About the Production
VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA is a film that is indelibly linked to its location. "When I began writing the script, I wasn't thinking of anything other than creating a story that had Barcelona as a character," says Allen. "I wanted to honor Barcelona, because I love the city very much, and I love Spain in general," he says. "It's a city full of visual beauty and the sensibility of the city is quite romantic. A story like this could only happen in a place like Paris or Barcelona."
When the film's title characters Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) arrive for their summer in Barcelona, they are at very different stages in their lives. "Vicky has a plan ahead of her," says Hall. "She's getting married, she's getting her Master's, she's moving out of the city and she's going to have babies. She feels that everything is falling into place as expected." Cristina, on the other hand, is completely at loose ends: she just broke up with her boyfriend and has walked away from a short film she worked on for six months (and now hates). "Cristina is kind of a wandering lost soul," says Johansson. "She's aimless and doesn't really know what she wants. She's exploring her youth with no responsibility and coasting wherever the road takes her."
Allen sees contrasting advantages and trade-offs for the life choices the two women make. "A person who's more conventionally middle-class like Vicky, stands to have what most people would consider a happier life," says Allen. "It's a more structured, a more stable, and a more well-functioning life. It may not achieve any goals she has that are beyond it, but she'll have a good life with her husband, who's a nice guy, and it will be fine. Whereas a character like Cristina has less of a chance of satisfying herself, because she's always looking, and she only knows what she doesn't want. But she'll have a more varied menu, until maybe someday she'll get lucky and something will drop into her lap."
In Spain, Vicky and Cristina are drawn into a series of romantic entanglements involving two intense and passionate Spaniards, the painter Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem) and his fiery ex-wife Maria Elena (Penélope Cruz). Despite being head over heels in love, the two of them are always in bitter conflict for reasons neither one of them fully understand. "They tried many times to be together," says Cruz. "It always ended in a very bad way, but they keep trying." The pain from the failure of their relationship hangs heavily over Juan Antonio. "He's a man with a wound to be healed," says Bardem, "as a person, as an artist and in his relationship with Maria Elena. It's like there's a sign that is flashing over his body all the time. But his way of dealing with his fears is to face them." Juan Antonio's most conspicuous quality is his ability to speak with complete candor at all times. "He's not an ambivalent person," says Bardem. "That's why he's so direct. He needs to tell the truth and that creates some funny and also hard moments for other people."
While Juan Antonio is a no-nonsense and relatively easy-going person, Maria Elena is a whirling emotional tornado, endangering everyone in her path. "Maria Elena is great at everything-playing the piano, painting-but she can't really do anything with her life because she's too nuts," says Allen. "She's too full of passion, too full of feeling, and it ruins her from really accomplishing things in a certain sense. He continues, "She's too full of jealousy and willing to stick a knife in somebody because she feels so deeply about everything." Penélope Cruz thinks Maria Elena's problem is that she's unhappy: "She suffers tremendously. It's not easy for her to deal with her mind. All the chaos that she brings-I think she can't help herself. I don't think it's something she does just to get attention. It comes from being totally confused in many ways and very scared-and at the same time very brave."
The two worlds of the film collide when Juan Antonio approaches Vicky and Cristina in a restaurant with a proposal in his signature direct style: accompany him to the small Asturian town of Oviedo, where they will take in the local sights, eat and drink well, and all make love. "Vicky's thinking, 'Who is this horrid European artist sleazeball cliché?'" says Hall. "She wants to get Cristina away from him as quickly as possible." But as the story reveals, Vicky is mistaken in her judgment of Juan Antonio. He is a very unusual man and his offer is not the crude come-on it first appears to be.
