Get mad, geteven
With Mad City, veteran director COSTA-GAVRAS takes on Hollywood and wins. Words Nigel Floyd
In Mad City, John Travolta plays a sarked museum securrty ouard whose attempt to net hack hrs JOI) rnadvmtently triggers a polr(e and
rnedra Srede of the l;rrrIdrn<t By (hanr‘e, washed-up TV rergrerter Dustrn Hoffman's :s on hand to
capture the unfoldrnrr story ‘Irve', But
'Dustin comes in every day with a a lot of questions. He speaks
only about the work.’
Costa-Gavras
as the srtuatron esralates rnto a medra rrrrus, Travolta's frustratron and Hoffman ethrrs are stretrhed to hreakrnd pornt, Truth heromes a Irostade to arnhrtron, rrvalry and the ’Irve’ arrdreme's (ravrno for sensatronalrsm
Yet Costa-Gavr'as -- the (Irre(‘l()i‘ of Z, Mrss‘rnq and Mus/r Box refuses to make easy moral ruddements Eath of the protaoonrsts sees ‘the truth' from
IIIIUIITNEII PINE MIX
a drfferent anole, and earn. v v~ s own way, a '.'r(trrn o." w: :1' I; 'r '~ : hrs Control
'The Travolta aria H."~ ar‘ Characters have the sure rar't'rz’ernj says the Greek-horn :irrr;::<:r "irzey have both IOSI their ; [Its both try to get them t‘ar'» t'ra- “'st by rllegal methods and the s-v; .:~.':.i rm unethrzal ones But 7-: "' Travolta would never shot e, and when Hoffman has a (I‘..‘:":e i." cross the journalrstrr Irne rn way that wrll destroy Travolta, he refuses '
Costa-Gavras and producer Arnold Kopelson (P/atoo/r, Fa/r’rrrd [)qwrm orrgrnally saw Mad City as a rr:.:>:lest frlm \vrth unknown a; i:- .t the sCr'rpt rmmedrately att'.r Ts»: f'r-I attention of Hoffrran, .'.i..; then encouraged Travolta Tat dry-t rr;'.<.!ve:i
Both men adreed tr:- take
nay rut and, after some amrahie drsrrrssron, Ho frnan Travolta to play the set urrty (ruard role he had riutrallv thoudht of as hrs own lust frlteen days after the stunt was completed, a deal was rn rrrare, and the $50 rnrllron projert went :ntr pre-produr‘tron, wrth two o Hollywood's hrrrrrest stars rn the leadrng roles
Costa-Gavras has nethrrrr; Isa: ,nrarse for both Hoffman and Travolta, although therr rndrvrdual aprrroathes to artrnr; were very drffererrt 'Dustzn ('omes' rn every day \‘.rllr a lot at (ruestrons, He speaks only aharrt the
arrreed tr‘ let
featuring: courtneu nine tram]. clevelanri irratlriss. [Ii [logo‘s lurical lounge. iii courlneu pine
cafe grarnri - in it iulu - rrcrrers: 557 7776
presented by EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL + ASSEMBLY DIRECT
i
work all hrs duestrons are about the :har rtter and hrs vrs‘ron of the frlrn. And rrrost of the trrne, after a take, Dusfrn would tome to me and say, "‘.'.”l..rt do you think «‘"'
7'.ruo|ta's a;:;>roa< h, by (ontrast, was 'r.< re rostzn. the ’There was a pornt rn fine 'eirrvrrsals,' explarrrs the drr'ettor, had the :hara: ter, at least the (reneral Irnes , when we net (:71 set, he would
'\.‘.l.en felt that John
“THE renames.
preview FILM
You don‘t have to be mad to work here: Dustin Hoffman and
John Travolta in Mad City
try a (ouple of takes, we would drscuss rt a lrttle, and then he would try somethrnrr slrrrhtry drfferent. John also understands the frlmrng promss very well, so when he took rt too far, and | asked hrrn to null rt had: a lrttle, he would sometrmes say to me, "Don't worry Costa, you (an frx that rrr the edrtrnd room" ’
General release from Fri 10 Jul.
FILM YOU’LL SEE I I I ” MUZiK MAGAZINE
“A SENSATIONI... ELECTRIFVING...START LING...”
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
“FILM OF THE MONTH...
A THEAT...A FANTASTIC FILM”
UNCUT
ROLLINGSTONE
A FILM BY
NICK
IIIIIIIITNEYS
TRUTH’S STRONGER THAN FICTION
.2 w (J' , ..
OPENS 17 JULY CAMEO, HOME STREET, EDINBURGH
9-23 Jul 1998 THE LIST 2'!