Gore Verbinski: The Other Gore

Q: Wasn't that a bit demeaning?

A: I respected his process. What am I going to do, get weird about that and not make as good a movie as I can? I'll take 100 bullets, except for one that makes the movie suck.

Q: So you'll endure a bit of abuse if it helps Nathan be funnier?

A: I think it's just the appearance of enduring something. Sometimes the best move is not taking shit, but when you're quite willing to take shit, you might be able to get something special from that individual. Actors are smart and they play mind games. You must realize who your opponent is, respect them, but just don't let down your guard and never let them run wild.

Q: What was the biggest learning experience in going from commercials to features?

A: Studio manipulation. In advertising, it's agency manipulation. You say, How do I make them think my idea is something they came up with, so that by the time we go around the table and get 27 opinions, I've planted a seed, let somebody else put the water on it, let somebody else trim it, and when it comes back, it's bearing the fruit I want it to bear? You learn how to do that. Going to the studio is like moving from high school to college. Your A average is suddenly a C because all the A students are there. Also, there's an urgency in making commercials because you've got to start shooting tomorrow. The lack of urgency from a studio perspective gives them the ability to peel you like an onion. They'll say, We'll take away two layers, we can live with that; so can you. They try to take away the third layer and you say, Ow, I'm not doing that, I quit. They say, OK, we're not going to touch that layer. But two weeks later it comes off a little easier. By the end, you're holding this little heart of an onion, and going, This is the movie I always imagined it would be. It's not at all what you first started out making. That process is an education, a Hollywood bris.

Q: What did Mouse Hunt teach you that you took to The Mexican?

A: The lesson was this: Take the stuff that you love and impregnate it with critical information the movie can't live without, and it will survive. Anything that can be cut will be cut, by nature of the preview process. Make sure the great scenes can't be cut out of the movie without ruining its ability to make sense. And remember you can get away with a lot more in the first 15 minutes. I read scripts differently because of those lessons.

Q: Your streak of good fortune looked like it might come to a halt when your plans to make Catch Me If You Can with Leonardo DiCaprio got stalled because he couldn't break away in time from Gangs of New York. But then you replaced that with Project 3, another movie with Julia by the writer of The Mexican, Joel Wyman. How'd you do that?

A: When the Leo delay happened, I called my agent and said, "Give me every script that doesn't have a director." When I was about to go home for the weekend with three boxes of scripts, I had one long-shot phone call with Joe Roth and Julia Roberts. We asked her to commit to this movie even though there was no finished script yet. She said yes. Like that. I'm not at liberty to discuss the movie, but it's a psychological thriller, a really great and unique premise. Hopefully, I'll go back and work with Leonardo after that.

Q: What's the appeal of Catch Me If You Can?

A: The piece has a wonderful sense of humor. It's the true story of a guy who essentially cons himself out of his own youth by impersonating everyone from an assistant attorney general to a pilot. He becomes a target of the FBI as a teenager while writing $2.5 million in bad checks. In the process he loses himself. The real person ultimately went to jail in France, Sweden and the US before going to work for the FBI to prevent someone like himself from happening again. It's perfect for Leo, who has to play between the ages of 17 and 28.

Q: What's your assessment of DiCaprio based on your meeting with him?

A: He's extremely talented, very smart. We've had six meetings at least, and that many phone calls. The relationship's just started, but it's gone nicely so far. I hope we get to make the movie soon, because he's growing so well into a leading man.

Q: If you had to pinpoint a few breaks that allow a guy born in Tennessee who grew up in San Diego to have gotten this far at age 36, would anything come to mind?

A: I don't know. I feel very blessed. I have a lot of friends who've worked just as hard as I have and the ball bounced a different way. You try to counter that with some understanding of what's important and make sure you're appreciative.

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Michael Fleming interviewed Michael Douglas for the December/January issue of Movieline.

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