"Juan Antonio is truly overwhelmed by their beauty and their personalities," says Bardem, "and he tries to create a different kind of relationship between the three of them. Sexuality is a very important experience for him, but it's not the end-it's the beginning of something much more important. He really has a different way of perceiving life. I guess from an ethical point of view that's not fair to everybody, but Juan Antonio's ethics are different from what some people might expect, and that's one of the keys to this story." Bardem and Allen agree. "He's thinking with no guile," says Allen. "He's a very decent guy and to him, lovemaking is just one part of life. A nice part of life."
While in Oviedo, Juan Antonio intuits that Vicky may not be clear-headed as she presents herself. "Vicky is seemingly together," says Hall, "but she's a little too vehemently 'together,' a little bit 'the lady doth protest too much.' She's capable of wanting all sorts of things which are much more romantic and wild, but it's hard for her to take risks because she has always been very in control and she doesn't trust herself when things are outside her control. She doesn't know how crazy she might go."
Allen believes that Vicky has difficulty with too much freedom. "She might flirt now and then with doing something more adventurous, but what she really wants is the safety of a less risky formula existence." Hall thinks Vicky's plight expresses one of the larger questions the film is posing about love. "I think Woody's looking into the tension between the fantasy-land of love and the real world," she says. "The things you live with as opposed to the things you dream about. And then what happens when your fantasies intrude on your 'real world.'"
Vicky Cristina Barcelona Synopsis
VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
Americans Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) arrive in Spain for a summer vacation at a friend's (Patricia Clarkson) Barcelona home. Visiting an art gallery, they meet seductive painter Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), who invites them for a weekend of food, art and sex. Sparks really ignite when his fiery former lover (Penélope Cruz) arrives on the scene, making for a very crowded house.
VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
Synopsis
Woody Allen's breezy new romantic comedy is about two young American women and their amorous escapades in Barcelona, one of the most romantic cities in the world.
Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) are best friends, but have completely different attitudes towards love. Vicky is sensible and engaged to a respectable young man. Cristina is sexually and emotionally uninhibited, perpetually searching for a passion that will sweep her off her feet.
When Judy (Patricia Clarkson) and Mark (Kevin Dunn), distant relatives of Vicky, offer to host them for a summer in Barcelona, the two of them eagerly accept: Vicky wants to spend her last months as a single woman doing research for her Masters, and Cristina is looking for a change of scenery to flee the psychic wreckage of her last breakup.
One night at an art gallery, Cristina, true to form, instantly locks eyes on the most intense and provocative man in the room, Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), a handsome painter. Cristina is only more intrigued when Judy whispers that Juan Antonio had such an explosive relationship with his ex-wife Maria Elena (Penélope Cruz) that one of them tried to kill the other. Later that night, when Vicky and Cristina are having dinner, Juan Antonio approaches their table with a brazen proposition: fly with him for a weekend trip to the provincial town of Oviedo, where he suggests they explore the cultural wonders, drink fine wine, and make love together. Vicky finds his proposal obnoxious, but Cristina is enchanted by his directness and charisma, and persuades Vicky to accompany her.
During a day of sightseeing and fine dining in Oviedo, Juan Antonio speaks in reverential terms about the magnificent Maria Elena, the great love of his life. Despite their profound connection, their passions ran too high for them to be together. Once, things got so cataclysmic that Maria Elena stabbed him in a mad fit of jealousy.
That night, Juan Antonio invites the girls to his room-an offer Vicky adamantly refuses and Cristina willingly consents to. But just as Cristina and Juan Antonio are about to fall into bed, Cristina becomes ill, and it's Vicky who spends the remainder of the weekend alone with him. Juan Antonio takes Vicky to meet his father and opens his heart about his childhood hopes and his turbulent relationship with Maria Elena. Perceiving a deeper side to him, Vicky gradually sheds her misgivings, and during the romantic night before they leave Oviedo, Vicky and Juan Antonio make love.
After returning to Barcelona, Vicky can't stop thinking about Juan Antonio. Meanwhile he directs his romantic attentions to the available and willing Cristina, who soon moves in with him. When Vicky expresses her disappointment, he points out that as she's engaged, it would cause needless pain for everyone if they continued.
