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Tag: wrenn-schmidt

  • ‘Nuremberg’ Interview: Michael Shannon and John Slattery

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    Opening in theaters on November 7th is the new historical drama ‘Nuremberg‘, which was written and directed by James Vanderbilt (‘Truth’), and stars Oscar winners Rami Malek (‘Bohemian Rhapsody’) and Russell Crowe (‘Gladiator’), as well as Michael Shannon (‘The Shape of Water’), John Slattery (‘Spotlight’), Colin Hanks (‘Nobody 2’), and Richard E. Grant (‘Can You Forgive Me?’).

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    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Michael Shannon and John Slattery about their work on ‘Nuremberg’, Slattery’s first reaction to the screenplay and collaborating with director James Vanderbilt on set, as well as Shannon’s approach to his character and working with Rami Malek.

    (L to R) Michael Shannon and John Slattery star in 'Nuremberg'.
    (L to R) Michael Shannon and John Slattery star in ‘Nuremberg’.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews.

    Related Article: Michael Shannon Talks Director Joshua Oppenheimer’s Musical ‘The End’

    (L to R) Rami Malek as Lt. Col. Douglas Kelley, Colin Hanks as Dr. Gustave Gilbert, John Slattery as Col. Burton C. Andrus in ‘Nuremberg’. Photo: Scott Garfield. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.
    (L to R) Rami Malek as Lt. Col. Douglas Kelley, Colin Hanks as Dr. Gustave Gilbert, John Slattery as Col. Burton C. Andrus in ‘Nuremberg’. Photo: Scott Garfield. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

    Moviefone: To begin with, John, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay and the importance of telling this story?

    John Slattery: My first reaction was I don’t think I’m the man to play this part. I thought, I don’t have it in me. I said to James, “If you want what’s on the page, then you probably should find someone else because how am I going to run that room and preside over that group?” He convinced me to do it my own way, or we’d figure out a way to do it. That’s coupled with, of course, wanting to be in it and wanting to be a part of such a great story. So, I was daunted by the challenge of it, but certainly wanted to be a part of it. I think Michael, Rami and Russell were already set. So, who wouldn’t want to be a part of that group?

    MF: Michael, can you talk about your approach to playing Robert H. Jackson, the pressure on him to win this trial and what’s at stake if he doesn’t?

    Michael Shannon: Well, I just did a lot of research. I didn’t know much about Robert Jackson, or hardly anything really, going into it, so I had a lot to learn. Obviously, you know, he kind of brings this all upon himself because the trials are his idea. A lot of people in the American government thought if we caught Nazis, we should just execute them, and he went out of his way to establish this tribunal and so he reaped what he sowed to that extent. But thank God he did it because it was a brilliant idea, and he was right. But he sacrificed a bit of his own professional trajectory to accomplish it. I wish what he had set in motion was as strong now as what he established back then.

    Michael Shannon as Robert H. Jackson in ‘Nuremberg’. Photo: Scott Garfield. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.
    Michael Shannon as Robert H. Jackson in ‘Nuremberg’. Photo: Scott Garfield. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

    MF: Michael, can you also talk about Jackson’s working relationship with Douglas Kelly as it’s depicted in the film and creating that relationship on screen with Rami Malek?

    MS: Well, I’m so charmed by Rami all the time. I mean, he’s so alive. He’s so much fun to work with, even in in a story and situation like this. You know, in the book, ‘The Nazi and the Psychiatrist’, which the film is based on, you don’t really see too much interplay between Jackson and Kelly. It really focuses on his time with the Nazis in the prison, but I really love doing that scene in the stadium where I lay out to him why what we’re doing is so important. I’m glad it’s in the story and I loved shooting that with him because he was such an amazing listener to play off. Anytime you have a speech like that, you hope whoever you’re saying it to is listening to what you’re saying, and he was always. Yeah, I love him.

    MF: Finally, John, what was it like collaborating with writer and director James Vanderbilt on set and helping him to execute his vision for this project?

    JS: I mean, you couldn’t find a more enthusiastic leader who fortunately had written the script, so we had a resource and wealth of ideas. He was collaborative, excited, tireless and funny, and I couldn’t have had a better experience from the moment I met him till now. He was willing to try things. He was willing to adjust and to accommodate. This cast has very different energies between Russell, Rami, Michael, Richard Grant, Leo (Woodall) and me. There’s a lot of different methods of working and he accommodated all of them, at least speaking for myself. I couldn’t have had a more willing partner.

    (L to R) Leo Woodall and James Vanderbilt on the set of ‘Nuremberg’. Photo: Scott Garfield. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.
    (L to R) Leo Woodall and James Vanderbilt on the set of ‘Nuremberg’. Photo: Scott Garfield. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

    What is the plot of ‘Nuremberg’?

    During the Nuremberg trials, chief psychiatrist Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) interviews Nazi military members to determine whether they are fit to stand trial. There, he enters a “battle of wits” against Adolf Hitler’s right-hand man, Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe).

    Who is in the cast of ‘Nuremberg’?

    'Nuremberg’ opens in theaters on November 7th.
    ‘Nuremberg’ opens in theaters on November 7th.

    List of Michael Shannon Movies and TV Shows:

    Buy Tickets: ‘Nuremberg’ Movie Showtimes

    Buy Michael Shannon Movies On Amazon

     

  • ‘The Starling Girl’ Interview: Jimmi Simpson

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    Opening in New York and Los Angeles theaters on May 12th, and expanding to additional theaters on May 19th is the new drama ‘The Starling Girl,’ which was written and directed by Laurel Parmet (‘Spring’).

    What is the plot of ‘The Starling Girl?’

