My friend Timmy, Timmy Robbins

You like that title? I do, because after interviewing incredible stage actor, director, screenwriter and now musician Tim Robbins, I'm feeling quite affectionate towards him. He was polite, charming, intelligent and freakin' intriguing, as you will see when you read this transcript of my interview. Tim Robbins, Oscar-winner, has hit the big 5-0 and recently released his debut album as Tim Robbins and the Rogues Gallery. Believe me, part of my job is to review music for a living and I'm not lying when I say the LP is a beautiful, sweeping combination of Nick Cave-esque storytelling and Bob Dylan folk (when he's on).

Tim Robbins is playing at the 2011 Byron Bay Bluesfest, which ends later tonight, and to celebrate I'm posting this interview. I was fortunate enough to see Timmy and the Rogues play a live set on Saturday and they were all sorts of bluesy awesomeness. Robbins' attendance at the festival was in doubt after his mother passed away last week, but being the champ that he is he fronted up, played a rocking set in front of a black and white picture of his parents and left the stage drenched in sweat. Like I said, champ. Anywho, we talk music, movie and mid-life crisis' below.Tim Robbins: Hello, are you there?

Movie Mazzupial: Hi! Howdy! Can you hear me?
TR: Yes, yes, I can hear you. Sorry about the other day (-Ed. our previous interview got cancelled).

MM: Oh, don’t worry about it. I understand you have to do a lot of interviews so these things would get pretty tedious.
TR: Oh no, it’s not tedious. It was just me, I stuffed up.

MM: Well, no worries. It’s lovely to chat to you because I’m such a huge fan of yours and never in my wildest dreams thought I’d get to interview you so . . . this is very exciting.
TR: Well, I’m excited your excited.

MM: (Laughs). Cool. So, where are you speaking to me from at the moment?
TR: I’m in Venice, California and it’s a beautiful, sunshiney day. We’ve had torrential rain for the past few days and now finally it’s come out in beautiful sunshine.

MM: Nice. Now, the album, first of all I have to say I loved it. I listened to it on a long drive and I’ve never really quite heard anything like this before. I mean, Book Of Josie for me was the perfect track. You must be proud of this record.
TR: I’m very proud of it and I’m excited that you like it. What I figured was going to happen there was there were going to be some people that would put it on and give it a shot and others that would already hate it, so I appreciate you listened to it. It’s a good driving album.

MM: Yeah, I was driving through the country side at the time and it just complimented the situation so well.
TR: Yes, it would be perfect with the sweeping landscapes.

MM: Exactly. You’ve taken the unusual step, I guess, of not rushing into make an album when you first got famous and making your debut at 50, why was that?
TR: I didn’t feel like I had enough to say. Everything I’ve done in theatre and movies, everything I’ve written and directed, has been based on a story I wanted to tell and I just feel like that’s what should be behind the music as well. A few offers to do an album had come through before that and I felt like I had songs, but didn’t have an album. I’m big fan of albums, from beginning-to-end kind of albums where you sit down and listen and the album forms an impression on you. It’s like a good play or a good movie; you see imagery, you feel emotion, and I just felt like that if I’m going to do an album I’ve got to have a story I want to tell and that didn’t come until later. I’m glad I waited, I feel like now is the right time for it. I feel like I have something to say, I feel like I have enough knowledge of music and I know how I want it to sound. I’m not misguided by the wrong things. i think sometimes people jump into this kind of thing for the wrongs reasons.

MM: I heard you describe the album as the “mid-life crisis album”, why would you say that?
TR: It was a joke I made and I really regret making it. At the time it seemed funny and I laughed and everyone around me laughed, but apparently the irony and the humour was lost on the London tabloids because there were articles in the paper the next day about me going through a mid-life crisis and they had an accompanying article from a psychologist comparing me to a British comedian that had had a mid-life crisis and was institutionalised. It went viral on the internet and everywhere that Tim Robbins is having this mid-life crisis. It was probably the worst way to sell an album ever. I couldn’t imagine what you would like to hear less than a man in his 50s moaning about his life. None of these songs are about that. It was a bad joke and I can’t take it back

MM: (Laughs) Right, that sounds, erm, quite awful. I watched Dave Coulter from your band describe the songs as little movies in themselves, how do you respond to that? Is that something you were conscious of?
TR: They’re stories, definitely, and I can see how he would say that. You can make a movie out of Time To Kill or Crush On You or Book Of Josie, definitely. I think a good song has imagery in it that takes you to a different place and the great thing in song is that place is different for everybody. I have a certain image in my head and what’s exciting about music is that it can be perceived in many different ways. People get to cast their different opinions. How you see Josie is probably different to how someone else sees it and that story gets to be told through different imaginations. The realisation of song lies in the imagination, whereas a film makes all the decisions for you.


