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NEW!! 2004/03/14
Horatio Hornblower:The New Adventure Transcript from Extra Feature Commentary LOYALTY Voices of Producer Andrew Benson & Director Andrew Grieve. z[u[RwρΒΜcxI[fBIR^[iΔΕcucϋ^j ΊΜoFAh [Ex\ivf [T[jCAh [EO[ioj | ||
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15:48 minutes SCENE-DOCKSIDE BENSON: Now, this is another very interesting scene. This is a real dockyard but the ship was put on in post production. GRIEVE: That's right. And if you're looking out to sea, it's all green screen, and if you're looking at the harbour it's for real. That's fantastic. BENSON: What's behind Hornblower there, is make believe. |
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GRIEVE: They look out to sea, and there's a lot of foreground action. One is a real ship and two are models. View is real, but the foreground is entirely green screen where the action is going on. My God! It's complicated. BENSON: I was going to say, you make it sound so simple, but of course there's an awful lot of planning that goes into just that one shot. |
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16:44 minutes SCENE-HOTSPUR-LOADING SHIP GRIEVE: You see they are loading to go off on patrol. BENSON: And once again, to remind the audience, this set was built on an airfield so every time you look out the gunports, which you will do shortly, it's a green screen and the sea is added later. Uhhh-and of course- |
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GRIEVE: Here is Wolfe. BENSON: Lorcan Cranich. Fantastic actor and we are very fortunate to get him. And someone who is not quite what he seems. GRIEVE: It's an interesting thing from what we were saying before about casting people, French people, because they had proper French accents, he's an Irishman, playing an Irishman, so his accent is correct and all the rest of it. BENSON: What I also think is interesting is to remind the audience that the British Empire and its problems with Ireland stretch back farther than the last 30 years. GRIEVE: Yes. Way back. 400 years, or something like that? BENSON: Absolutely. |
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17:42 STYLES AND MATTHEWS SIGN ON BENSON: Now, these two characters return back into the fold. GRIEVE: Ye---es. (Says with humorous sarcasm.) BENSON: Matthews and Styles. GRIEVE: You kill them one day... (LAUGHTER) BENSON: Well, if contract negotiations don't go well... GRIEVE: That's it for them,--if they behave themselves. BENSON: Of course, this one, (STYLES) never behaves himself. But that's part of the joy of the character. GRIEVE: He's very, very like his character in many ways I think. (LAUGHTER) |
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18:06 minutes-MARIA and HORATIO GRIEVE: This is an interesting set. This is a very old silkweavers house in Spittlefield in London, isn't it? Do you remember? BENSON: A real house, unusual for us not to rebuilt it in a studio. But it is a real house renovated by the present owners, absolutely in the style of 200 years ago. So, for the first time Rob Harris didn't have a lot to do except for the furniture and dressing but-the rooms themselves were a fantastic recreation of the period. It would be a little cramped for you, Andrew. GRIEVE: It was a little cramped, and the floor was a little creaky. So we had to do something about that in the mix. But I do remember arriving in the morning and that fantastic artist Tracy Emmond coming and complaining about our parking our trucks just outside because she lives near there. But she had been sticking things on lamp posts because her cat had just gone missing, and there were people who were taking them down and framing them. BENSON: (Laughing) I wish I had known, I would have taken one too. GRIEVE: (LAUGHING) BENSON: Probably worth a fortune now. |
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19:15 minutes-Hotspur in Harbour GRIEVE: That's in Falmouth, isn't it? BENSON: Yes. GRIEVE: That's just outside the harbor and we had to film there because it was too rough outside. Remember when we started shooting it was windy. And remember, you really can't take people out to sea if the conditions are really bad, so it's really important that we have a set where we can film storms and things, because you really can't take a crew out to sea because you start losing people over the side. And that's a green screen shot with models behind isn't it? BENSON: Yeah. I think you're right, some of the ideal conditions for the drama, if you like, would not be ideal conditions for shooting because one of the things all films have is the sun moving. Uhh-as it does, through the course of the day. So you're key light is effectively moving but your set is moving as well. So it's very difficult to stop a sailing ship if it's moving. |
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20:19 minutes-MARIA GIVES HORATIO GLOVES AT DOCK GRIEVE: You go in the direction where the wind is. These wonderful gloves! John Mollo, the first set were elegant and these ones they were a revamp as they were described in the book. So odd, they were like lobster claws. BENSON: Well, we had to establish these gloves because they were very important later. And because we establish them in this film, and I had to find a way to reintroduce them to the audience for the next film. I hope not too bluntly. GRIEVE: This is very touching. For the gloves. |
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21:00-SCENE: Maria gives gloves to Horatio. He says thankyou. BENSON: He's so awkward, the character of Hornblower in his relationship with women and so at home when he is on board dealing with the men so I think that is the purpose of this storyline, the Hornblower/Maria storyline. Is to show that dichotomy. GRIEVE: His awkwardness, yeah. |