Indeed, Vicky's fiancé Doug (Chris Messina) arrives in Barcelona early, and the two are soon married. As Cristina and Juan Antonio settle into a dreamy life together, one night he is awakened by an alarming phone call-Juan Antonio's ex-wife Maria Elena is at the hospital after a suicide attempt. Returning home with the dazzlingly beautiful and tempestuous Maria Elena, Juan Antonio explains to a stunned Cristina that his she will have to stay with them for a few months, as she has nowhere else to go.
Jealous and suspicious, and subject to wild mood swings, Maria Elena misses no opportunity to bicker with Juan Antonio and put Cristina down. In time, she becomes more relaxed and settles into a warmer relationship with Juan Antonio and even mentors Cristina's pursuit of photography. Maria Elena tells Cristina that she is the "missing ingredient" that allows her to live happily with Juan Antonio. In a transition that is tranquil and natural, the three of them become lovers.
By chance at a party sometime later, Vicky sees Judy kissing Mark's business partner. After Judy tells Vicky that she hasn't been in love with Mark for years, Vicky reveals her feelings for Juan Antonio. Determined to rescue Vicky from her own fate, Judy tries to bring Vicky and Juan Antonio together. Meanwhile, Cristina, as always, is starting to get restless. As the summer draws to a close, Vicky and Cristina learn some hard lessons about love-and about themselves.
Set against the luscious Mediterranean sensuality of Barcelona, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA is Woody Allen's funny and wise meditation on love, in all its romance, exhilaration, heartache, and elusive mystery.
Americans Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) arrive in Spain for a summer vacation at a friend's (Patricia Clarkson) Barcelona home. Visiting an art gallery, they meet seductive painter Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), who invites them for a weekend of food, art and sex. Sparks really ignite when his fiery former lover (Penélope Cruz) arrives on the scene, making for a very crowded house.
VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
Synopsis
Woody Allen's breezy new romantic comedy is about two young American women and their amorous escapades in Barcelona, one of the most romantic cities in the world.
Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) are best friends, but have completely different attitudes towards love. Vicky is sensible and engaged to a respectable young man. Cristina is sexually and emotionally uninhibited, perpetually searching for a passion that will sweep her off her feet.
When Judy (Patricia Clarkson) and Mark (Kevin Dunn), distant relatives of Vicky, offer to host them for a summer in Barcelona, the two of them eagerly accept: Vicky wants to spend her last months as a single woman doing research for her Masters, and Cristina is looking for a change of scenery to flee the psychic wreckage of her last breakup.
One night at an art gallery, Cristina, true to form, instantly locks eyes on the most intense and provocative man in the room, Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), a handsome painter. Cristina is only more intrigued when Judy whispers that Juan Antonio had such an explosive relationship with his ex-wife Maria Elena (Penélope Cruz) that one of them tried to kill the other. Later that night, when Vicky and Cristina are having dinner, Juan Antonio approaches their table with a brazen proposition: fly with him for a weekend trip to the provincial town of Oviedo, where he suggests they explore the cultural wonders, drink fine wine, and make love together. Vicky finds his proposal obnoxious, but Cristina is enchanted by his directness and charisma, and persuades Vicky to accompany her.
During a day of sightseeing and fine dining in Oviedo, Juan Antonio speaks in reverential terms about the magnificent Maria Elena, the great love of his life. Despite their profound connection, their passions ran too high for them to be together. Once, things got so cataclysmic that Maria Elena stabbed him in a mad fit of jealousy.
That night, Juan Antonio invites the girls to his room-an offer Vicky adamantly refuses and Cristina willingly consents to. But just as Cristina and Juan Antonio are about to fall into bed, Cristina becomes ill, and it's Vicky who spends the remainder of the weekend alone with him. Juan Antonio takes Vicky to meet his father and opens his heart about his childhood hopes and his turbulent relationship with Maria Elena. Perceiving a deeper side to him, Vicky gradually sheds her misgivings, and during the romantic night before they leave Oviedo, Vicky and Juan Antonio make love.
