Posted by Charlton Heston at 209.248.26.4 on December 20, 2000 at 13:43:21:
In Reply to: Questions for Kevin posted by mr. e on December 20, 2000 at 12:32:24:
Yet another in a series of movies about poor whiney little brats who can't get off of their collective asses and make a stake for themselves. Blame society; Blame your parents; When is it your turn to take some of the blame! You sicken me. If you would have bothered to read the summaries, you would have found out that Mr. Smith cannot accept scripts for legal reasons; Much as the same as to why I am not aloud with 500 yards of the Warner Bros. Bldg.
: Hi, Kevin. You don't how nice it feels writing straight to you. I must choose my words carefully, for I have never, however indirectly, communicated with someone I hold in such high regard. How many film-makers as successful as you take the time to reply to posts from their fans (that's not my question).
: Anyway, I don't doubt you've heard this more than you most certainly need to, but I'll tell you. I'm an 18 year old aspiring writer-director-producer-cinematographer and so on. Technically though, I'm just now a writer. I've written a feature and two shorts, and have started about four or five other features. It might be obvious to tell you what a positive influence you've been with my writing. You are not only one of the funniest screenwriters of all time, but also one of the most poignant, not to mention a competent actor, and an excellent director.
: I've done my best to find what I could on you over the old Web, interviews and stuff, and like your films, you constantly amuse and enrich. I've read you referring to your films as "un-adult" (that may not be an "actual" quote). Though this may be true, it remains a fact that the genius you’ve poured into mainstream movies will never fade, for the simple reason that they are amazingly superior to them. You’ve explored very relevant issues, love lost, suppressed homosexuality and the touchy taboos of modern religion. You exhibit well the virtue of modesty, my friend. You have carved the most unique of niches in modern cinema.
: Which brings me to my questions:
: How involved do you make yourself in your films? What I mean is how much of what I see and hear is attributed to you? It may seem frivolous to ask, but if you could, tell me just how you do what you do, on the set especially. Are you the kind of director that demands perfection out of his cast and crew? Or do you let the cinematographer do what he will with little direction, and have the cast improvise? What is your work ethic? Both as a business man and a creative artist. How do you balance out these overlapping tasks?
: I’ve read that you probably won’t be making movies forever. Is this because you consider yourself more of a writer than a director? You write comics and movies and I don’t know what else, but I do know that you have much, much more than just a knack for it. You write with mastermind like humour. Its brilliance can be compared to a mathematical formula, for the inherent truth within it. Even when you are responding to posts you display perfect wit. Your writing, or anything that stems from your brain remains constant with the opinions and ideas expressed in your films, and therefore when I read what you say or write, I learn more about the inimitable world you’ve created in them. In fact, I’ve noticed that “no less” is a particular reoccurring line, and one you’ve used in at least one interview. I believe that you have the ability to write an extraordinary novel. The detail, the complexity, the heaviness. Not all screenwriters have this talent. Would you like to tackle the novel one day?
: This question is a bit of a long shot, because I know that you are a busy, busy man. However, if I e-mailed my screenplay to you, would you actually read it? This is the only means of which I have to get the opinion of such a talented writer, and believe me, any response would be infinitely appreciated. Just so you can make an informed decision on whether or not you’d like to take the time to read it, I’ll fill you in on the main idea.
: In high school, as you probably know, not too much gets accomplished. I myself smoked more weed at school than most would think, and although I graduated on the first try, I can’t help but feel I cheated myself out of some more knowledge. I’m trying to make up for it now. Isn’t it ironic that the educational system actually inhibits education? The will to learn is usually unleashed after high school. Anyway, my screenplay deals with four self guided misfits who waste their education by smoking weed, drinking, complaining and just downright being lazy. My intent is to satirize not only the educational system, and the ugly social system of high school, but also the broader society we live in. Through the eyes of the four misguided brats, parents are unloving and uninvolved, teachers are corrupt and useless, peers are idiots and the world is against them. They, however, are perfect. They are the centrally criticized components of the film, anti-heroes.
: Anywho, that’s it for me. Thanks for reading all the way down to this point in the post.
: P.S: You’re right, we do need more killer shark movies.
: Posse out, yo!