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beer
L-L1
 
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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  Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 8:23 pm |
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Thhhhaattt's right, dudes. Peter Weller will be on hand to show a newly remastered digital print of RoboCop and do a Q&A. Weller will be there Saturday, May 19th.
http://events.latimes.com/herocomplexfilmfest/
Please tell how your experiece was! Was Weller Nice? how looked the new digital print? theater full packed? were there gifts? could you buy some ROBOCOP products?
Please tell us.
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 8:42 pm |
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No talk about the digital print, how it looked!
http://herocomplex.latimes.com/2012/05/20/peter-weller-modern-movies-cant-replicate-morality-of-robocop/#/0
| Quote: | Movies today lack the “morality” found in 1987′s “RoboCop,” the film’s star Peter Weller told the audience at the Hero Complex Film Festival on Saturday afternoon.
The Q&A — at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles — followed a screening of the director’s cut of Paul Verhoeven’s film, in which Weller plays a police officer who is transformed into a cyborg to patrol the streets of a dystopic Detroit. “RoboCop” topped the box office when it opened, eventually earning more than $53 million domestically.
Hero Complex writer Geoff Boucher, who moderated the chat, asked Weller, 64, his thoughts on a possible remake of the film.
“I could give a …,” Weller said. “I say God bless ‘em, man, go make another ‘RoboCop.’ … I don’t know, you can throw a lot of CGI at it and so forth. The morality that’s endemic to the movie that you just watched is hard to replicate. It makes you laugh and cry and moves you, and it’s hysterical and horrible and all those unbelievable things at once.”
Weller would not reveal much about his role in J.J. Abrams’ upcoming “Star Trek” sequel, but he did talk about directing an upcoming A&E series “Longmire,” a modern-day Western about a widowed Wyoming sheriff, played by Robert Taylor (“The Matrix”). Weller has enjoyed a robust directing career in recent years, including episodes of “House M.D.,” “Monk” and “Sons of Anarchy.”
“A lot of things I don’t do well; I don’t do warm and fuzzy well,” Weller said. “But you know, motorcycles and guns and horses and car wrecks and bar fights and hookers, that’s my thing.”
Despite the self-deprecating assessment, Weller has become known for his more high-brow pursuits. He is a PhD candidate in Italian Renaissance art history, and a professor at Syracuse University. During the Q&A, Weller slipped into a professorial role, lecturing festival-goers on topics ranging from the films of Michelangelo Antonioni and the art of Giotto di Bondone, to slavery and gay rights, and quizzing the audience throughout the lecture.
“Art has absolutely changed my life,” he said. “All of art, even movies, especially movies, is just a continuum of images that tell stories, all the way back to the freaking caves of Lascaux. … So you can’t help but learn movies by looking at art.”
Weller said he has never been a fan of science-fiction, except for the works of Philip K. Dick, who had “a vision of social suppression and social history,” he said. He also talked about “RoboCop” in the context of social history.
“I’d forgotten how profound these writers are,” Weller said. “They’re not only funny, but there’s extraordinarily acerbic social obsessions, like board games called Nukem! … The movie starts off with a last-bastion holdout of apartheid against black South Africa. That’s the first damn thing you see in ‘RoboCop,’ is essentially white suppression about to go down the toilet. And the film is laced with that stuff, not to mention the themes of redemption and resurrection.”
Weller recently saw the film during a 25th-anniversary screening in Dallas.
“I had the first time, I had to say, that I got past the hoopla of the film and was genuinely proud to be a part of it, really proud to be part of this film, and could see how anthropological it is,” he said. “I mean, I think you could watch it in 100 years, and it would resonate.”
Weller’s goals as an actor and a director have changed over the years, partly because of the generational turnover in Hollywood. He shared a story about teaching a film class at Syracuse University, and none of his students had seen Paul Newman or Marlon Brando’s films.
“So I’m thinking well, here’s what I’m gonna do. I’m just gonna be real grateful to be on any freaking movie set for the rest of my life,” he said. “The goals are not about the sweet smell of success as much as it’s about enjoying a damn day on the movie set. … I live in a complete state of grace.”
The festival continues Sunday with screenings of the Pixar robot love story “Wall-E” and Joss Whedon’s sci-fi western “Serenity,” as well as Q&A’s with Andrew Stanton and Nathan Fillion.
– Noelene Clark |
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 1:54 pm |
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Not a single person from this forum went to this event? i thought Vegasrobo was going or am i wrong?
