, but she just knew exactly what she wanted visually and tonally.
MF: Where did you shoot this movie?
Van Patten: We shot it in Croatia.
MF: It’s beautiful, beautiful coastline that you’re shooting on.
Van Patten: It’s so gorgeous, and it looked like that in real life.
MF: How long were you there for?
Van Patten: Two and a half months, maybe.
MF: That’s a long shoot. When you’re right on the coast like that, do you have any days where you say, “I just kind of want to relax on the beach or relax by the shore.”
Van Patten: Oh, yeah. Our weekends, we would just be swimming. We were all in the same hotel, so we would just jump in the water. It got cold as it went on, but it was amazing being able to be in the water every day.
MF: You’re all in the same hotel, that makes me think that’s a chance for you guys to all really bond. I think that shows on camera. What’s that like for you as a performer to have that opportunity?
Van Patten: It was so empowering. I’ve never worked with, basically, only women before, and that was a huge part of why I wanted to do it. I can’t compare it to any other experience. It was so safe and comfortable and collaborative. These women are so badass and talented, and it was so empowering to be around them.
MF: One of the cool things about this movie is, I think that it would not pass the reverse of the Bechdel test, because there are no named male characters that have a conversation that’s not about a woman.
Van Patten: Right.
MF: That’s got to be a rare treat.
Van Patten: Yeah, it’s so unique in every way. I think you can compare the characters to other characters, but in terms of the world that Karen built, it’s really… when I finished watching it for the first time, which I haven’t seen on a big screen yet, so I’m very excited, but I really had to blink my eyes, I was really transported and those were my favorite types of movies, that I feel like I’m just living in that world for two hours or however long movie is, and I love when that happens.
MF: You’re in almost every scene of this film, almost every shot. What does that mean for you as a performer?
Van Patten: It was a lot. I’ve never done that before, so it was new for me, but so amazing because it forced me to really track everything and make sure, especially with this movie, it was so important that there was a journey and that it was evident, because in this fantasy land, things can get lost. Things can be strictly metaphorical, but we wanted to make sure that Anna had a definite journey that you saw, and that was evident. Really, thinking about before every scene, “Where are we in the movie? Has she killed anyone yet? Is she still broken? Is she gaining her power yet? Is she at full power right now?” It was really cool to be able to track that very closely,
MF: There’s a fair amount of seeing Anna on a motorcycle, when you’re shooting that, I’m guessing, are you towed behind something for those kinds of tight shots of you?
Van Patten: I wished I was riding it myself, but that was a no-go.
MF: There’s a terrific dance scene. How long does that take to choreograph, and what’s it like shooting something like that?
Van Patten: That was so fun. We choreographed that just in one day. The men had a whole different number, but I got to just jump in their arms and, hold their ties. I didn’t have much to do, but that was such an amazing scene, and I thought such a weird, unique way to tell the story.
MF: I’ve read a couple of reviews that at least one person said they want to see Karen do a musical.
Van Patten: I was just saying that in the last interview. I was like, “We need ‘Mayday’ the musical.” A strictly dance version.
MF: I would watch that! The submarine sets, I guess it goes around a sound stage someplace, right?
Van Patten: Yes, the inside was in a stage, and it was unreal. They did such an incredible job. It was so specific and so detailed. The second we walked into it, we all started tearing up. We were like, “This is our home, this is it, we’ve lived here for forever.” It felt like it just threw us right into it. It was so amazing.
MF: What’s the weapon training like?B ecause Anna picks a lot of stuff up pretty fast and turns out to be really talented.
Van Patten: We had a few days of weapon training, gun training. Anna definitely has an eye.
MF: One of the lines I loved was when Marsha says, why women are such good snipers. They can not be seen, and they can be uncomfortable for hours on end. What’s that like reading that line in the script?
Van Patten: That was, ooh, it’s hard to read because you’re like, “Oh my gosh.” It’s the fact that we all know what she’s saying is so crazy to me, but is a huge message in the movie. These women finding their power and going against what society has put them through, and Anna finding that for herself.
French musician and actor Soko talks about her character and having to smoke for the movie.
Moviefone: Can you tell me a little bit about your character, Gert, in this?
Soko: Yes. Gert’s badass, kicks asses. She’s super strong, super guarded, isn’t afraid of anything other than her weaknesses, that she’s extremely afraid of losing her friends. And that is what keeps her grounded, and that is what keeps her safe. So when you realize that any of her friend could be in danger, she realizes that she’s actually a softie and super vulnerable and extremely sensitive. She would do anything to protect her friends. Her trajectory in that sense is quite beautiful because you don’t really expect that from a character like her.
MF: How did the script read? Because the movie is so dreamlike, but also grounded in a way.
Soko: You know? I don’t know, I was reading it kind of like not really knowing. Then talking to Karen was so incredible and was the convincing part of it, because her vision was so special. She’s so passionate, she’s so clear and such a visionary. It’s like she is a visual artist, she talks poetry, she’s a real artist. And so that was the part that I was like, whatever this woman does, I want it. She is awesome. She’s very special. And there’s not a lot of people out there like her.
