Drew McWeeny @ HitFix

Man, it's been a busy week. No time to update this blog with something of my own. BUT, I did have time to write a little piece for Drew McWeeny of Hitfix.com (formerly of AintitCoolNews). Drew was kind enough to visit The Invention of Lying set and hang out with us a bit. I imagine the piece(s) he's written about our film will be on his site (or AICN?) closer to the film's release.

BUT for now, here is something Ricky and I wrote for Drew's site -- which is on my daily list of film-related websites I check every morning with my coffee, and you should too! He's one of the good guys.

The direct link is here, but I've cut and pasted Ricky and my section below (hope you don't mind Drew!)

Drew asked Ricky and I the simple question: "What is your favorite Summer Film?" We both answered it as such:

Matthew Robinson and Ricky Gervais were both incredibly gracious hosts when I visited the Boston set of "This Side Of The Truth" last year. Since then, the film has changed titles and is now known as "The Invention Of Lying," and it'll be out a little later in the year. Both of them were good enough to respond to my question. Matthew acknowledged just how slippery the question was and answered it several ways to cover all bases:

I see your question could be answered in four ways, and as such I will give you an answer for each, just in case.

1.) What is your favorite film to watch in the summer?

McCabe and Mrs. Miller, because I'm not a big fan of intense heat all that much and McCabe makes me feel like I'm freezing my balls off in the dead of winter.

2.) What is your favorite Summer blockbuster of all time?

Aliens. My favorite bang-for-your-buck thrill ride ever released in the Summer.

3.) What is your favorite Summer film of 2009?

So far for me the film to beat is Star Trek.

4.) What is your favorite movie that is about the summer?

Hmmm... let's see. There's One Crazy Summer. Endless Summer. Summer School. Summertime. I'll go with One Crazy Summer just for Bobcat Goldthwait in the Dinosaur costume. Or wait... was that Summer Rental?

Best,
Matthew Robinson

And now, here's Matthew's co-conspirator, the one and only Ricky Gervais:

My favourite summer movie is The Jungle Book.

My mum took me during my first ever school holiday. I'd never been to a cinema before. I can still remember the place to this day. Everything seemed carpeted. The floors, the walls everything. I had sweets and pepsi and the biggest screen in the world, I thought. I was blown away. I lived a life in a couple of hours. When I thought Balloo was dead I was sobbing uncontrollably but trying to hide it. My mum was consolling me but didn't seem as distressed as me. Then when it turned out that Balloo was still alive I was fucking euphoric.

But it made me think. On the way home I asked my mum how old I'd be when she died. "Old" She said. "Will I care?" I asked worried about my far off future feelings. She wasn't sure what to say. She knew I wanted the answer "no" in some ways but as usual she chose honesty. "Yes' She said. "But it wont happen for a very long time". That was good enough for me.

When I returned to school a few weeks later we had to do a little presentation about our holidays. I proceeded to act out the entire movie using the other kids in the class. I told them where to stand and what to say, filling in the action with narration. Eventually the teacher had to stop me because I was taking up the whole day. Now I'm a real director I never make that same mistake. I'm home by 4 O'clock on any movie I do.

I haven't seen the film for 40 years so I'm not sure how good it is but it's still one of my fondest memories because it was a gift from my mum. My mum died when I was 40. She was right by the way. I did care. But luckily 35 five years ago I'd learnt the bear necessities to get me through. Just like Balloo, she's still with me.