ISCHIA GLOBAL FILM & MUSIC FEST INTERVIEW # 7: DANNY GLOVER

Posted by Timothy E. RAW

December 25, 2009

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Danny Glover is best known for his role as Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon Series. His notable roles include Predator 2, Angels In The Outfield, Beloved, The Royal Tenenbaums and Saw.

His recent career resurgence has seen him star in such films as Lars Von Trier’s Manderlay, Shooter, Blindness, Be Kind Rewind and Honeydripper for director John Sayles, for which he also contributed to the soundtrack.

In 2002, he directed the film, Just A Dream. He also produces films through his company, Louverture Films. His recent roles include staring parts in the Roland Emmerich blockbuster 2012 and Neil La Bute’s upcoming remake of Death At A Funeral.

TIMOTHY E. RAW: Outside of working on films and watching them, are film scores something you listen to?

DANNY GLOVER: To be very frank, not really. It depends upon what the score is, and the movie it’s attached to, since the film score is so integral to telling the story. I pay attention to that. And yet, at the same time, while it’s integral to the film, you don’t expect the film score to overshadow the story itself. So, if you have a film score, let’s say that’s music driven or a movie that’s music driven –

RAW: — Like Honeydripper –

DG: – It can be driven by the music itself. Then the film score plays a different role. I always like the film score (in those type of films) to be underneath the music, so at the same time, there are moments you pay attention to it or are attentive to, but other moments when it has a subtle way of changing, bringing you in and out of a particular mood.

RAW: What was it like scoring your first film as a director (with Patrice Rushen) Just A Dream?

DG: One of the things in my view — and perhaps with regard to my future experience in directing – perhaps one of the things about music is that I’ll be a little bit more attentive to it. I tend as an actor, to come from the standpoint “Performance, performance, performance.” And now, while music is something that I certainly didn’t push in the back of my film, the level of attentiveness that I pay to music is going to change accordingly as I direct more, as I sense the role of music and as I begin to juxtapose the music to the performance i.e. to the movement of the story itself.

RAW: You had, what I can only assume was the great and distinct pleasure of working with the legend of American independent cinema, John Sayles on Honeydripper. Not only that, but you sung on the soundtrack, the song was “Going Down Low.” Was that something that was in the script or something that was decided between the two of you later on, during shooting?

DG: There were many choices that could’ve been made in that situation. The most obvious for me was to sing it myself. It’s a song that I know.

RAW: Is that something that you do? I was so surprised when I saw the film, to see you singing like that and so well. I can’t remember any other instances of you singing on film.

DG: No, it’s not and I was trying to play piano too! (in other scenes with different characters singing). I always had an idea in my mind of wanting to play the piano. I wish I had been more musically inclined. Someone like Terrance Howard, (who was also at the festival) who’s a musician. I wish I had more background in music as a child. Growing up I certainly had an appreciation, but not the willingness to find my voice through music in some way. In some small way, it could’ve been in my vocal choir, church, some other way I found the energy to put into music. But for some reason, while music was very much a part of the atmosphere of my home life, it wasn’t because either of my parents sang or played an instrument or whatever, so consequently, while it was there, it never stood out as a dominant part of my home cultivation. When I think about it, there were things I wish would have happened to me as a child, that I played some instrument, sang or something like that, but who knows? My life would’ve been different. The mere fact of learning the piano, I’d have done something else, it would’ve changed my life. It wouldn’t have necessarily led me to where I am now at sixty-two years old.

RAW: You seem pretty happy with where you are right now.

DG: The beauty of it, being my age and being able to be reflective in light of the events of my life; my parents and their influence, the fact that I was born when I was born, where I grew up, all that I’m eternally grateful for. I’m grateful for the fact that I can look back on my life and feel anchored by its continuity. It is unbroken by anything that ever happened dramatically outside of the natural deaths of a mother, father… not so natural, a younger brother and a younger sister. The fact is, when I look at my life in terms of where the influences factor in, I had four siblings, very close, we come from a loving family with a wonderful mother and everything else. Those are the kind of things that are remarkable to me. That become more remarkable as I look at my spirit, remarkable as I look into the eyes of my five-year-old grandson and enjoy every moment to this day, of my daughter. We can have a wish list forever about what would’ve happened in our lives.

