Ridley Scott on his diverse films - BBC celebrity interview

[Gaston088able]

RIDLEY SCOTT IS A VERY VERY GOOD FILMAKERS....BUT HAS NEVER DONE A MASTERPICE!...BLADE RUNNE IS A CLASSIC BUT FLAWED!...GLADIATOR WAS A GREAT SPECTACULE BUT EMPTY OF REAL DRAMA...BLACK HAWK DONW LOOKS LIKE A "VIDEOCLIP" FOR A THEME SONG, NOT A FILM BASE ON WAR!

[wepper5]

Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, Kingdom of Heaven, Robin Hood.. I mean wow, this guy is epic.

[Gaston088able]

@wepper5 He is very good But EPIC? ROBIN HODD WAS ANOTHER DUMB PERIOD TIME WAR MOVIE FROM SCOTT...HE NEEDS TO DO MORE SMART FILM THAN THIS KIND OF SHIT!....he is versatil...but come on! look the versatilty and greatness! of MARTIN SCORSESE, SOCRSESE DIRECTED (TAXI DRIVER, AFTER HOURS, RAGING BULL, THE LAST THEMPTATION OF CRHIST, GOODFELLAS, THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, CASINO, THE AVIATOR, GANGS OF NEW YORK, THE DEPARTED, THE KING OF COMEDY, SHUTTER ISLAND, CAPE FEAR, MEAN STREETS, NOW "HUGO" IN 3-D!).

[Gaston088able]

@wepper5 JUST BECAUSE SOMEHTING IS BIG THAT DOENST MAKE IT EPIC...THAT WORD IS VERY BAD USE IN FILMS OS TODAY....EPIC IS MORE THAN JUST GREAT BATTLES OR VISUAL SPECTACLE....ROBIN HOOD HAS NOTHING OF EPIC, IT IS ONE OF HIS WORST FILMS!....

[reviewreviewer1]

@wepper5 Kingdom Of Heaven no, but the rest yes!!!!!

[epicvlas]

never was a plan,,,,,. and still is no plan... and i just jump in wat facinate mi next.,... ! great !

[BollWeevil1]

i love fiml

[gueneemc]

I LOVE THIS GUY!!!

[Khultan]

'There never was a plan and there still is no plan'  'I just jump into what fascinates me next.' : )

[MaximumPopcorn]

big one, small one, big one, small one...

what about a medium one, medium one, medium one, medium one...?

[Statistic100]

Hey everyone, add me if you have a passion for film making. I'm british and sixteen and want to be a film director. Add me and we'll talk about how someone would go about making it in the industry, what films you liking at the moment or even what inspired you to get into film in the first place :)

[Lisha506]

@Statistic100 ooh add me im sixteen also and want the same thing, and im a geordie too! :)

[RafaelMinuesa]

I hope that by misspelling "fiml" I get loads of thumbs up

:)

[PeterHBne]

I live and hope for the day he will do a film as brilliant as Alien and as masterful as Blade Runner. I mean, Robin Hood?? I haven't seen it but I know what I'm going to get. That's not good.

[RafaelMinuesa]

@PeterHBne

I know exactly what you mean. I was seventeen when Blade Runner came out and I thought my life would be filled with marvelous films like those two.

Little I suspected that that was it.

Oh well, I also thought we would be in Mars by now ...

[BenetFleck]

I hope to be in fiml industry someday.

[alleywatson]

it's all about who you know, but good luck anyway

[killswitcher]

lol Not really mate, read up on Tarentinos past, who did he know?

[tzs138]

@killswitcher

He did know Scott Spiegel, who already co-wrote Evil Dead II and directed a B-movie called Intruder which sort of counts.

Kevin Smith and Richard Linklater are better examples.

[alleywatson]

You can quote all the mags and bio's you like about the industry, but I'm telling you all that It's who you know, that's how I got in and stayed in for 3 years. I knew sb who worked freelance for the BBC, that's it end of story, everybody thinks it's celebs, and parties but it's a cruel industry, and everybody in it say's get out and get a proper job, now I've no work cos ITV sacked 600 people, you have NO life it's 12+ hour days 6 day weeks it's a CRAP industry, you won't read that in a mag.

[killswitcher]

Your talking nonsense mate, i hate all this jibber about 'the industry' The simplified spine of the product is a movie and if yours is interesting enough to garner someones attention for 60-90 minutes then you've done a good enough job. I didn't mention celebrities lifestyles or money.