MM: From your career as a stage and screen actor and director, to these songs which really tell stories . . . being a storyteller is something you’re clearly passionate about – why do you think it’s so important to do that?
TR: Tell storeis?

MM: Yeah.
TR: It gives me joy. I feel like I have stories to tell and I’m good at doing it

MM: Now, Dead Man Walkling, it’s one of my favourite films of all time and its been almost 16 years since you made that. We don’t have it in Australia, but in America how much do you think the debate surrounding the death penalty has increased, improved, evolved?
TR: It's got a lot better and I think the movie really helped start a dialogue, as Helen Prejean will tell you. I just got an email from her yesterday talking about the moratorium in Illinois and that's been happening all over the country. I think what the movie did especially was it had respect for the families and the terrible pain they went through; it didn't try to manipulate the story into being about an innocent man on death row, because he wasn't. We wanted to really present it in an honest way and I'm really proud of that. For seven years we've also had the Dead Man Walking play project, where I adapted the film for stage and offered the rights only to universities that can convince other departments in the school to offer courses on the death penalty. It's in about 200 schools now and the courses increase the amount of thinking on the issue, but also whenever there's a production on there (are) symposiums and debates, which has really helped.

MM: Wow, that sounds amazing. I’d love to see one of those productions. Your film career is absolutely incredible, there’s so many films I would love to talk to you about - from City Of Ember to Mystic River - but The Shawshank Redemption has really become a lasting classic. What is it about that film you think makes people keep going back to it and falling in love with it over and over again?
TR It’s a beautiful script, it’s a story that offers hope. That and I think people can relate to the idea there might be injustice that happened in Andy’s life, but with patience and perseverance you will be able to find freedom. I think we all want to believe there’s hope out there and it’s a beautiful story about a friendship that’s pretty rare. There have been stories about male friendship where there are car chases and whoring women, but this is about a real friendship and people want to believe that’s possible.

MM: Fantastic, well, thanks so much for speaking with me Tim. It’s truly been a pleasure and I can’t wait to see you guys on stage at Bluesfest.
TR: Alright, thanks and you will have to come and say hi.

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The 8 best actor-turned-musicians

A lot of attention has been paid to the reverse of this phenomenon; musicians turned actors. But for me, the opposite is more interesting because once you get past the legion of hot-pant wearing, gyrating, former Disney stars, there are actually some fantastically talented and unique actor-turned-musicians out there. No doubt some of these choices are going to have you baking frownies, but hear me out. Or hear them out. Either way, get listening.

1. Ryan Gosling

You know, I genuinely hate when people say “words cannot express how much I love blah blah blah” and then they proceed to use words to describe how much they love said thing or person. I nearly made that writing faux pas trying to explain just how much I adore Ryan Gosling as a musician. I’ve ranted about the brilliance of his outfit Dead Man Bones before, but I truly never get sick of it. It’s beautiful. Haunting. Unforgettable. It’s also in part thanks to his time in the Mickey Mouse Club. From there, Gosling developed an obsession with the Haunted Mansion ride at Disneyland and the music of Dead Man’s Bones comes from his failed attempt, with fellow actor Zach Shields, to write a musical based around the ride. Gosling and Shields have only made one Dead Man’s Bones album, but that’s enough to leave a magical impression. From the macabre melodies about zombies, werewolves, ghosts and murder, to it’s unrelenting indie sensibilities, their self-titled debut will seduce from the first listen. Unashamedly low-fi, the backing vocals provided by the Silverlake Conservatory Children’s Choir add to the poltergeist perfection which features everything from hand-claps and helter skelter musicianship, to Gosling moaning lyrics and a prolonged period of weeping to end a track. Outside of graveyard anthems, Gosling hinted at his skill as quirky musician in the standout scene from Blue Valentine where he plays a ukulele whilst singing a love ballad to Michelle Williams’ character. He also penned the song Unicorn Tears from the film, which deserves kudos for it’s awesome title and general delightfulness.