Then seeing the rest of the cast and everything that she was drawn to was the same kind of people that I would be drawn to too. Doing the first table read, and hearing all of them talk and hear the lines in all of their voices and laugh at moments where I didn’t really think it was funny at all when I read it, I didn’t even see how that could be funny. But hear and see everyone doing it was just amazing, like really seeing it come to life and understand Karen’s vision with meeting everyone and doing a table read was super gratifying.
MF: I just talked to Grace, and she mentioned that when you shot in Croatia, you were all staying at the same hotel…
Soko: Except me.
MF: Except you, but you were all in Croatia together.
Soko: Yes.
MF: So that had to be a really great experience. What’s that mean for you as a performer to be able to spend that much extra time with your cast?
Soko: Well, so here’s the thing. I was a very young mom when we shot. I mean, my kid was very young. So I had an apartment because I needed to have laundry and a kitchen. So I was very close to the hotel. But because my kid was so young, every time that I had, I wanted to just be with my kid. So I was a little bit more removed, but then the girls would come and hang out at the apartment. We had a few weekends where we did stuff together, and I get to meet Grace’s family and meet Havana’s partner.
Mia [Goth], Grace and I all had birthdays four days apart. So end of October, we all had birthdays on sets and that was really sweet, and it makes you feel a lot closer to people when you’re on location altogether.
MF: You don’t necessarily see Gert with a ton of weaponry, but how long was that training process for you?
Soko: Not very long. We did that for about maybe a week before we started shooting. I was supposed to be responsible for the guns, out of all the girls. So I had a lot of gun training, and I’m really not a fan of guns. And that’s an understatement. I hate guns so much. So there was a really weird trauma part in me that didn’t want to have anything to do with it. And because it’s such a big part of my belief that we shouldn’t have access to them, and that this is the cause of so much drama in the world, it was really hard to be like, yeah! I’m going to shoot guns! Fun!
I didn’t think that was fun at all.
MF: Gert smokes a lot in this movie.
Soko: Oh yeah.
MF: Do you smoke?
Soko: I’ve never smoked.
MF: So what are you smoking?
Soko: It was eucalyptus cigarettes. They burn your eyes so much, the smoke is so bad. So first of all, I’m not a smoker, so I coughed so much. And then they burn your eyes, sting your eyes!
Director Karen Cinorre talks about what inspired the movie, and how much she enjoyed working in Croatia.
Moviefone: Where did the inspiration for this story come from?
Karen Cinorre: I usually think to myself, it must have been reading about the sirens in Greek mythology when I was in high school, because I just could not help but return to that idea so many years later. And I am so fascinated with these women whose voices lured men to their demise and this concept that women’s voices are so dangerous. I wanted to know where that came from. I wanted to know who thought that and why and what it was all about. So when I set out to write a movie about a coming of age of a woman who had encountered a certain amount of violence in her life, the concept of a dangerous woman’s voice definitely resonated and became a part of that story.
MF: As you’re talking about that voice, I love that you have Marsha coaching on the subtleties like, “Oh no, sound a little more timid.” Marsha’s got so many great lines in this movie.
Cinorre: The villains always had the best lines.
MF: What was your casting process like?
Cinorre: Very traditional to start. Casting agent wonderful, Doug Aibel. Tons of women came. It was a bit overwhelming. But a little untraditional perhaps in that I knew I wanted Mia, but she was the first one on board because she reached out to me immediately and said that what she was going through in her inner life felt like it was the film. So I loved her acting. Then it was like, oh, well this is speaking to her so strongly. So then it became this experience where these women came to me one by one who were living the story already, so that became important. And it became important that everyone felt that way, because I don’t know why. It just seemed right, that if they felt like it was already inside of them, and we did this crazy film in Croatia, where I was throwing them into the sea and off of cliffs and putting them on motorcycles and exploding things all around them, that they would be these characters. They were already in it. And we would be able to achieve what we needed to achieve.
MF: I got to talk to Grace earlier today, and she said that most of you were staying in the same hotel together. I have to imagine that really brings everybody together on a working production like that.
Cinorre: It’s interesting. Normally I’d say yes, but it was the weirdest hotel in the world. It was like an endless maze. So I would say maybe it wasn’t the hotel that brought us together, but the terrain in which we shot it and the submarine and the smallness, we were all together. And I think that really, it did bring us together in this sort of harmony and this rhythm of working together that was pretty incredible.
MF: I want to talk to you about the music in this movie, because as any movie that touches on sirens, you would expect to have this haunting score. Where does that come from? What was your collaboration like with Colin Stetson and Caroline Shaw?
Cinorre: Well, we went after to Colin because his music is so innovative, and it just made sense. And luckily, the movie made a lot of sense to him, and he could hear it. He could hear what we were trying to do. He never thought for a second, as many people told me, this is a small, intimate story about four girls. It’s a little story. He never thought that. He thought it was big and cosmic and grand, and at times intimate and loving, but he got the scope and the strangeness, and it all just made perfect sense to him. And so you have a good collaborator when you don’t have to explain anything to them. Same with Caroline. She was the voices of the sirens, and she just knew, and she’s so talented with her voice and she created voices, unlike anything I’ve ever heard. I mean, this music that came to the film is one of the greatest gifts I have ever received.