Here's a new article again about the festival.
http://collider.com/robocop-hero-complex-peter-weller/167614/
Recap of the ROBOCOP Hero Complex Screening With Peter Weller
by Tommy Cook Posted:May 20th, 2012 at 4:34 pm
| Quote: | This weekend Hero Complex in association with The Los Angeles Times hosted the third annual Hero Complex Film Festival. Highlights to which included a screening of Shaun of the Dead with Edgar Wright, Wall-E with director Andrew Stanton and A Clockwork Orange with star Malcolm McDowell.
I was on hand Saturday for the fest at a midday screening of Paul Verhoeven’s seminal satirical ultraviolent masterpiece RoboCop. Star Peter Weller appeared after the screening for a lengthy and animated Q&A wherein he discussed prepping for RoboCop, learning to appreciate the satirical bend of the film and his thoughts on a hypothetical remake, among many other topics of conversation. For highlights from the Q&A, hit the jump.
What robocop-peter-wellerfollows are highlights from the Peter Weller RoboCop Q&A moderated by Geoff Boucher:
Weller recounted three weeks prior in Dallas, he sat down and watched RoboCop for the first time in twenty so odd years. “For the first time” he stated, “I was able to get past all the hoopla of the film.” Weller informed he was “really proud” of RoboCop – noting the “anthropological” concerns of the film will continue to make it “relevant even a hundred years hence”.
Weller prefers the uncut director’s cut to the theatrical rendition, observing that the extra violence in the former makes the movie funnier. The first over-the-top death sequence featuring an employee getting shredded by the malfunctioning ED-209 goes on quite a bit longer in Verhoeven’s X-rated cut. Weller informed that it took “seventeen times” for the MPAA to let the scene pass, by which time the number of shots the employee endures had been cut way down. But Weller was quick to point out that the lessened run-time only makes the violence starker and more horrifying. Whereas the longer the poor unfortunate subservient employee is riddled with bullets, the more absurd and by proxy humorous the scene becomes.
peter-weller-robocopOn prepping for RoboCop: Weller stated it was “one of the most judiciously disciplined” acting preps he’s ever undergone. He worked six months with his Julliard acting coach just to perfect RoboCop’s singular walk. He wanted to avoid playing into the “sentimentality of the film” – in particular when RoboCop returns to his abandoned home and then when he finally takes off his helmet. “I didn’t want to fall into the cry-baby thing… Let the audience make the emotional connection for themselves.” He also noted that Rob Bottin’s stellar makeup for RoboCop took about six and a half hours to put on and then another hour and fifty minutes to take off. “My face would look like a giant zit for seventy two hours afterwards.”
Weller admitted he has “no flair or interest” in science fiction despite his film roles. Philip K. Dick is the only exception. (Of interest: Weller seems particularly fond of his film Screamers, which is itself based on the Dick novella ‘Second Variety’). “There’s something very Zen… Buddhist [about Dick]… this theme that if you build something – that’s you, that these objects have a real life.”
peter-weller-buckaroo-banzaiWeller briefly touched upon his time working with Michelangelo Antonioni (on the little seen Beyond the Clouds) – saying that it was “great experience”. Antonioni – Weller opined – was profoundly invested in the void between man and woman and the impossibility of ever fully understanding your significant other. “His films” – he stated yet – “are only beautiful if you leave them alone.”
On Buckaroo Banzai: Weller related an exchange he and John Lithgow had backstage before an honoring of the film at the Lincoln Center years prior. Kevin Smith was on stage extolling their virtues of the film and hyping up the eager crowd; Weller, listening in, turned to Lithgow, shrugging – “Do you understand anything that happens in the film?” Lithgow: “No… You?” Weller: “Not a clue.”
Weller on a hypothetical RoboCop remake: “I could give a shit… Good luck to them but they’ll never [equal] the original.” |
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 2:05 pm |
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I'm glad i wans't there! even Rick Baker made fun of him. (Peter Weller)
I always thought Weller was Crazy.
http://www.firstshowing.net/2012/hero-complex-film-festival-12-peter-weller-clockwork-orange-super/
Hero Complex Film Fest '12: Peter Weller, 'A Clockwork Orange', 'Super'
by Ben Pearson
May 20, 2012
| Quote: | While the first night of the third annual Hero Complex Film Festival was all about zombies, the movies presented on the second day covered much more cinematic ground than just one genre. The day started with a screening of Paul Verhoven's 1987 film Robocop, with by a very bizarre Q&A with star Peter Weller. Legendary makeup specialist Rick Baker was also a surprise guest, followed by a Q&A with Malcolm McDowell and a screening of Stanley Kubrick's 1971 classic A Clockwork Orange. James Gunn's 2010 indie film Super finished off the night, with a Q&A from Gunn and star Rainn Wilson, too. More below!