After returning to Barcelona, Vicky can't stop thinking about Juan Antonio. Meanwhile he directs his romantic attentions to the available and willing Cristina, who soon moves in with him. When Vicky expresses her disappointment, he points out that as she's engaged, it would cause needless pain for everyone if they continued.
Indeed, Vicky's fiancé Doug (Chris Messina) arrives in Barcelona early, and the two are soon married. As Cristina and Juan Antonio settle into a dreamy life together, one night he is awakened by an alarming phone call-Juan Antonio's ex-wife Maria Elena is at the hospital after a suicide attempt. Returning home with the dazzlingly beautiful and tempestuous Maria Elena, Juan Antonio explains to a stunned Cristina that his she will have to stay with them for a few months, as she has nowhere else to go.
Jealous and suspicious, and subject to wild mood swings, Maria Elena misses no opportunity to bicker with Juan Antonio and put Cristina down. In time, she becomes more relaxed and settles into a warmer relationship with Juan Antonio and even mentors Cristina's pursuit of photography. Maria Elena tells Cristina that she is the "missing ingredient" that allows her to live happily with Juan Antonio. In a transition that is tranquil and natural, the three of them become lovers.
By chance at a party sometime later, Vicky sees Judy kissing Mark's business partner. After Judy tells Vicky that she hasn't been in love with Mark for years, Vicky reveals her feelings for Juan Antonio. Determined to rescue Vicky from her own fate, Judy tries to bring Vicky and Juan Antonio together. Meanwhile, Cristina, as always, is starting to get restless. As the summer draws to a close, Vicky and Cristina learn some hard lessons about love-and about themselves.
Set against the luscious Mediterranean sensuality of Barcelona, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA is Woody Allen's funny and wise meditation on love, in all its romance, exhilaration, heartache, and elusive mystery.
Production on HELL RIDE began in May of 2007
Production on HELL RIDE began in May of 2007. True to Bishop's AIP ventures, the HELL RIDE was filmed in the scorching California desert heat over a very brief twenty days. Tarantino felt that the film's budget should mirror what was available in the early days of the motorcycle film. He believed that monetary limitations would only enhance its biker movie authenticity. "It was Quentin's idea," Steinberg explains. "He wanted to make it for a price that it was a good financial deal. He wanted to keep it as authentic as possible. If you adjust for inflation, we probably had about the same amount as producers of the first wave of biker films.""We could have done Larry's script for twice the budget. Being a fan of low budget movies, Quentin wanted us to do it super low budget, the way they used to do them. We were shooting an unbelievable amount of footage every day," Stein says.
Unfortunately, the high desert greeted the production with a wind storm that severely hampered their first week of filming. Nevertheless, the producers managed to keep the production on time and on budget, despite some obstacles imposed by Mother Nature.
"There were sixty mile per hour gusts," Steinberg recalls. "It was about 105 degrees. We were exposed to the elements. It was absolutely brutal, but nobody complained. When you're only shooting for twenty days, you get through the first week and you're a quarter done. It was also a nice bonding experience."
"We had one crew member say he worked in worse conditions, and that was in a mine in Illinois in February," Stein adds.
Justin Kell, who runs a vintage motorcycle shop called Glory, was approached by Steinberg early in the process to be a technical advisor on the film. He supplied many of the bikes in the movie, and trained Balfour. "He specializes in vintage motorcycles. He built the motorcycles and taught Eric Balfour how to ride."
Balfour, for one, had no prior experience riding a motorcycle. He also had the task of riding the most complicated vehicle, a 40s-era "Indian." When he wasn't taking a crash course in the biker cinema of the 60s and 70s, Balfour was learning how to ride his motorcycle in Griffith Park and on the streets of Los Angeles neighborhoods. "The bike had complicated mechanisms.
