Original subtitles

NARRATOR: I think sometimes, actors are very sensitive.

And they're all wondering.

And, like detectives in life, they wonder about life,

and they wonder about the film they're in.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

The actor has to understand enough to make

it real from a deep place, so you've

got to introduce the thing that needs to get across

in this particular scene.

When you're looking at a scene, you're

either in a rehearsal or just getting going, you know.

And if it doesn't feel correct, this

is where this thing of intuition comes in.

It seems sort of obvious, but how

do you know if it isn't correct?

And then, on top of that, how do you

know what to say to make it correct?

It's a tricky question.

Something has to be judging and watching.

And there has to be some kind of thing that tells you,

this isn't working.

It could be the way they're standing.

It could be the loudness or softness of the voice.

It could be the speed, you know, like they're not

spending enough time thinking about something.

There are billions of things.

And then, you sort of analyze it.

And then, the solution comes, and you go talk to them.

Sometimes, it just comes out flawless.

They have understood the thing from the get go.

Sometimes, the first things are far away

from where it needs to be.

A lot of talking and looking them in the eye

and seeing if there's some understanding based

on these words you're saying.

The proof of the pudding is in the tasting.

So the next rehearsal, the next time you try it,

it will be closer if you've said the right things.

And then, you know, I always say the same thing over and over,

but at a certain point after saying these things

and it goes into them, a light bulb goes off in them.

And they say, I got it.

And then, there it is.

And they kind of then, from then on, own that character.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

If the person is cast correctly, there

might be some talk up front.

There might be a half a rehearsal or something.

And then, the first take tells everything.

You have that first rehearsal.

It's either spot on or very close,

or we've got a lot of work to do.

It's one of those.

The idea is telling them what to do.

The idea came along to define this particular character,

the way this character is.

They've been cast because they feel they're the best

one to realize that character.

Then, you talk to them so that that character,

they catch the same way you caught it.

And they say, ah, OK.

And the way you do that is you have rehearsals.

The first rehearsal, I always say, could be very far away.

And then, you go talk.

And you say, when you say this and this,

it could mean this and this and this.

That could be that, that, that.

No, no, no.

It's this, this, this, this, this.

Oh, OK.

I got it.

And then, you have another rehearsal.

Now, instead of being out here, it's now come into here.

Still, these things.

Oh.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

OK.

Another rehearsal.

It's almost there.

And then, the fine tuning, this and this.

The light bulb goes off.

They've got it.

They've got it for this scene and probably for other scenes,

maybe the whole thing.

They own it.

Now, they bring all their talent down the correct road.

They've got that character.

And you've done your job.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

We're all human beings, so it would be wrong to say,

you fuckhead.

That's the stupidest thing you interpreted there.

This is not the right way.

So you would be, you know, kind and not embarrass them.

And you wouldn't want to do that, anyway.

You want to go in and explain something.

And in so doing, you use words, and you use your eyes.

And you send something from you to them.

And you use your hands.

And they get it.

A lot of times, it doesn't work, maybe out

of nervousness or some kind of fear or some kind

of just not letting go and letting

that character take over for different things

or not understanding.

So you make them feel comfortable so they

can say goodbye to their personality

and take on a new one.

You make them feel that it's no problem

failing and trying this thing.

You know, no problem.

It's not embarrassing.

It's a sign of courage, really, and great work

to try things to make it real.

And no problem if it comes out embarrassing.

You know, fix it next time.

Whatever.

And then, you explain certain things.

And eventually, they feel more and more comfortable,

and they have more and more understanding,

enough understanding to do it.

And there you go.

You've got it.

It's recorded.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Did you ride that thing all the way out here to see me?

I did, Lyle.

NARRATOR: Great, great actors.

Great good luck.

Both Richard Farnsworth and Harry Dean,

they're two of the most natural actors on the planet.

Richard does this inhale.

It's got all this feeling in it.

It's just incredible-- just before the camera

lifts up and goes into the sky and Angelo's music comes in.

It's so beautiful.

And Harry Dean has this thing--

I don't know if it was Chief Sitting Bull-- some letter

that an Indian chief wrote to the president of the United

States, I think.

And it would make anyone cry.

But Harry Dean, when he would read this, you know,

he would start crying.

And I had that available.

And then, Richard--

I had them talking a little bit.

I think Richard said, I love you, Lyle, something like this.

It wasn't part of the script, but it opened up

a thing in Richard.

And that's where that little gasp, that little catch, came.

And that was so beautiful.

These things, they come along just at the right time.

And that's got to be just great good fortune.

There's nothing you can do to plan

that like that and at the same time have it be so real.

[CAR DOORS SLAMMING]

[GLASS SHATTERING]

[SCREAMING]

MAN: Oh, god.

[POUNDING]

[SCREAMING]

MAN: Don't shoot.

Dont!

I can't take it!

Come on!

Tell him you won't tailgate.

Come on.

Do you know how many fucking car lengths it

takes to stop a car at 35 miles an hour?

10 fucking car lengths.

That's 106 fucking feet, mister.

If I hadn't stopped suddenly, you would have hit me.

I want you to get a fucking driver's manual.

I want you to study that motherfucker.

And I want you to obey the goddamn rules.

50 fucking thousand people were killed in a highway last year.

NARRATOR: At first, Robert Loggia

was doing the same lines on the guy.

And I said, Robert, you know, I can't hear you.

You're whispering.

He said, what?

I said, no, I can't hear you.

And so he went louder.

I say, Robert, you're whispering.

I can't hear you.

And that went about five or six times until this one.

They can get themselves there.

They just need to know that that's what's necessary.

And it's in them.

It's in them.

And you just have to bring it out.

There's definitely a connection to violence and humor.

And it is a compulsion.

It's uncontrollable.

And it can reach, you know, into the theater

of the absurd, this extreme anger, beyond the beyond anger.

When someone is so driven and into the stratosphere,

there's some chance for humor there.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

[UTENSILS SCRAPING]

[SIGH]

Well, Henry, what do you know?

I don't know much of anything.

It's the idea and the way the idea wants to be.

And when you're there on the day shooting,

you work it so that it feels like the idea.

And so these awkward pauses are holding on something.

Another thing I think is say someone walks out of the room

and closes the door.

A lot of times, people cut with the sound of the door click,

you know, and go to the next scene.

But if you close the door and keep filming,

you suddenly start seeing the room.

Something starts happening in the mind.

It's interesting.

[BEEPING]

[DOORS OPENING]

[DOORS CLOSING]

[MECHANICAL WHIRRING]

The idea that got Henry was I'd grab Jack.

In the very beginning, I'd grab him by the shoulders,

and I'd make him show me his face.

And I'd say things to him like thinking or, you know,

sadness or whatever.

And nothing was working.

Nothing.

And then, I said, OK, you're a total blank.

Total blank.

And he did a total blank.

I said, that's Henry.

[EERIE MUSIC]