    Seventeen-year-old Jem Starling (Eliza Scanlen) struggles to define her place within her fundamentalist Christian community in rural Kentucky. Even her greatest joy of dancing with the church group is tempered by worry that her actions are sinful and she is caught between a burgeoning awareness of her own sexuality and her religious devotion. With the return of Owen (Lewis Pullman), an enigmatic youth pastor, Jem soon finds herself attracted to his worldliness and charm. Slowly, he draws her into a dangerous relationship that could upend their entire community.

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    Who is in the cast of ‘The Starling Girl?’

    ‘The Starling Girl’ stars Eliza Scanlen (‘Little Women‘) as Jem Starling, Lewis Pullman (‘Top Gun: Maverick‘) as Owen Taylor, Jimmi Simpson (‘Under the Silver Lake’) as Paul Starling, Wrenn Schmidt (‘Nope’) as Heidi Starling, Austin Abrams (‘Gangster Squad’) as Ben Taylor, and Kyle Secor (‘The Purge: Election Year’) as Pastor Taylor.

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Jimmi Simpson about his work on ‘The Starling Girl,’ his character’s journey, the pain he feels, his faith, his relationship with his daughter, and working with actress Eliza Scanlen.

    Jimmi Simpson in Bleecker Street's 'The Starling Girl.'
    Jimmi Simpson in Bleecker Street’s ‘The Starling Girl.’ Credit: Brian Lannin, Courtesy of Bleecker Street.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Simpson, Eliza Scanlen, Lewis Pullman, Wrenn Schmidt, and director Laurel Parmet.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about the pain Paul is in, how he’s tried to replace alcohol with faith, and your approach to playing the character?

    Jimmi Simpson: I mean, the script is so beautiful throughout, but Paul was a real firm draw for me because like Paul and like most humans, I’ve found that my life was unfulfilling, and then you hear society or groups of friends, because as humans we’re all rudderless, we need these guideposts sometimes and well, this one works. So, instead of unpacking why he is medicating, I wanted to be emotionally available telling these stories when he’s clearly meant to be a musician. Instead of unpacking why he’s got to medicate, he’s just like, “Okay, so that doesn’t work, so I’m going to go here.” It’s a pretty universally prescribed way to save yourself, this one in particular, and it crushes him. What was so relatable to me was, yeah, I’ve done that. You put yourself into this position that starts crushing you, and as you’re diminishing, it’s painful and you’re like, “Oh, it’s hurting. It must be working. This must be the right thing.” In reality, you just put yourself in the position that you’re not supposed to be in because it’s so universally prescribed, but sometimes it’s a diet or a cult or just an affinity for a thing. But in this situation, 20 years later, the love of his life, Gem, I think he believes if he just gets to her sooner, it will work, which is so sweet, sad and incorrect. So, his subtext to her is like, “Babe, maybe I haven’t impressed the elders, but I swear this is better than the other path.” What he’s doing throughout the story, and Laurel just articulated it so perfectly, he’s saying with his words what she should be doing, but he’s showing her with his actions, what exactly she should not be doing. She knows how much he loves her and she loves him too so much. I think they’re very kind of intimately connected spiritually, and I mean spiritual in a human sense. So, having that bond with so much weight, and he’s giving himself to all these things and all she sees is that’s me, and that can’t be me. Ultimately, that is me. I don’t want that for myself, and I think humans, we have this fear of change because it’s so hard and it causes so many questions. I think the movie is just kind of offering to folks this feeling that you’re not where you should be. Listen to it. Isn’t it beautiful the way that it’s not judging religion, not all of it. Most of us would be like, “This is so patriarchy, I can’t stand it,” but it’s not about that.

    Jimmi Simpson, Eliza Scanlen, and Wrenn Schmidt in Bleecker Street's 'The Starling Girl.'
    (L to R) Jimmi Simpson, Eliza Scanlen, and Wrenn Schmidt in Bleecker Street’s ‘The Starling Girl.’ Credit: Brian Lannin, Courtesy of Bleecker Street.

    Related Article: Actor Lewis Pullman Talks Romantic Drama ‘Press Play’

    MF: Finally, can you talk about the father/daughter relationship between Jem and Paul, and working on that relationship with Eliza Scanlen?

    JS: It’s that quiet kind of unbreakable bond of, again, extremes to tell the story of the two prisoners who aren’t at freedom to talk about how uncomfortable this is, but what they do is they see each other’s pain. Again, that’s just human propensity to be like, “Oh, there’s others. Now I feel a little less alone. I feel more connected.” In it’s really strict circumstances like this or prison, you can’t sit there and chat about it, but you do have each other. Then, on set, Eliza is a blessing of a human being, and you wouldn’t think knowing her that she’s going to step in front of the camera and both completely disappear, yet retain every ounce of soul and humanity that she has, and that was that. So, we became instant, great buddies effortlessly, and so we were able to just kind of bring that care for each other in the kind of text free exchanges that we have. I think you can kind of feel the love that’s not articulated with words.

    Jimmi Simpson and Wrenn Schmidt in Bleecker Street's 'The Starling Girl.'
    (L to R) Jimmi Simpson and Wrenn Schmidt in Bleecker Street’s ‘The Starling Girl.’ Credit: Brian Lannin, Courtesy of Bleecker Street.

    Other Movies Similar to ‘The Starling Girl:’

    Buy Jimmi Simpson Movies on Amazon

    ‘The Starling Girl’ is produced by 2AM, Pinky Promise, and Sons of Rigor. It is set to release in New York and Los Angeles theaters on May 12th, and will expand to additional theaters on May 19th.