Fortunately for me I didn't know any better. I was just kind of dumb. It took some getting used to. Eventually I just really got comfortable on the bike."
Balfour's dedication impressed Madsen: "An Indian is a goofy bike because everything is on the wrong side. The throttle is on the left, and it has a foot clutch. It's tricky to ride one of those damn things. And you know what? He did it, and he's riding it, and that's not an easy thing to do. I'm really proud of him. I'm really happy that he's in the picture."
Madsen notes that the experience of acting on a bike made his usual trepidations subside: "Being an actor is a very neurotic thing to do for a living. Trying to sit at a table and do dialogue scenes is not fun. But if you can get on a Harley and ride around behind a camera truck, that's when my job is fun."
Bikes aside, the cast is quick to praise their director's sensitivity to the actor's process. He's an actor so he knows how to talk to actors," Jones says of Bishop. "He takes an emotional path into what's going on. He thinks in metaphors and images."
The production brought in veteran bikers to portray the "extras" in the film. "We got some great background guys," Madsen enthuses. "A couple of those guys ran with some pretty good gangs. They're not bogus background people--they're bikers. It's really good to have them in the movie. They've done a heck of a job."
The production was pleased that all of the actors involved in HELL RIDE
The production was pleased that all of the actors involved in HELL RIDE responded to the script and creative team above all else. "Because we had such a low budget, we weren't cast-contingent," Steinberg says. "I think there's a lot of affection for Quentin and for the genre itself. Dennis is famous for EASY RIDER. GLORY STOMPERS is a big favorite of everyone on the movie."
Casting Comanche, a role that Bishop intended to give to Tarantino, "was tricky, until Eric Balfour walked in the door." Bishop recalls. "I knew the second Eric Balfour walked in that exactly the guy I wanted for the part."
Balfour, who appeared on "24" and "Six Feet Under" was attracted to the rebel world of Bishop's screenplay. "HELL RIDE falls under this strange umbrella of a movie that takes place in the present time, but has its own reality, and its own space. None of the rules of our society, or our laws, or governing bodies apply to it. HELL RIDE is this story of revenge, and reconciliation. And it's a badass biker movie."
Vinnie Jones, a former soccer player in the English Football League, plays Billy Wings. "Vinnie Jones is hilarious," Stein says. "First of all, his enthusiasm and energy are fantastic. Secondly, he let us light him on fire twice. He wanted to do his own stunts. He wanted to go for it and he kept people in stitches the entire time."
"I guess you'd call 'The Deuce' the president of a club called 'The 666,'" David Carradine says of his character. "I'm the only guy in this whole movie that wears a suit, because I become a business man. I'm running a whole lot of games. I possess part of a secret that everybody wants to know."
"There are no good guys in this movie," Carradine adds. "There isn't anybody who's any better than anybody else. Bad guys have some meat to them. This has a certain amount of qualities of a Tarantino film in that they're all bad guys, but they all have a certain honorable streak about them."
"Larry and I worked together on KILL BILL, and I really got to like the guy," Carradine says of his writer-director. "He fashioned this little part for me which is really cool. The character's really cool, but it's also cool that for the first two-thirds of the picture, they're talking about me in almost every scene and you never see me. And then finally I show up, a little like in KILL BILL."
"Leonor Varela was someone we were always very interested in," Steinberg says of the actor who plays Nada. "We just thought that there weren't many actresses who could pull it off. It's very sexually aggressive, but not in a campy way. She is a mature woman, and we thought she could handle it. She by far surpassed any hopes we had for the role."
The role of Goody Two-Shoes is played by Michael Beach: "I'm the good cat. I'm the reliable cat. I'm the guy you can count on," Beach says of his character.
