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Inside the Actors Studio: Leading Men
R1 - America - Shout! Factory Review written by and copyright: Pat Pilon (14th September 2007). |
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The Show
 Since 1994, 'Inside the Actors Studio' has been a staple of acting, writing and directing students. Every episode, James Lipton interviews Hollywood's finest. Every show is roughly 50 minutes, with some exceptions, and every show is fascinating. In this set, you hear from heavyweights Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Sean Penn and Russell Crowe. Mr. Lipton generally starts by asking the names of the actors' parents. He then moves on to their early life and their introduction to theatre, cinema and career. It's not the most original structure, but it works extremely well, as every actor has a different story and so every episode is quite different. A couple of really interesting questions that Mr. Lipton asks all actors are 'what do you want from a director?' and 'what do you not want from a director?'. For film buffs - especially with these actors - is extremely informative and telling. disc 1: Robert De Niro (52:58) Mr. De Niro is pretty open about his career, though he doesn't speak too much about his personal experience, and spends more time talking about his projects and preparing for roles. He does tell you how he got into acting: his mom worked for the wife of the gentleman who ran the Dramatic Workshop. He goes on to talk about working with Martin Scorsese and how comfortable it is working with him. Mr. Lipton and Mr. De Niro spend a lot of time talking about 'Taxi Driver' and 'Raging Bull', as well, finishing with 'A Bronx Tale', Mr. De Niro's directorial debut. Unfortunately, they don't talk about 'Deer Hunter', though there's a nice cut scene on the disc. Also, unfortunately, this is from 1999, so they don't go into the comedies he's done, like 'Meet the Parents' or 'Analyze This', but it's a informative hour. disc 2: Al Pacino (1:31:43) Mr. Pacino is very open and very candid about his entire career, as well as parts of his personal life relating to theatre and cinema. He talks about how important Shakespeare and theatre is for him. He talks about doing a scene from 'The Lost Weekend' for his parents' friends when he was five years old. He spends a lot of time on 'The Godfather' and how that moved his career forward. The studio actually wanted to fire him, but Francis Ford Coppola moved up an important scene in the schedule to show the studio execs that Mr. Pacino could handle the role. 'Serpico' and 'Dog Day Afternoon' are also focused on. They eventually get to 'Scent of a Woman' and there's a really funny story associated with his Oscar award. He also gives out his theories about directing, making this a very well-rounded interview. disc 3: Sean Penn (51:25) They start talking bout his father, Leo Penn, then move on to how he (Sean Penn) got involved in acting. They also go through his filmography, talking more specifically about 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High', 'The Falcon and the Snowman', 'At Close Range' and 'Dead Man Walking'. Mr. Penn also talks about directing and why and how he went into directing. He has some very interesting things to say about movies being entertainment. Russell Crowe (50:16) The very shy Mr. Crowe - he actually looks at the floor more than anything else - is very open and candid about his life and career. He has some pretty funny stories to say, as in he talks about his gay kiss in 'The Sum of Us'. He talks about gaining all that weight (and his now-screwy metabolism) for 'The Insider'. When talking about 'Gladiator', he gives a hint at his 'volatility', as he puts it. The rundown of his injuries from that movie is also quite surprising. Some time is also spent with 30-Odd Foot of Grunt, and his passion for music, which is a bit less gripping for me. Overall, this is a great interview and it's surprising to see how shy Mr. Crowe really is in front of a crowd.
Video
1.33:1 full screen. Talking about the technical quality of this set, to me, is a bit silly. The picture isn't as clear or detailed as it could be, but that's hardly important. What's important is that you can see Mr. De Niro or Mr. Crowe clearly, and you can see them clearly. You can see the audience members and you can see James Lipton. Anybody expecting a reference-quality picture from this set should re-evaluate their viewing preferences and just enjoy this set for what it is.
Audio
This is in English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo. As long as you can hear the interviews clearly, there's no problem, and there's no problem. Every word, anecdote and line is heard clearly, though the overall volume may be a bit low. Once the volume is turned up, there are no problems. No subtitles are provided.
Extras
On disc one there are some Start-Up Trailers for 'Fired!' (2:18), 'Inside the Actors Studio: Icons' (0:53) and 'Inside the Actors Studio: Dave Chappelle' (1:01). These are the only extras, though. Every actor has some Great Moments That Didn't Make the Cut, on the appropriate disc. Mr. De Niro has a few scenes: Costumes, DePalma, and Early Auditions (1:46), 'Deer Hunter': Mingo Junction & Hanging from Helicopters (3:58), Gaining the Weight & Hair of Al Capone (1:33) and 'Bronx Tales' & Bus Driving (2:34). The second one is by far the best, as he talks about the dangers of shooting a certain shot in 'Deer Hunter'. For Al Pacino, you have: Winning on 'Wheel of Fortune' (1:56), BMW's & Bikes Don't Mix with Manhattan (2:46), Passing on 'Dog Day Afternoon' (1:49) and Kevin Spacey on Working with Al Pacino on 'Glengarry Glen Ross' (2:01). The second story is actually pretty funny, as is Kevin Spacey's. Sean Penn has: 'Taps' & Buzzing the U.S. Open (3:20), Acting in 'At Close Range' with Chris Penn (1:36), 'Indian Runner', Inspired by Bruce Springsteen (2:31), Directing Nicholson in 'The Pledge' (2:40) and Q&A: 'Hurly Burly' & Shaking Over Love (3:38) are here. The last one is really interesting only because the first audience member asking the question is Bradley Cooper, star of 'Alias' and 'Kitchen Confidential'. Finally, for Russell Crowe, you have: Acting at the Age of Six in 'Spy Force' (1:18), The Many Toothless Years of Russell Crowe (3:11), A Pub Manager's Son in New Zealand (1:55), Adopting the Abstinence and Expertise of 'L.A. Confidential''s Bud White (2:00), 'Gladiator''s 'Snot Moment' (2:19), Replicating the Weight and Hair of 'Insider''s Jeffrey Wigand (2:40) and An Engaging 'Extra' (2:00). These are actually really funny and really show how interesting Mr. Crowe's life is.
Packaging
The set comes in 3 ultra-slim keep cases, inside a slipcase
Overall
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