[alleywatson]

My apologies the celebs comment wasn't aimed at you personally but as a warning to the wannabe's but yeah the simplified spine of the product is a film to hold the attention and yeah a crew is needed to do it even though they get treated like crap, but Ridley's brother Tony only got in cos of his brother anyway, I've made BBC dramas and a film on a professional level and learnt loads, nothing any uni can teach you, but all the 'jibber' are true facts and unless you do what I've done u won't know

[killswitcher]

Like i said read up on Tarintinos early history. He funded his first film with a minimum wage job over a period of 3 years. Obviously hes uber talented/lucky and hes progressed from that... if im 40 years and still a nobody filming with my palm-cam - fuelled only by my love of the concept il be happy with that. I would suggest maybe you found the experience a nightmare because you used your buddy to get into """The industry""".

[alleywatson]

I read Tarantino's begining ages ago and he did well, but now everybodys doing it and it's competitive to say the least, but if you like making films cos it's a hobby or sth then keep with it, but my experience in the industry wasn't a nightmare cos of him he was a great bloke and I helped him out really, it's the production companies that need a kick up the arse and should treat people fairly, when you're in a raining field wet through and numb, there's no unions now and they really take the.

[killswitcher]

Maybe you weren't rite for the job. Ironically your promoting the only route to success is the one that failed you.

[alleywatson]

If I wasn't right for the job maybe I wouldn't have lasted 3 years. but this kind of work has a high turnover of people all competing with each-other for the next big one.

[killswitcher]

listen, first point is i completely respect what your saying. I should be taking advice from people like you very seriously because i do intend to travel the same route. But my point is merely that "the industry" to me implies a studio budget with a reasonable wage slip at the end of the month. Ok thats the dream, the dream that i might end up getting payed to do what i love doing. If not il still, like you said, just be doing my hobby.

[alleywatson]

yeah that's the dream and I can totally agree if you want to do sth yourself you are going to put in the time tenfold and enjoy the benefits, but for sb else and for peanuts get a nine to five, lol

[killswitcher]

Maybe one day il get lucky and the rite person will see my work, if not .... its all good, il have a blast trying. This is true, but its a competitive industry and ITV is still banging out content without you 600 guys, if you guys were good enough at the time you obviously would have stayed...presumably. Contacts (who you know) are important, but its possible to build your contacts up yourself.

Yeah, the yanks a leaps and bounds ahead, it has to be acknowledged.

[alleywatson]

it also failed the other 600 at ITV if you remember ? and if I wasn't right maybe I wouldn't have lasted 3 years cos if you're crap you won't be back the next day trust me I've seen it happen with a camera operator that didn't get on with a director, I'm glad I'm out of it, luckily I don't have a massive mortgage like the others to pay off, but in this country we don't make quality stuff like the yanks, it's all been bought in from the states, so you don't need all the crew to make stuff do you

[alleywatson]

You've no idea

[DJ80s]

lol I know I made a typo.

[gringodeltoro1]

I hope you will do a better job than the rest of crapywood.

[featheredmusic]

@BenetFleck What exactly is in fiml industry?

[directorlog]

@featheredmusic haha, am confused too, I think he should write first before going into the film industry.

[ReeceJackson]

@BenetFleck I would learn to spell it first if I were you.

[justicegang]

@BenetFleck You need to be able to spell FILM first.

[DJ80s]

He is probably my most favorite director/producer in the fiml industry today. Definately enjoyed what he had to say.

[IIIJFRIII]

hes one of my 3 favs. him , james camron, peter jackson.

[johaa]

He is a ledgened loved all his films :D

[flobblepop1]

Spell legend again please - it really made me laugh

[eggbertsmith]

He is indeed a ledgened.

[circleofhypocrisy]

Alien was Godlike.

[theflorgeormix]

Alien created the sci-fi horror wave that was imitated for more than a decade

[mixxxer]

whats with the "Invalid arguments" just above the video screen??

[Adman1780]

A lot of directors have a wide variety of films (Kubrick, the Coen Bros, Spielberg, Ron Howard). Ridley also never writes his own movies, just directs them. However, his best movies are: Gladiator, American Gangster, Bladerunner, Alien, and Kingdom of Heaven....all in the 'action/adventure' genre.

[MrMontagne]

Orlando Bloom butchered Kingdom of Heaven.

[yfzi]

that was a bad movie anyway mate

[kytodd]

I really don't know what "good" and "bad" are, but I know what I like. I liked Kingdom Of Heaven. Thought it could have had more done with it though, and maybe changed a few things, but yes, I liked it.

[eggbertsmith]

Orlando Bloom owned Kingdom of Heaven.

[Vekta2]

This Film was a beauty piece, The work that Ridley Scott and his crew did was magnificant to my own opinion!