Julia Jones plays Cherokee Chism. Jones describes her character: "She is one of Pistolero's many loves. Much of the action of the movie takes place twenty-something years after she's died. She's very complicated. It's not a huge role but there are a lot of important pieces to her." A portion of Jones's involvement is as the film's seemingly omniscient narrator.
Jones found her way into HELL RIDE quickly, after co-star Eric Balfour recommended her for the role. "Eric called in the middle of the afternoon and said 'Where are you? What are you doing? Are you working on something? Are you in L.A.? Can you come down to set tomorrow?' I got on the phone with the producer, and I went into set the next day and read for Larry and the producers, and showed up on set three days later or four days later."
Finally, there's the role that went to the actress that brought Tarantino and Bishop together. "I've known Laura Coyouette for about ten or twelve years. I wrote the part of Dani for her. It kind of mirrors what the reality of our life is -- the way it intersects. She does a number of things for me, and that's what Dani does for Pistolero."
Casting Comanche, a role that Bishop intended to give to Tarantino, "was tricky, until Eric Balfour walked in the door." Bishop recalls. "I knew the second Eric Balfour walked in that exactly the guy I wanted for the part."
Balfour, who appeared on "24" and "Six Feet Under" was attracted to the rebel world of Bishop's screenplay. "HELL RIDE falls under this strange umbrella of a movie that takes place in the present time, but has its own reality, and its own space. None of the rules of our society, or our laws, or governing bodies apply to it. HELL RIDE is this story of revenge, and reconciliation. And it's a badass biker movie."
Vinnie Jones, a former soccer player in the English Football League, plays Billy Wings. "Vinnie Jones is hilarious," Stein says. "First of all, his enthusiasm and energy are fantastic. Secondly, he let us light him on fire twice. He wanted to do his own stunts. He wanted to go for it and he kept people in stitches the entire time."
"I guess you'd call 'The Deuce' the president of a club called 'The 666,'" David Carradine says of his character. "I'm the only guy in this whole movie that wears a suit, because I become a business man. I'm running a whole lot of games. I possess part of a secret that everybody wants to know."
"There are no good guys in this movie," Carradine adds. "There isn't anybody who's any better than anybody else. Bad guys have some meat to them. This has a certain amount of qualities of a Tarantino film in that they're all bad guys, but they all have a certain honorable streak about them."
"Larry and I worked together on KILL BILL, and I really got to like the guy," Carradine says of his writer-director. "He fashioned this little part for me which is really cool. The character's really cool, but it's also cool that for the first two-thirds of the picture, they're talking about me in almost every scene and you never see me. And then finally I show up, a little like in KILL BILL."
"Leonor Varela was someone we were always very interested in," Steinberg says of the actor who plays Nada. "We just thought that there weren't many actresses who could pull it off. It's very sexually aggressive, but not in a campy way. She is a mature woman, and we thought she could handle it. She by far surpassed any hopes we had for the role."
The role of Goody Two-Shoes is played by Michael Beach: "I'm the good cat. I'm the reliable cat. I'm the guy you can count on," Beach says of his character.
Julia Jones plays Cherokee Chism. Jones describes her character: "She is one of Pistolero's many loves. Much of the action of the movie takes place twenty-something years after she's died. She's very complicated. It's not a huge role but there are a lot of important pieces to her." A portion of Jones's involvement is as the film's seemingly omniscient narrator.
Jones found her way into HELL RIDE quickly, after co-star Eric Balfour recommended her for the role. "Eric called in the middle of the afternoon and said 'Where are you? What are you doing? Are you working on something? Are you in L.A.? Can you come down to set tomorrow?' I got on the phone with the producer, and I went into set the next day and read for Larry and the producers, and showed up on set three days later or four days later."
Finally, there's the role that went to the actress that brought Tarantino and Bishop together. "I've known Laura Coyouette for about ten or twelve years. I wrote the part of Dani for her. It kind of mirrors what the reality of our life is -- the way it intersects. She does a number of things for me, and that's what Dani does for Pistolero."