2. Jamie Foxx

You couldn’t get further from Gosling than Mr Foxx here, the Oscar-winner turned R’n’B crooner. Although already having released an album after his sitcom and stand-up success, Foxx’s musical career came into it’s own in 2006 with the release of his best-selling album Unpredictable (featuring standout tracks Extravaganza and Unpredictable). His third and fourth efforts, Intuition in 2008 and last year’s Best Night Of My Life, were just as slick and featured guest appearances from some of the best rappers in the bizz. Sure, most of his music is full of sexual innuendo, cocky self-assurance and criminally smooth vocals, but when has that been a bad thing? Plus, unlike fellow actor-turned-musician Drake, who works within the same genre, Foxx has a stellar set of vocal chords and doesn’t overly rely on autotune or producers to do the hard work for him. As well as lending his pipes to musical movies such as Ray and Dreamgirls, Foxx’s musical cameos are almost as notable as his solo career. After all, what would Kanye West’s Gold Digger be without with Foxx’s modern Ray Charles-esque backing vocals and lets not forget Slow Jamz with Twista and Kanye (again). The standout though, has to be the superb dirty grind Hustle Blood with Outkast’s Big Boi on 2010’s Sir Luscious Left Foot The Son Of Chico Dusty. As a side note, I highly recommend you check out Foxx’s video clip to Blame It which features a who’s who of Hollywood A-Listers partying down with Foxx, notably Ron Howard and Jake Gyllenhaal getting their wigga on.

3. Scarlett Johansson

I have a feeling I’m going to cop slack over this choice, but you know what? Bring it. For her debut album Anywhere I Lay My Head Scarlett Johansson could have strapped on a sequined top and spat out a quasi R’n’B/pop album. But no, she opted to do a record of Tom Waits covers that few people would understand and even fewer people would take the time to listen to. Sure, she doesn’t have a bubblegum sweet voice like, say, Zooey Deschanel. Yet there’s something so alluring about Johansson’s husky, almost androgynous voice that instantly draws me to the speaker like a kid listing to Joni Mitchell for the first time. Along with the 10 Waits covers and an original track, Johansson had a host of incredible guests lend their talent to the album including David Bowie, members of the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs and Celebration, not to mention TV On The Radio’s Dave Sitek as producer. The record is almost like a female companion to Gosling and Shields’ Dead Man’s Bones, featuring that same ghostly magic. Personally, I’m a bigger fan of her album with Pete Yorn, Break Up, based on the duets of Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot. It’s a lot more uppity, retro and fun than Johansson’s solo work and also features the addictive track Relator, which serves as a somewhat prophetic song given her marriage breakup with Ryan Reynolds. Plus, her cover of Jeff Buckley’s Last Goodbye is the only redeeming thing about He’s Just Not That Into You.

4. Tim Robbins

I first listened to Tim Robbins and The Rogues Gallery Band’s debut album while going on a three hour drive through the country. It was pretty much the perfect setting to digest this masterful and sweeping piece of storytelling. Robbins, who’s had an interest in music for decades, waited until he was 50 to release his first record this year and I can only think it’s a good thing. Each song plays like a mini-movie, with Robbins’ Nick Cave-esque storytelling within each track complimented perfectly by his minimalist vocals and the rag-tag group of experienced musicians he’s got backing him up. Robbins and the Rogues Galley Band are playing at the 2011 Byron Bay Bluesfest next month and frankly, I can’t wait to see what they do live.

5. Jared Leto

The man can sing. There’s no denying. In fact, I dare say Leto has the most powerful voice on this list of actor-turned-musicians. As the singer-songwriter and rhythm guitarist for 30 Seconds To Mars, Leto has shed his Hollywood pretty boy image by becoming an enigmatic frontman to this punk/rock outfit. They make epic music, inspiring a legion of hardcore fans with three-tone hair colours and Mohawks who get just as involved in the passionate and aggressive ballads for the misunderstood as Leto himself. If you’ve heard their music, you understand why.

6. Zooey Deschanel

Deschanel truly completed her indie girl, retro sweetheart persona with music project She & Him with fellow muso M. Ward. The bubblegum sweetness of her tunes invoke visions of riding a bicycle through fifties suburbia and despite some beige moments, the two albums from She & Him, Volume One and Volume Two, offer something relatively unique for left-field music lovers.

7. Taylor Momsen

Okay, yes, she does dress like a $2 whore crossed with something escaped from Rob Zombie’s basement, but Gossip Girl Momsen’s band The Pretty Reckless are pretty decent. Shying away from the Disney rock/pop sound of her peers like Demi Lovato and Miley Cyrus, Momsen’s band are decidedly more grunge and heavy sounding a la Nirvana and Garbage. Their debut single Make Me Wanna Die, off the Kick-Ass soundtrack, proved Momsen’s ambition to combine the vocal talents of Shirley Manson and Joan Jett, and so far it hasn’t proved too poor a move for her. Sure, The Pretty Reckless are never going to be a mainstream success thanks to their jailbait lead singer and edgy public persona, but that won’t stop many fans, including myself, highly anticipating their follow up to debut album Light Me Up.