[spunkkymunkky]

he a genius for bladerunner

[MidnightSaviour]

This guy is a genius for epic films like Kingdom of Heaven, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, American Gangster and so many more

[greytale]

The Duelists, which was Ridley Scott's first feature film... was pretty fantastic as far as I'm concerned.

Harvey Keitel had zero sword experience (his own words), and yet he looked brilliant. This would be a combination of direction & Keitel's actor study. But overall... the film captured the spirit of a true "western style" sword duel excellently!

[spookysaurus]

@ greytale: Totally agree. I remember seeing The Duellists when it first came out, not then knowing who Ridley Scott actually was. I just knew I was seeing something new in film style. All that down-and-dirty swordplay, with sparks flying (literally).That sense of reality in the action is still something that only RS has a total handle on. Look at Black Hawk Down.

[ffangs]

Arr, if he'd only done more scifi and horror movies...

[BaubleRob]

He's no Tony. I'd take Days of Thunder over Bladerunner any day of the week. And everyone knows Gladiator is based on Top Gun!

[mattblackcat]

I must have missed al those F14s strafing the Germanic hordes.

You are comparing Hollywood pap for the moronic masses with artistic endeavours - the two are not comparable.

[BaubleRob]

With you 100%. I've always considered Top Gun to be the Battleship Potemkin of the 80s.

[spookysaurus]

@BaubleRob: Oh, please. Have you actually seen Potemkin? Ridley Scott = real deal. Tony Scott = Hollywood plastic.

[BaubleRob]

Oh, for the love of Geoff! This is the LAST time I'm going to attempt irony on YouTube (or IS it?)

[spookysaurus]

@BaubleBob: Thought as much after I'd posted it! I've been caught like that as well. You could always try: *irony switch on* Tony Scott is pure genius *irony switch off*. Works for me! lol.

[BaubleRob]

Still, I've learnt something important: it's possible for somebody complimenting Tony Scott's work to be taken seriously. Who'd a thunk it!?

[eggbertsmith]

learnt??

[BaubleRob]

Yep. You can also be burnt. There might be some other verbs that do that too.

[BaubleRob]

Ok, I had to check: burnt, dreamt, knelt, leant, leapt, spelt, spoilt. They're older, irregular spellings and will probably all become archaic soon enough.

[Aegrim]

funny enough they're making their way into leet speak. pwnt, fuckt, borkt, etc etc

so they might be kept alive.

[BaubleRob]

Yeah, but in words I don't understand! I'm fuckt...

[Mick342]

71 !!!!! and looks fantastic concidering hes a year younger than Irish poet Seamus Heaney.

[rnb8220]

I love that Ridley Scott sketches out every shot of his movies in detailed illustrations before he even goes to the camera. Storyboards are such a crucial tool, Ridley was using it for his live action films pretty much before anybody. Of course it's standard issue in animation.

[chastash]

Uh--I don't know how to tell you this, but storyboards have been in use in film since before Ridley Scott was born.

[spookysaurus]

Not to overlook the fact that, while storyboards in film making have been around for a long time, Ridley Scott not only uniquely draws his own (as rnb8220 mentions), but draws them with a panache that has other professional artists (myself included) drooling. He really is that good, as anyone who's seen his stuff will know.

[rnb8220]

that was more along the lines of what I was thinking. I've recently watched the Director's Cut of Kingdom of Heaven. Great movie. Theatrical could barely keep you watching for 10 minutes

[spookysaurus]

@rnb8220: try and get hold of the 3-disc DVD of Gladiator. It has stacks of production sketches and digital effects material.

[rnb8220]

Think that I will. I was already pretty damn impressed by the 2-Disc from when it originally came out on DVD but I was only borrowing it from my uncle. Gotta get my own copy. Joaquin Phoenix is so amazing in that movie. Crowe is a pretty great hero. Love Richard Harris as Aurelius if I'm not mistaken.

[Kingkong9099]

WOW... you got him before he went into his goldenyears... I like the movie "Blade Runner" most out from your other films / movies you made...

[chastash]

One of film's great visual stylists. If he had achieved nothing else, he will always be remembered as the man who made "Blade Runner."

[xdeviltrunksx]

You must not have ever seen Alien, which came years before Blade Runner. It is only the most copied horror/alien movie ever, because it set the standard for modern movies of it's genre.

[chastash]

Actually, I have seen "Alien." I agree it's often been imitated, but I don't hold it in as high esteem as you. Still, to each his own.

[mattblackcat]

Nope he will be remembered for the chest burster scene from alien

[kaziklu79]

A great director! It's strange that his most awarded film is his worst...