RAW: I’m working on mine right now. It’s a work in progress!–

DG: Even now. What I can do right now with every moment that I have left on this earth to do things that will enhance my understanding of who I am. As a human being and in relationship to other human beings on the planet. It certainly doesn’t matter what might’ve happened, what might not have happened in the past, the question is about what is happening at this moment.

RAW: Earlier you talked about your expectations of a film score, what you like and a respond to. Can you give me an example of when you’ve been watching a film you worked on and the score has really surprised you? Maybe a way it pushed emotions that you weren’t necessarily aware were in play when you were making the film.

DG: I think certainly because Honeydripper was a film about music, the power and the rhythm of the music, was evident. It’s driven by the music. If we look at other films I’ve been in, the music of Beloved is often haunting for me. That movie is one I remember that stands out for me. Yet, while it is a Hollywood studio film, there’s something… the way the music is integrated and flows through the film, it digs a little deeper. The depth of it is in reference to the story itself. You have to find another language, since the language of the book itself elevates our thought process. The language of the movie and its music puts us in another kind of framework.

Often with big budget movies, the vastness of something like Lethal Weapon, the music ends up being more of an undercurrent for the film. Of course there were theme songs, David Sandborn played my theme song, Sting played Mel’s (Gibson) theme song. One was a little bit jazzier, a little bit more urban, had a different tenor to it. Granted, you can hear Sting’s voice and project that onto Mel’s character, Martin Riggs’ image and they match wonderfully. Outside of that, the role the music plays, whether it’s underneath the radar, subliminal in some sense or whether it has some driving force in it, it all serves a purpose. Like this music right here. (indicates the looped generic lounge music playing in the background).

RAW: I wouldn’t be able to tell you what that is.

DG: It’s not Miles Davis’ Sketches From Spain, I can tell you that!

RAW: You’re something of a Jazz aficionado then?

DG: The Jazz played in that period, 40’s, 50’s, early 60’s.

RAW: Are you familiar with the likes of Bud Powell, Cannonball Adderlay and Bill Evans?

DG: Yeah, absolutely. Did you say Gil Evans?

RAW: Bill Evans, the Bill Evans trio. His piano playing was heavily influenced by Bud Powell actually.

DG: Gil Evans was an arranger for a number of the classical pieces that Miles Davis did, from Sketches Of Spain to Pory and Bess, to a lot of other stuff that he did. Gil Evans was a major component. He composed the orchestration around Miles Davis’ trumpet, which was very beautiful. You oughta get Sketches Of Spain, it’s just amazing. It’s a classic.

Danny Glover: Actor, singer, piano player, and Jazz fan..

RAW: Thanks for the recommendation. My next question concerns a film I have many problems with and I’m hoping you can speak to those. Currently you just finished working on one of my very favourite filmmaker’s latest, Neil La Bute’s remake of Death At A Funeral. I’m disappointed –

DG: – Why are you disappointed?

RAW: By the fact that the original is barely a couple of years old. That this uniquely British film (directed by the American, Frank Oz) hasn’t even been given the chance of a shelf life before it’s being remade. The lack of original ideas in Hollywood often means the studios are reaching back to older, established films with an in-built audience that they can sell to the current generation. This film came out hardly any time at all ago! Do studio heads really think American people are so stupid that they can’t understand English accents? I’ve noticed this one has an African-American slant to it, is that what’s going to put bums on seats, selling it to that demographic?

DG: Clearly it’s that. You have performers such as Chris Rock, who’s crossover, Martin Lawrence who’s crossover, Tracey Morgan who’s crossover because of 30 Rock. You’re not only going to have an all black audience who will respond to them — each of them individually and collectively — you’re going to also have a white audience who will respond to them.

RAW: So this is not a typically “urban” film that will appeal only to that demographic?

