Thursday, February 21, 2008
Malcolm McDowell
Tonight I was able to see a 40th anniversary screening of Night of the Living Dead. Put on by both AFI and Texas Frighmare it was a very fun evening. Appearing at the screening for Q&A were George Romero, his co-writer and the actors who played the brother and sister, Sheriff, daughter and the first zombie seen at the cemetery.
It was fun to see the film on the big screen from a print with a packed house that was really into the film. The discussion afterwards was quite interesting with the old friends remembering the film, much like the best DVD commentaries. But the big reason I was so interested to go was because Malcolm McDowell was present and hosted the post-film discussion.
While I’m not a big autograph hound there are a few people I would like to have them sign copies of DVDs I own. McDowell has to be high on the list. After the film, I made a dash up to the back of the theater where the guests were waiting and was very happy to get him to sign a DVD. Surprisingly this was the first person I’ve met since being an adult that I was actually nervous. After meeting him I was literally shaking while putting the cover back in the keep case. I’m met filmmakers I consider geniuses (Peter Greenaway & Wim Wenders) and actresses who are extremely gorgeous (Maura Tierney & Sarah Polley) and never felt this way. This is probably a combination of him being nice and me being a fan of his since high school.
I didn’t want to have him sign A Clockwork Orange. That seemed a bit too fan boy and I’m sure he’s sick of being that film. So I brought O Lucky Man! A personal favorite of mine that few people have seen and he is credited with the story idea.
When I got my chance I handed him the box asking "If you don’t mind could you please sign this for me?"
He took the case and the pen, paused for a second, then tapped the case with the pen and in his distinctive voice uttered very deliberately, "This is a good film."
At this point my night was made and I didn’t want to screw it up but was able to respond, "I was so happy it finally made it to disc last year."
"So have you seen it?" he asked.
"Yes over 20 years ago. It’s one of my favorites"
"Good to hear," and he handed it back to me.
Labels: Film
# posted by ChrisR @ 11:00 PM 