Following the screening of the more violent director's cut of Robocop, star Peter Weller came out dressed in Native American leather jacket and proceeded to give one of the strangest public speeches I've ever heard. Moderator Geoff Boucher could barely get a word in edgewise as Weller launched into an aggressive series of lectures about art history, sociology, anthropology, and "art as a continuum" that lasted an entire hour. Confused? You're not the only one. This was not what anyone was expecting from a post-Robocop Q&A, mostly because Weller only briefly touched on the movie before bouncing into the next tangent about a film class he once taught, directing a TV series for A&E, or any number of bizarre segues that left the audience with our mouths hanging open in disbelief. It truly was one of those "you had to be there" moments, but unless you're a fan of spectacularly weird interviews, you're probably glad you weren't there for this section.
Seven-time Oscar winner Rick Baker came out after Weller wrapped up his lecture, immediately making fun of Weller's antics by saying that once you give an actor a microphone, they just won't shut up. He spoke about his long and storied career, explained how he embraced digital technology in the early days to avoid becoming obsolete, pronounced his work in Harry and the Hendersons as his personal favorite of his own work, and praised the practical effects in John Carpenter's The Thing as his favorite effects that he did not do himself. He's a funny, genial guy who clearly loves his job, and he has a childlike sense of giddiness about him when he shared stories about working on Tim Burton's Ed Wood. He also brought along the head of one of the aliens from Men in Black 3, which looked very cool and had multiple rows of eyes. Even sitting twenty feet away in the crowd, I could see the immense detail that went into this creation, and this was just one of over 100 aliens he and his team designed for that film.
Actor Malcolm McDowell is 68 years old, but he's still a charismatic dude who really knows how to work a crowd. He told stories about working with Stanley Kubrick, and admitted when he was first cast in A Clockwork Orange, he got the names mixed up and thought he'd be working for director Stanley Kramer. He was moved at times, remembering the time he shared with Stanley Kubrick, but lightened the mood by recounting a story about coming to Hollywood during the film's release and being introduced to Gene Kelly, who was not too thrilled with the way McDowell completely subverted Singin' in the Rain during a rape scene (Kelly looked him up and down, and then stormed away without saying a word). He also poked fun at Star Trek and praised Abrams' updated movies, saying that they gave the series a much-needed spark.
I missed James Gunn's Super when it came out in America back in 2011, and though I missed out on a pretty awesome movie, I'm glad my first viewing of it was on the big screen with an audience. I said earlier that this day of the festival didn't seem to have any connective tissue like the first night's zombie theme, but after seeing Super, that may not be true; all three of today's movies were extremely violent. Wilson and Gunn addressed that in their Q&A, emphasizing the death of a certain beloved character that I won't spoil here. They are both really proud of how this is a small movie that has elements of action, drama, romance, and superhero movies, all with a kind of low budget cult classic vibe. It was another solid day of movies at this year's Hero Complex Film Festival, which you can find out about here. Final day's recap coming soon. |
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vegasrobo
C-L4
Joined: 02 Oct 2004
Post Count: 1640
Comment: Vegas Baby!!!
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| Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 4:16 pm |
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No i did'nt go in the end..Just too much with what occured for me too go.
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 5:13 pm |
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| vegasrobo : | | No i did'nt go in the end..Just too much with what occured for me too go. |
I understand vegas.
Maybe if you feel a bit better later this month, the 31th May.
There´s the real big Aniversary of ROBOCOP in LA.
http://www.robocoparchive.com/board/viewtopic.php?t=2859
THE WHOLE GANG IS THERE. Verhoeven, Tippet, Nancy Allen, Peter Weller, and many many more, click the link for information.
Maybe you can take some medication?
Join us for a post-show conversation led by TFT Dean Emeritus, Bob Rosen, featuring (schedules permitting) Paul Verhoeven (director), UCLA alumnus Peter Weller (Alex Murphy/RoboCop), Nancy Allen (Anne Lewis), UCLA alumnus Ed Neumeier, UCLA alumnus Michael Miner (co-writer), Phil Tippett (ED-209 visual effects designer) and numerous additional cast/crew members to be announced soon! Do not miss this once in a lifetime event!
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vegasrobo
C-L4
Joined: 02 Oct 2004
Post Count: 1640
Comment: Vegas Baby!!!
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| Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 7:17 pm |
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Maybe you can take some medication?
No just raw dogging it,Drugs or not it happened..
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 5:38 am |
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| vegasrobo : | Maybe you can take some medication?
