|
Production Notes:
Filming took place in sectors of Manhattan, on board
the USS Wasp during Fleet Week in May, and during July in a Coachella
Valley home decorated to resemble a posh New York apartment.
A press conference was held August 2, 2007 at the UC
Riverside Palm Desert Campus, which allowed members of the press and
public to meet most of the cast and crew of ADOPT A SAILOR
“I am really happy about this film, otherwise I
wouldn’t be here,” Peter told Desert Local News. “It’s a heartfelt
project.” Bebe Neuwirth was familiar with the original play from
performing a 10-minute version as part of the 2002 Brave New World
showcase to commemorate the first anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
After Bebe landed her role for the film version, and casting began for
the role of her husband, she asked Evered, "Does anybody love Peter
Coyote?" Bebe forwarded him the script, he had time in his schedule and
said yes. Peter told Evered while accepting the part that the script hit
home. He said it was the first time he'd laughed out loud while reading
a script in a long time, and he told Evered, 'I'm going to do everything
in my power to make this work."
"'Adopt a Sailor' is just what it is. It's an art
film, really - about three people who have dinner in a New York
apartment over one evening. That's it, that's the movie. It's what they
all go through during this evening that hopefully makes it meaningful.
It's not 'Transformers' or 'Lawrence of Arabia'. We're just trying to
tell the story of these three people, and hopefully, on some level,
other people will find their own lives and experiences reflected in it. When
you have people like Bebe Neuwirth and Peter Coyote, who
have won Tonys and Emmys and worked with directors lik e
Polanski, Weir, Spielberg, etc. - what are you going to
tell them? So I just had little private discussions with
them. Peter and Bebe are brilliant in this movie. People
will see both of them in an entirely new light. They
think they know Bebe as that character in 'Cheers'?
Well, that character disappears in this film, because
Bebe shows a level of vulnerability on screen in 'Adopt
a Sailor' that she's never shown before. And Peter is
the same way - he's not just a handsome stud in this
film, with this great raspy voice. He's edgy,
hilariously funny and warm, all at the same time. The
strength of 'Adopt a Sailor' are the performances, I can
tell that already - and I'm proud of that. And as for
Ethan, he's just a revelation, he really is. He has
natural film acting skill. Maybe it is hereditary, who
knows?"
Here are some photos taken at the UC Riverside Palm
Desert Graduate Center where the cast and crew met with the public on
August 2, 2007.
Publicity Images
|
Peter with Ethan Peck and on the right
with producer Kim Waltrip. |
 |
|
 "It's very much
like a play with pages and pages of dialogue. The entire budget is
$200,000. It's a juicy, wonderful part with two great co-stars.... Though working with a first-time director can
sometimes be problematic, working with Charles was like
heaven. He wrote the play, he's lived it, but he has the sense to trust
his actors. His direction was sparse and sure."
Review by Deborah Dearth, Desert Post Weekly:
Sometimes it takes an unexpected
jolt to awaken the realization that life is not
merely floating by for everyone. In “Adopt a
Sailor,” a young man hits New York City for a night
during Fleet Week, spending the evening with a
couple who has volunteered to host a sailor — only
they have forgotten. His presence throws their
schedules off kilter and changes their outlook on
the world outside of their apartment. Charles Evered
makes his directorial debut with “Adopt a Sailor,”
based on the dichotomy of his experience as a sailor
and writer. Palm Desert producer Kim Waltrip of
WonderStar Productions worked for two years with
Evered, a professor at UC Riverside, to bring the
film to the screen. The interiors were shot in the
Coachella Valley.
The film began as a short play to
commemorate Sept. 11, 2001, at a special event. It
certainly retains the close feel of a stage set with
three characters bound by an evening of obligation.
Though the topic expanded from a couple's reaction
to the city's attacks to a night with a sailor about
to return to war, soul searching remains the story's
central focus.
Ethan Peck (“10 Things I Hate
about You”) stars as the sailor and shares a natural
poise and
handsome resemblance to grandfather Gregory Peck.
His character holds a careful balance between
aw-shucks mannerisms and a quiet thoughtfulness.
Bebe Neuwirth (“Frasier”) shows off her acting chops
as Patricia, perfectly cast for the bold role as an
annoyed and nagging wife who manages to incite
sympathy despite passive aggressive tendencies.
Peter Coyote (“The 4400”) hams up his role as
Richard, a dependent husband with no serious
concerns who finds excessive emotional weight in
every situation. Following one excessive diatribe,
he labels himself as a “wanker dilettante idiot.”
The shoe fits.
Peck's sailor becomes the hinge
on which the unhappy couple evaluates their lives,
whether they are loudly confronting each other in
front of him or individually speaking with him as to
how their lives have evolved from former
contentment. Through the sailor's naïveté, the
couple finds superiority and guilt. The more they
justify their behavior, the more they become aware
that there is a third person in the room and that
their insecurities do not affect his world. It
slowly becomes clear that the couple did not simply
adopt a sailor but found a broader view of the world
around them.
[ The
Official Peter
Coyote Web Site ]
|