8. Juliette Lewis

The ultimate rock chick, Lewis isn’t fazed by throwing on a lyrca leotard, grabbing a microphone and getting dirty in the mosh pit with her fans. I’m sure she’s also comfortable snorting a line of cocaine with carnies in a port-a-loo, but lets focus on her music. Lewis made her music debut with Juliette Lewis and The Licks before forming The New Romantiques in 2009. Lewis and her music are eccentric punk rock all the way, with lyrics that bash everything from corporate giants to former lovers. Throw in the purring vocals, and Lewis is a musician who rocks whatever band she’s in at the time, not to mention guest performances on tracks for legends such as The Prodigy and The Infidels.

Ones to watch: Emily Browning, Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson, Lea Michele, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Kristen Stewart, Amber Riley.

Musician Meh-stakes: Russell Crowe, Lindsay Lohan, Jennifer Love-Hewitt, Gwyneth Paltrow, Katie Holmes, Vanessa Hudgens, Bec Hewitt, Tammin Sursok and pretty much every other Home and Away actress-turned-singer.

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Favourite Movie Friday with Tim Robbins

I interviewed one of my all time heroes this week - Tim Robbins. Besides being flabbergasted at his awesomeness for the duration of the interview, I also managed to chat to him about his music, movies and political projects. I will post the full transcript in the coming days. In the mean time, here's his favourite movie pics:

"Casablanca, It’s A Wonderful life, Network, McCabe & Mrs Miller, Nashville, There Will Be Blood and My Man Godfrey."

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The 12 Best Prison Movies

I love my lists, but I've got to be honest and admit I didn't come up with the idea for this one. Instead, full kudos go to the team at Blockbuster video whose Assignment 6 in the Blockbuster Super Blogger competition loosely eluded to this idea. For those of you playing at home, I'm an entrant in the Blockbuster Super Blogger competition where two winners score a trip to the Cannes International Film Festival to report on the event. Awesome, right? To help send me to Cannes, all you have to do is click on my page and give me hits. So click, click, click puh-lease. Moving on, here's my pick of the 12 best communal soap films (aka prison movies).

The Shawshank Redemption (1994)Why not start with arguably the best? Based on Stephen King’s short story, this is cinematic storytelling at its finest. There’s not much I can say about The Shawshank Redemption that hasn’t already been said. Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman are unforgettable, almost equally as memorable as one of film’s greatest scenes – Andy standing free and liberated in the pouring rain. Magic.

Chicago (2002)

A sexy prison movie? If you be good to Rob Marshall, Rob Marshall will be good to you by rewarding audiences with an exciting and lush version of one of Broadway’s biggest hits. From the flawless casting and performances, to the on-the-money editing and musical numbers, this goes down as one of Hollywood’s best musicals and, coincidentally, prison movies.

The Great Escape (1963)

Steve McQueen once again proved he’s King in this Oscar-nominated tale of allied Prisoners Of War who plan a mass escape from a German camp during World War II. This real life account never gained the respect it deserved until years after its release, but thankfully, it’s now recognised as the classic it is.

The Green Mile (1999)

Random fact, but did you know Stephen King is the author with the most amount of works adapted for the big screen? Unfortunately, most of them are pretty darn terrible. The Green Mile is definitely not one of those. After the huge success of King’s prison tale in The Shawshank Redemption, director Frank Darabont returned for this spectacular supernatural epic set on death row. Tom Hanks and co-stars give incredible performances as guards affected by the presence of a convicted child murderer (Michael Clarke Duncan in his breakout role). Emotional, magical and moving, this retains much of Shawshank’s grandiosity – spanning years and lives. It’s important to note Movie Mazz favourite Sam Rockwell in scene stealing role as the despicable `Wild Bill’ Wharton.

Dead Man Walking (1995)This was the second of two stellar prison movies involving Tim Robbins released over a two year period, with everyone’s favourite strawberry blonde behind the camera as director, producer and writer his time. Based on Sister Helen Prejean’s book of the same name, Susan Sarandon plays the nun who becomes the unlikely friend to a convicted killer on death row (Sean Penn) and the victims’ families. An intelligent, eye-opening look at the death penalty, Sarandon won the best actress Oscar for her turn as the sassy and compassionate Prejean. In a testament to how deluded the Academy is, Penn lost out to Tom Hanks as a doofus in Forrest Gump.