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21:21-SCENE-BUSH AND COTARD FIRST MEET BENSON: Now these two, knock about characters don't look like they will be the greatest of friends. SCENE CLOSE UP OF COTARD AND BUSH FACES AND HATS GRIEVE: No. They look like they are almost fencing with their hats here. (LAUGHTER) That's quite a difficult thing when you are filming, because the peaks of the hats get in the way the whole time. And sometimes when they turn their heads they knock each other's hats off. BENSON: Also, if the director of photography was here, he'd tell you it's also a difficult thing to get light into their eyes. GRIEVE: That's right. And when it rains, the water runs off of them in torrents. It must have done that, in that period. BENSON: I'm sure, yes. GRIEVE: It must have been so odd, to be standing there and water is just pouring down out of your hat. BENSON: Well, also for modern audiences we don't tend to wear hats. GRIEVE: No. BENSON: If you look at newsreels from the 1950's and everyone was wearing a hat. And now no one wears hats. GRIEVE: And actors find it very difficult and always try to take their hats off. And I think we've been very good trying to make them keep them on, most of the time. BENSON: John Mollo (COSTUME) is always saying - BENSON & GRIEVE: PUT YOUR HAT ON! (Laughter) |
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22:27 minutes-Scene Below decks. Horatio's cabin. BENSON: This of course, is another set here at Pinewood studios. GRIEVE: Isn't there a view out the door here, which is in fact a green screen? We put the greenscreen on to the deck. BENSON: Absolutely. |
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GRIEVE: So what you see out the door, isn't there at all. And it's wonderful that Greg is so tall, because he's banging his head on the deck beams. And that would be in the reality as well. And anybody who was reasonably tall would be bashing their heads. BENSON: We always took steps to deliberately build the below decks scenes lower, because it does have an effect on how the actors act and react. GRIEVE: We did build one like that in the Ukraine, so that all the crew kept banging their heads. BENSON: Yeah, I think there were more headache pills supplied. |
  
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23:21 minutes SCENE OUTSIDE HOTSPUR BENSON: Now, here we are on a real ship. GRIEVE: And really setting sail. Which is always an interesting experience because you have to have real sailors around as well as actors. However, mixed in with these shots are those from the set, model shots. But that is on a set (capstain)-and the anchor coming up is a model coming up from the tank. And then we cut back to real sails being let lose. BENSON: Some of these, we've got some scenes going back to the days we shot in the Ukraine we have in our library. GRIEVE: That's right. That's the real Falmouth in the background, and I don't think we had to do much to it. BENSON: No television aerials to paint out. GRIEVE: No. And this is from the Earl of Pembroke, which is the name of the little ship that we're on which was modified quite considerably-um, by the production designer, Rob Harris. The whole new poop deck was built. iThe Earl of Pembroke^zbgXp[πΆ½ΏDj BENSON: Well, this was really a flat decked ship We've created this waist area, or the beginnings of it anyway, and so we could shoot what you see back on that airfield. |
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GRIEVE: That's right. Ad I remember now, that was the purpose, so that we could have this set and you wouldn't be able to do any of this on the real ship. If you were at sea, it would be very difficult to do this without people getting hurt. To have these recoils. (Cannon recoil) You couldn't do this at sea. BENSON: Well, if one of those came back and hit somebody's leg, that could be the end of their leg. GRIEVE: That's right. You have to remember, that these are actors, and not real sailors. BENSON: No, and we have to be real careful not to injure them, at least until they finish their last scenes. GRIEVE: Yes, until they finish their last scenes. (LAUGHING) |
 
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25:27 minutes SCENE INTRO for YOUNG HAMMOND, ORROCK GRIEVE: Yes, these are the young actors, the young midshipmen. The new recruits that we had. They were both very good I think. Christian Coulsen. BENSON: Yes, he was in the recent Harry Potter film. GRIEVE: That's right. I like Matthews coming to the rescue of the young man. It's very much in character for him. BENSON: And one of the things we've done, is try to keep those characters very much in character. Um-we've made Styles a bit more rough and ready and a bit more of a rougue. In the past he's become a little more soft. GRIEVE: The relationship between him and Hornblower was getting a bit too cozy, wasn't it? BENSON: Yes. GRIEVE: And it's quite nice to make them a bit more distant and see how they come back together again. BENSON: Well, going back to the very first film, um-it was Styles who was playing with some rats and later on we will see if the rat makes a return. GRIEVE: Yes, he was one of the very rebellious ones that Hornblower saved by not reporting to a senior officer in the very first episode. BENSON: Yes. Perhaps I think we've lost a bit of that. GRIEVE: He's not a very good cook though, is he? BENSON: No. GRIEVE: It's hard to make that breakfast look disgusting enough, because it arrived about three times, and I thought, it still looked quite nice. Though maybe I was just hungry at the time. (LAUGHTER) |
 
