Sondheim Talks FOLLIES Movie Musical- Page 5

[madbrian]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:11am

Vanessa Williams is 45, Linney is 44. I still like Kevin Kline as Buddy, and Victor Garber as Ben.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:13am

I have the entire damn movie in my head!

"It isn't only the good things I remember. It's the whole damn show..."

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:18am

"I should have to gone a good film school, that seems clear"

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:26am

I would like to nominate Kevin Spacey as Buddy!

[LadyRosecoe]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:35am

I was thinking last night of how wonderful Bette Midler would be as Stella and then her lines with Max came into my head and I think Jason Alexander would be perfect. Now I know it's a bit part with about 4 lines, but he vocally sounds like John J. Martin and his age seems appropriately matched to Bette's. There's another little piece of casting done in my dream cast. PLUS, he comes from a theatrical background (and a Sondheim credit) and has some audience appeal.

[madbrian]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:35am

"I should have to gone a finance school, that seems clear"

I can't stand Kevin Spacey and want him nowhere near Follies.

[LadyRosecoe]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:44am

I concur about Spacey's "pop up tent" acting. Throw him onstage and watch the same performance unfurl. Not to say he can't have multi-layered characters come out of some brilliant performances, but lately seems to be more of the same.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:51am

Yeah, I don't like him, either. Sorry, MTVMANN, you've been overruled!

[madbrian]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 11:57am

I can live with Bette Midler as Stella, but I really prefer Kathy Bates.

[heathurrr]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 12:12pm

Aaron Sorkin coupled with Stephen Sondheim is going to be powerful! Two of my faves, yaaay. :)

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 12:18pm

Yeah, Bette is alright, but Kathy Bates would simply nail Stella. I can just hear her, "he turned to me and said 'Stella, baby, this is a load of crap!"

Vanessa Williams is 45, Linney is 44.

Well, there you have it, ladies and gentleman, Phyllis Rogers Stone, and Sally Durant...Plummer (I love the little pause she makes after Durant, it's so telling and one of my favorite FOLLIES moments).

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 12:28pm

I like the squeak she makes when Weismann says "Little Sally!"

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 3:23pm

God, I wish they had made this movie 10 years ago with Meryl as Phyllis and Sally Fields as Sally. Fields would have been so perfect in the role, oh well.
Isn't Kevin Kline a bit too old for the role, or are we okay with Ben and Buddy being a good 10-20 years older than Sally and Phyllis? I think he would be great, but opposite the older gals not Linney/Williams.
Oh, I would love to see what they do with "Waiting Around for the Girls Upstairs" in terms of the theatre location, Phyllis. I can just imagine the girls in their dressing room "Waiting around for the boys downstairs, stalling as long as we daaaaaare." And I can see a flood of chorus girls when the guys sing "girls in their undies blushing but trying not to duck out of sight." Oh, God, how spectacular! The film has SO much potential.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:09pm

Making the guys older (whether or not the women are older) screws up the timeline, unless they were 35 year olds in law school being shipped off to war.

[heathurrr]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:18pm

madbrian, I love the idea of Victor Garber as Ben!

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:30pm

Please, please please--can Buddy be a phenomenal dancer?

The Michael Bennett choreography to "The Right Girl," as danced by Gene Nelson, was as thrilling and as character-defining as the Bennett choreography for Donna McKechnie in Company and Chorus Line.

I will try to find time this weekend to make a file of just "The Right Girl" from the same silent video footage + soundboard I took the "Who's That Woman" from and post it to YouTube.

Here's "Who's That Woman" in case there's a soul reading this thread who hasn't seen it. I think you all have it imprinted on your retinas.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhQeVQ6677A

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:36pm

Well, I still like Spacey

Anyways, aren't women in their 40's too young for these characters? I thought they were all in their 50's.

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:38pm

PalJoey, you want a good dancer for Buddy? Here is another nomination from me......Christopher Walken! He can sing and dance. He can act too, if the doesn't do the thing that he does in all the "frat boy" type movies.

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:44pm

Also, if Victoria Clark because a big star after her role in "The Happening" then she could reprise her role as Sally :)

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:49pm

In the script, Phyllis and Sally are 49.

Dorothy Collins was 44 or 45 when she played Sally.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 4:57pm

People looked older then.

I was 15 and I looked old enough to get into gay bars. I had a big mustache and people said I looked like Geraldo Rivera.

That was a compliment then.

[MTVMANN]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 5:03pm

Post a pic! I have to see that!

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/14/08 at 5:42pm

Not a chance. ;-}

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 5/15/08 at 12:13pm

How about a video of you performing "The Story of Lucy and Jessie"?

[jewishboy]

Posted: 5/15/08 at 12:22pm

Sorry to ruin the lovefest, but although I love Ms. Williams, I think there are better film actresses that can portray Phyllis.