We chat with TheOldWay director Brett Donowho about the Nicolas Cage-led Western, his love of the genre, and the challenge of casting child actors:
The Western genre is welcoming another iconic performer to its midst with Nicolas Cage in The Old West. The film stars the Oscar winner as Colton Briggs, a former ruthless gunfighter who finds his peaceful life interrupted when his wife is killed by someone from his past, putting him and their daughter on a path for revenge.
What's amazing is I've never been offered a Western before, which is funny, because that's what Nic Cage has said in his interviews, I was never offered a Western before, which is kind of interesting, I'm so happy that we were able to offer him this one.
And he pops down on the sofa, sitting right there in the living room in front of everyone, he goes, "I got some questions for you," and immediately dives into this monologue, and I haven't said this on the behind the scenes, I haven't said this anywhere, and I'm glad you asked about it, because it was so great to see that, to me, that's one of the favorite scenes of the entire movie, for myself, because it's transitory in the sense of the development of these...
Well, I love that scene just as much as you do. It gives Nic's character humanity for the audience after seeing this very cold portrayal throughout. Off the top of my head, we've seen a lot of Westerns where characters evolve, but not to the level of this. Nic's a phenomenal actor, and this comes at an interesting time where this is one of two of his first-ever Westerns to get to play in. Was he the first person in your mind when you were reading the script to play this character?
I think that's when we first realized he hadn't, because I didn't even know. I've watched Nic Cage movies, but I hadn't researched his filmography, so then we're like, "Wait, he's never done a Western. Oh my God, I bet he would kill this.
Nic and I talked a lot about acting, and about the specificity of the craft, and how we're kind of sad and morose that the young people are losing that Thespian, if you will, understanding of how difficult that craft is. So, it was less about emulating any iconic Western hero like Clint Eastwood or Chuck Bronson, and more about finding the specificity of Briggs himself and Brooke herself.
I walked out, put in my earbuds, as I'm wearing right now, and I start to watch this audition, and tears form in my eyes, if I might be so melodramatic. I was just like, "Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me? This is Brooke.
Brett Donowho: There's no greater high than to see people at their best. It's like being at the best football game or the best Formula One, you're just looking at pro athletes, if you will, that are artists performing at the height of what is possible under extreme circumstances. That fire pit scene is at the Story Ranch 45 miles from any road, basically.
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