MF: The one scene when they’re outside, and you see the lights all over the coast and the music almost sounds like Morse code in places.
Cinorre: I love Morse code and all code. There’s a lot of Morse code. There’s some number stations and different women’s voices and static and things you catch from the air fragments of language. And I believe that is actually where you start to hear some other languages from around the world. You really get to do a lot with sound design, and I just love sound design for that.
MF: I’m curious, as a creator, you write the script, and you make your plans to direct, but you don’t see it all come together until post-production. What’s that feeling like?
Cinorre: Oh, it’s awful at first because… So you’ve created of this thing that sings and the tone is there, and it’s on the paper. And then you go out into the cliffs and the wind and the water and the storms and the chaos and the rain and everything goes crazy because it’s chaos, shooting is chaos. And then you have to get back to the song, right? So you have to… So at first you look at it, and it’s normal, but it feels terrible, because you can’t see it because you have this massive hunk of footage. So then you just go about the work of sculpting it. It’s a big piece of marble, you could say, and you just keep adding, keep adding, keep adding, make the balance. And then you get back to the thing you were trying to say in the first place. And it’s there, it’s just quite a lot of work to get there.
When things start working together, when the cutting is working and the pacing is working, and you’re getting it, and you’re starting to hear that song you first heard again, you just hear it, and you’re like, “Oh, there it is.” It’s so exciting. It’s so exciting. And then new things happen that you didn’t even think would happen and that’s really, really, really special and probably the most magical thing of all. Is that something you didn’t expect out of a performance or something you never imagined, the music could have sounded like it is presented to you, and then you get to work it in to what you already wanted to do, and it’s thrilling.
MF: I don’t want to give anything away to people who haven’t seen the movie, but there’s a dance number in the middle of the movie that’s gorgeous. And I can’t have been the first person to say to you, are you going to direct a musical anytime soon? But my real question is, how long did it take to choreograph that scene?
Cinorre: Interesting. So I come from a dance background. I studied dance for quite a while. So I wrote it out as choreography in the script. They’re taking off the jackets. I knew what some of the gestures were, and so that was there. It was written in, baked in, so to speak. And then I worked with a Croatian choreographer who would train the dancers to do some of these movements on her own. And then she brought them to this crazy hotel in a conference room the night before we shot, and we worked on it a bit. Then a lot of it had to be worked out on the field because until we really got there, we couldn’t really see what was possible. And it was a cow field covered in cow manure and ditches. We really had to work the number around it quite a bit, but the boys were very game, and we had a lot of fun, for sure.
MF: Did you get any reaction as people were reading the script to come across that scene and have people think, “Oh, what’s going on here?”
Cinorre: It’s interesting. I get that question a lot. People ask, “Did anyone ever ask you to take it out?” But it’s funny, it’s most people’s favorite part of the movie. I think that there’s something about synchronized movement that brings people joy. And for some reason I was able to build around it, so it didn’t feel like it was an appendage. It’s built into the story, so no one noticed it on the page in that kind of way. And luckily it worked. I mean, something like that certainly could fail, but it does seem to be people’s favorite part of the movie.
‘Mayday‘ is in select theaters and on demand and digital.
What Movies Are Out – Fist Fight and A Cure for Wellness
A variety of scares await audiences at the box office this weekend, from Ice Cube‘s menacing glare in the comedy “Fist Fight” to hide-your-eyes shocks in the horror flick “A Cure for Wellness,” and Made in Hollywood has all the behind-the-screen details in this week’s episode.
On the receiving end of much of Cube’s patented intimidation was costar Charlie Day, who wonders whether the rapper-turned-actor was born with that mean look.
“You think he came out scowling?” Days jokes to Made in Hollywood reporter Patrick Stinson. “It was intimidating. The stuff that we had to do face-to-face, I had a hard time looking him in the eye and keeping a straight face. But he can just lock own that scowl and stare you down.”
More movie scares come from “A Cure for Wellness,” described by star Dane DeHaan as “the kind of movie that will have a ton if different reactions. I think it’s the kind of movie that, yes, they’ll be terrified, yeah, they will go on this wild ride.”
Director Gore Verbinski tells reporter Damaris Diaz where he finds the frights.
“For something to be scare it has to tap into the: What is it about us? What’s a contemporary fear? Why are we vulnerable to the pharmaceutical industry?” he says.
And if all goes according to plan, says costar Jason Isaacs, “You’ll go on a journey full of dread and creepiness and fear and surprise and shock, and by the end you’ll have one of those big experiences like a workout.”
Now in its 12th season and airing every week in syndication across the United States, Made in Hollywood takes you to the set with directors, writers and producers, gives you an inside look at what’s new in theaters and on the home screen, and shows how special effects and tech wizards pull off their complex magic to bring the biggest blockbusters to life. Made In Hollywood is produced and distributed by Connection III Entertainment Corp.