HELL RIDE star David Carradine
"There's a lot of consenting sex in this movie," HELL RIDE star David Carradine jokes. "When I first read the script I said to Larry, 'Where are you going to release this?'"
Michael Madsen was the first actor other than Bishop to be cast in HELL RIDE. The role of The Gent was designed specifically for Madsen.
"The Gent is supposedly famous for getting really, really nice right before he does something bad," Madsen explains of his character. "And that's how he got named 'The Gent,' because just when you think he's going to be your pal, he's going to put a bullet in your head."
His gentlemanly nature extends into his wardrobe-a black tuxedo. Madsen explains the character choice: "I thought it would be funny if I was wearing a tuxedo. First of all I've never seen anybody riding a motorcycle in a tuxedo before. I thought it would be funny-trying to add a little bit of a touch of humor to the movie in a crazy kind of way."
HELL RIDE marks Dennis Hopper's return to a genre that helped launch an estimable career. Hopper, who plays Eddie "Scratch" Zero, appeared in THE GLORY STOMPERS and co-wrote, directed and starred in EASY RIDER. "He was the perfect guy," Bishop says. "I actually told Dennis that I had met him in 1967 or 1968, and we were both hanging around Barney's Beanery. Dennis Hopper was in Barney's Beanery the night I was 86'd for life from Barney's Beanery. I was like eighteen or nineteen years old at the time, and I was trying to impress a couple of girls, so I was talking very loudly, and with a lot of profanity. I felt Barney's hand on my shoulder, and he said, 'Son, we don't allow language like that in here.' And he said, 'You're 86'd for life,' and I remember seeing Dennis Hopper's face. His was the last face that I actually saw as Barney was escorting me out." It was fitting for this project that Hopper's face would be embedded in Bishop's memory during a characteristic moment of rebellion.
"It was fun for us when we got the call that he wanted to do the movie," Stein says. "He's a great guy, and he's quite the raconteur. You know you've got a great set when Dennis Hopper is the sanest man on set. He was the square of the bunch."
Michael Madsen was the first actor other than Bishop to be cast in HELL RIDE. The role of The Gent was designed specifically for Madsen.
"The Gent is supposedly famous for getting really, really nice right before he does something bad," Madsen explains of his character. "And that's how he got named 'The Gent,' because just when you think he's going to be your pal, he's going to put a bullet in your head."
His gentlemanly nature extends into his wardrobe-a black tuxedo. Madsen explains the character choice: "I thought it would be funny if I was wearing a tuxedo. First of all I've never seen anybody riding a motorcycle in a tuxedo before. I thought it would be funny-trying to add a little bit of a touch of humor to the movie in a crazy kind of way."
HELL RIDE marks Dennis Hopper's return to a genre that helped launch an estimable career. Hopper, who plays Eddie "Scratch" Zero, appeared in THE GLORY STOMPERS and co-wrote, directed and starred in EASY RIDER. "He was the perfect guy," Bishop says. "I actually told Dennis that I had met him in 1967 or 1968, and we were both hanging around Barney's Beanery. Dennis Hopper was in Barney's Beanery the night I was 86'd for life from Barney's Beanery. I was like eighteen or nineteen years old at the time, and I was trying to impress a couple of girls, so I was talking very loudly, and with a lot of profanity. I felt Barney's hand on my shoulder, and he said, 'Son, we don't allow language like that in here.' And he said, 'You're 86'd for life,' and I remember seeing Dennis Hopper's face. His was the last face that I actually saw as Barney was escorting me out." It was fitting for this project that Hopper's face would be embedded in Bishop's memory during a characteristic moment of rebellion.
"It was fun for us when we got the call that he wanted to do the movie," Stein says. "He's a great guy, and he's quite the raconteur. You know you've got a great set when Dennis Hopper is the sanest man on set. He was the square of the bunch."
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