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BENSON: But-amongst the rogues, there's always room for a little bit of humour with Styles but we always have to make sure it isn't too much for the actor. GRIEVE: Yes. (LAUGHTER) BENSON: Styles likes playing the comedian, doesn't he? GRIEVE: He does. Less is more, we always like to say. (MORE LAUGHTER) 27:16 minutes SCENE-Styles Scraping stew off the floor GRIEVE: That would have been a wonderful dinner, wouldn't it? In the real Georgian navy. They wouldn't have had anything half as delicious as that. It would have been salted beef. |
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SCENE of BUSH AND STYLES in KITCHEN (MESS) GRIEVE: This is a good relationship between these two which has progressed from previous films, where there is confrontation between them in previous films, in fact. And it's kind of continuing now. BENSON: Yes, well, certainly, I think Styles respects Bush. And Bush knows that Styles is a good man to have by your side when you need one, but it doesn't mean he doesn't find him a bit annoying most of the time. GRIEVE: That's right. The thing about Bush is that he's just a thorough-going seaman. He's an absolutely brilliant seaman, but he's no great brain. |
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28:10 minutes. SCENE BACK ON DECK-Crewmen GRIEVE: I remember these two had to go out on the bowsprit and they were very good about it, never having done it before, and we had to take them out to fill some sails. And they kind of enjoyed it after awhile. Johnathon, who plays Orrock, he wasn't too fond of going aloft and he had to be encouraged to climb the rigging. BENSON: Well of course this is another thing, whenever actors come in, whenever you ask them questions, can you swim? Can you drive? Can you climb? They always say they are fantastic until you get them out on the set. GRIEVE: That's right. BENSON: There was a particular actor I recall from the very first film who convinced you that he'd been a circus performer and convinced you he could climb very high, but in fact all he could climb was 4 feet off the deck. |
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29:00 minutes. Fire breaks out in Mess area. GRIEVE: This would have been a very difficult scene to shoot out at sea because the danger of setting fire to things. So a little bit of it is shot on the real ship, but most of it is shot on the set. I do remember that the flames go out terribly easily. The special effects guy turned the flames down too quickly. (LAUGHTER) GRIEVE: But it works all the same, with the sound effects and everything. It was such a difficult scene to shoot. And I remember the fellow who catches fire had to wear this enormous head with a hat to make it look the part. |
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BENSON: Now this is not in the book, it is our invention. This whole part of the plot where Hornblower is forced to punish Styles, a man who served him well for all these years-uh-and it really goes to illustrate the changing role of Hornblower. He's now in the position of command. And this is part of the difficulty of command. GRIEVE: He has to follow regulations. BENSON: And Styles would understand that, even though of course, he understands he has been falsely accused. GRIEVE: And we do find out he has been wrongly accused, as we find out later. And at the moment, he has no excuses and must be punished. If Hornblower were to let him off, it would be very difficult for discipline on the ship. BENSON: This level of discipline would have been commonplace at this time in the navy for all sorts of offenses. GRIEVE: Absolutely. BENSON: Far more minor offenses than the one Styles is now accused of, in fact. GRIEVE: That's right. For peeing on the poop, you got ten lashes, I think. So you had to behave yourself. You should bring it in for the film crews, shouldn't you? BENSON: I think it wouldn't be a bad idea. |
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GRIEVE: This all that Hornblower is reading out exactly the correct regulations. BENSON: Well, it's one of the things we've been particularly keen on, Andrew, that although this is fiction, and we point out that we take great pains to get the background of the story historically accurate. GRIEVE: That's right. BENSON: And the sailing terms are accurate. |
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SCENE: Matthews takes the whip cat of nine tails out of red bag. GRIEVE: Here he's taking the cat out of the bag, that's where that expression comes from. Taking the cat of nine tails out of the red bag. And we still use that expression. Now here's-how do you actually lash somebody? Without hurting them? The delicate skin of the actor and make it look as if he is being hurt. It's Geordy Pesaries, a stunt man, coordinator on the very first Hornblower who introduced this special type of rope we used. You can actually beat someone with it and it doesn't actually hurt too much. I always hoped it hurt, just a little bit. (LAUGHTER) GRIEVE: It's always good to remind Styles. BENSON: I think the other thing is when you are listening to the finished product there's an awful lot of sound effects, and the swish of the rope and the bang as it hits his back is in fact something that we add on afterwards. Along with all the other obvious things we add, like the music. GRIEVE: Well, we had to take quite a lot of shots out, because they were quite shocking. But his back really did look like raw beef. You can only really, go so far, I think, without making it completely disgusting. But it must have been absolutely horrific, when it really happened. People's backs must have been completely flayed.
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