DG: Its target, its market is going to be the black community. You have a black cast. Just as Tyler Perry has captured the black market with his films, particularly Madea, the character he’s created out of that. What you have in terms of this film is credible artists who have a crossover audience as well. Certainly with Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and Tracey Morgan, just to name those three right there, automatically, their audience goes way beyond the black audience that is going to come see the film.

RAW: Were you familiar with the original?

DG: Yeah, I saw it.

RAW: What’s your thought on that? Are they completely different animals?

DG: Black humour has a different kind of way of… I mean it’s a lot broader to some extent. Broad, though at the same time being character driven. This kind of humour appeals to the kind of audiences who will pay to see these three men in the film. There’s a certain kind of understatement in British comedy that I like and that’s not to generalize it…

RAW: Has any of that made it across and translated into this version or are they really chalk and cheese?

DG: It’s hard to say. One of the things that I did was not to look at the first one before I did this because I don’t want to be influenced by what somebody else does. Does it translate in the same way? No, because the laugh line of the humour in the black audience is different to that of other audiences. It’s going to translate specifically to this audience I think, but it’s going to have a broader overview as well.

RAW: Neil La Bute is an interesting choice for this given that he was branded with some unfounded charges of racism back when In The Company Of Men came out.

DG: Branded what?

RAW: A racist. In his first film In The Company Of Men a character who happens to be black, is mocked for his use of language, then made to take off his pants in front of a white character.

DG: I don’t know about that, but I do know he directed Nurse Betty with Chris Rock and that was in the comedy genre. I don’t think that will come up with this, I think people are very happy with it.

RAW: You were also a leading character in Night Train, which I saw recently. This film with a ridiculously tiny budget. How did this director, Brian King, who I hadn’t heard anything of before, get somebody of your calibre and fairly established actors like Lelee Sobieski and Steve Zhan on something so miniscule in terms of budget? How did you become aware of the project?

DG: I came across the script through someone who is very close to me who I like. He gave the script to me and said, “Hey, this is what we want to do, this is what we have to do it with”, it was that simple. I said, “I like the script, let’s go do it”.

RAW: I’d urge people to seek it out. While it’s very much a genre piece, you bring an unexpected level of humanity and complication to that part. Your best role in recent years I think, and it really elevates it beyond another throwaway thriller.

DG: Oh thank you!

RAW: What a lot of people probably aren’t aware of is your work as a producer.

DG: I’ve been producing all along. I was the executive producer for To Sleep With Anger, I was a producer on a film I did with Matt Dillon called The Saint Of Fort Washington.

RAW: What’s the difference between producing and being an executive producer?

DG: If your name is attached to get the money it’s executive producer. On To Sleep With Anger, my name, with my attachment to the film, we were able to get at one point, $4 million dollars to shoot the movie. I don’t have final cut or anything like that, but I do play a role in shaping the story as well. I was executive producer on Buffalo Soldiers, a movie I did for TNT. My involvement in that was from the first steps, from the writing of the script and it’s approval, selection of the director, cast, I was involved in every aspect.

RAW: But nothing regarding music?

DG: No. Not that.

RAW: Thank you. Listening to you talk about life as well as film has been illuminating.

DG: My pleasure.

Soundtrack Geek Goes To The Ischia Global Film & Music Fest!
ISCHIA GLOBAL FILM & MUSIC FEST INTERVIEW # 1: MARC FORSTER
ISCHIA GLOBAL FILM & MUSIC FEST INTERVIEW # 2: PAUL HAGGIS
ISCHIA GLOBAL FILM & MUSIC FEST INTERVIEW # 3: BILLE AUGUST
ISCHIA GLOBAL FILM & MUSIC FEST INTERVIEW # 4: STEVEN ZAILLIAN
ISCHIA GLOBAL FILM & MUSIC FEST INTERVIEW # 5: DITO MONTIEL
ISCHIA GLOBAL FILM & MUSIC FEST INTERVIEW # 6: JOEL SCHUMACHER