No just raw dogging it,Drugs or not it happened.. |
I hope you will feel better soon.
Here a video of Weller on youtube.com
Seven-time Oscar winner Rick Baker came out after Weller wrapped up his lecture, immediately making fun of Weller's antics by saying that once you give an actor a microphone, they just won't shut up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6uRlUxWhTk
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Johan
Archive Dictator
Joined: 17 Nov 2001
Post Count: 5552
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 6:17 pm |
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I almost didn't recognise Weller in that video. His voice was very familiar of course but he looked really different here.
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 10:08 pm |
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| Johan : | | I almost didn't recognise Weller in that video. His voice was very familiar of course but he looked really different here. |
He looked really stressed to me and old, his face face was red like a tomato.
The days of Weller are over.
Even Rick Baker's comment is a WTF moment.
Seven-time Oscar winner Rick Baker came out after Weller wrapped up his lecture, immediately making fun of Weller's antics by saying that once you give an actor a microphone, they just won't shut up.
Don't think this was a funny way. Rick Baker was serious.
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 10:58 pm |
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| Johan : | | I almost didn't recognise Weller in that video. His voice was very familiar of course but he looked really different here. |
One more review.
http://www.slashfilm.com/hero-complex-film-festival-2012-recap-featuring-scenes-stories-clockwork-orange-serenity-walle-shaun-dead/
RoboCop – Q&A Featuring Star Peter Weller
At the time of release, RoboCop held the record for most times rejected for an R rating by the MPAA.
Peter Weller calls the movie “anthropological” and believes in 100 years people will still be able to watch it and get something out it.
Late in the film, when RoboCop finally takes off his mask, Weller purposely softened his voice but never told director Paul Verhoeven what he was going to do.
The face make up for those scenes took 6.5 hours and it took 1.5 hours to put on the suit. Eight hours on set before filming could even begin. Then two hours to take it off.
At this point, Weller began to get into genius, PhD professor mode. He tells the audience Blade Runner isn’t about Harrison Ford, it’s about slavery. “Did you miss that?” Phillip K. Dick was writing about civil rights long before the Civil Rights movement.
On the topic of a RoboCop remake, Weller says “I could give a shit.” Wishes everyone luck but thinks “it’s hard to replicate the morality that endemic” to the film.
He talks about how in some of his classes, well over 90% of his fellow classmates (or students for that matter) haven’t seen any works by Paul Newman, movies as iconic as Jaws, anything Brando pre-Godfather. He uses this as an example of our celebrity driven, uncultured society.
He hates, hates, hates a process trailer, a rig that allows actors to “drive” a car while acting. But really they’re just getting pulled. Weller would get rid of them all if he could and points to Denzel Washington’s long monologues not looking at the road in Training Day as a particularly egregious example.
Note: Peter Weller spoke for well over and hour and was captivating. It might seem eccentric, but he was making brilliant points, engaging with the audience, it was pretty spectacular. He’s a genius.
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Sean_001
You can take my children, but you leave me my Monkey.
Joined: 20 Mar 2003
Post Count: 2024
Comment: JOINED as RoboSean: December 2001
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| Posted: Wed May 23, 2012 1:55 pm |
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Eccentricity has always been marked with the flair for the over-usage of vocabulary.
...Pun.
I say, you can't fault a guy for having a great vocabulary and the savvy to use it. Some, if not all, of the most brilliant minds have always been Eccentric. Goes with the territory.
Weller makes very valid points about the general mental de-evolution of today's society. But I retort, class and culture come with age and experience. A little hope for the youth wouldn't be a bad thing.
Yes, at times Weller's need to use synonyms to everyday words does annoy me. But I find that the most annoying traits of a person, can be the very same traits we dislike about ourselves at times.
Then again, Ol' Weller could just be an "Attention-Whore". 
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beer
L-L1
Joined: 08 Mar 2012
Post Count: 468
Comment: atheism is the cure for humankind
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| Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2012 7:59 am |
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Finally, the complete video of that event arrived.
Geoff Boucher sat down with Peter Weller at the Hero Complex Film Festival to discuss the legacy of RoboCop and its 25th Anniversary.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uDYcNS25wg
Never knew that Weller changed the voice later in the movie by himself, not directed by Paul. Apparently Verhoeven didn´t hear it, till the end of the movie.
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Josh
Lover Extraordinaire!
Joined: 05 Aug 2006
Post Count: 5959
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| Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2012 10:57 am |
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Cool find Beer.
I skipped through it but I've bookmarked it to watch when I've got more time.
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Who was at Hero Clomplex LA May 19 New Digital Print ROBOCOP