Conviction (2010)

Sam Rockwell is back in jail in this under seen story about a single mother (Hilary Swank) who gets her highschool certificate then goes off to college and finally law school to become an attorney and free her brother (Rockwell) who was wrongly convicted of murder. Like a handful of films on this list, Conviction is based on an incredible true story and director Tony Goldwyn breathes life into this testament to love and loyalty. Swank and Rockwell carry the film with their powerhouse performances, with the supporting cast in Minnie Driver, Juliette Lewis and Melissa Leo rounding out an great ensemble acting triumph.

The Hurricane (1999)

He was a man the authorities came to blame, for somethin’ that he never done and it’s the Oscar Denzel Washington should have won. Instead, they gave him the compensation prize the following year, but there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that his staggering performance as an angry, talented and inspirational boxer; Rubin `Hurricane’ Carter should have been the real winner. Veteran filmmaker Norman Jewison is at his experienced best in this layered, powerful and ultimately heart-warming movie about a wrongly convicted man.

Stone (2010)

Edward. Norton. Has. Cornrows. If you need another reason to see this movie, then you clearly didn’t understand the full scope of that last statement – Edward. Norton. Has. Cornrows. He also delivers a fantastic turn as another manipulative psycho in John Curran’s Stone. Norton is a convicted arsonist who looks to manipulate a parole officer (Robert DeNiro) by placing his beautiful wife (Milla Jovovich) in the lawman's path to secure his parole. It’s a complex, twisted tale and looks at prison life through the perspective of three very different people affected in three very different ways.

Alien 3 (1992)

The only film on this list which features aliens and Sigourney Weaver-awesomeness. A very different film from the first two, both tonally and literally, Alien 3 comes from the demented mind of David Fincher. Many have criticised this industrialised take on the sci-fi series, but I say you can’t knock any flick brave enough to put girl-power icon Ripley in an all-male prison AND pull it off.

Rescue Dawn (2006)

Possibly the two bat-shit craziest people in Hollywood – Werner Herzog and Christian Bale – team-up for this account of a US Fighter pilot's epic struggle of survival after being shot down on a mission over Laos during the Vietnam War. Bale once again drops about four small children’s worth of weight and completely immerses himself in a character who’s biggest enemy is the harsh environment keeping him prisoner.

The Longest Yard (1974)

This con-comedy proves the original is often the best with Burt Reynolds starring as a former pro quarterback, now serving time in his prison, asked to put together a team of inmates to take on the guards. Gen Y’ers probably saw the Adam Sandler remake with Nelly, Chris Rock and Reynolds in a supporting role. The rest of us probably wish we hadn’t.

The Rock (1996)This is the only Michael Bay film I like. Period. As a general rule I tend to hate Bayhem – kill me if I think films need more than explosions and penis metaphors – but I actually enjoyed this. From Nic Cage doing his good guy-in-a-bad-situation shtick to the overly dramatic action scenes, this is a guilty popcorn pleasure. Sean Connery is also pretty awesome as a gnarly Scottish super-con. The Rock is the film that really kick-started Cage’s 90s action movie reign (which seems about implausible as the biological weapons in the film) given his reputation as a hardcore method and character actor.

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Dec-Ember

With Twilight being released tomorrow and thousands of screaming fans buying every pre-sale ticket in sight, there’s another worthy film which has slipped under the radar. City of Ember is from the Oscar nominated director behind Monster House, Gil Kenan, and is adapted from the popular novel (of the same name) written by Jeanne Duprau. I had the opportunity to catch this film at the premiere tonight and let me tell you, it’s definitely worth battling the Christmas holiday crowds to see. Starring Bill Murray, Tim Robbins, Saoirse Ronan, Toby Jones and Harry Treadway it’s about the people of the city of Ember who for generations have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights - underground. Built as a refuge for humanity and powered by a massive powerful generator, the city was only designed to last 200 years and now the power is failing. Two curious teenagers (why is it always two curious teenagers? Why?) start following the clues left to them by the builders of the artificial city in a hope of discovery a way to the surface. This film did okay in the US scrapping in above $7 million and got pretty positive reviews from the critics that count. My favourite Aussie critics Margaret and David both gave it three and a half stars each. And that’s what it deserves. It’s good and far above your average adventure flick targeted at adolescents. The concept is quite dark given the end of humanity and all, plus there a super scary monster creature which would cancel out a pre-tween audience. So, not really sure what the target market is here but if you’re looking for something a bit left of centre and minus the sexual tension and/or frustration of Twilight then City of Ember is calling. Stay posted for my musings on said vampire flick tomorrow.

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