More new “Rango” press interviews

Hollywood actors Johnny Depp and Isla Fisher talk about their roles as lizards in the film Rango.

Depp started by explaining how the idea for the film was inspired by Pirates of the Caribbean.

Watch the short interview at BBC

 

Flicks on 6

Film critic Jeff Bayer joins us on a Wednesday to interview some of the cast of the new animated film “Rango.” Isla Fisher (“Confessions of a Shopaholic,” “Definitely, Maybe”) and Abigail Breslin (“Little Miss Sunshine,” “Zombieland”) talk about the movie and more. Fisher plays a lizard with a defect and Breslin plays an ugly/cute mouse. Bayer made the mistake of telling her that. As always, he ends the interview with some rapid fire quick questions.



Isla Fisher didn’t read “Rango” script

Isla Fisher was so flattered to be approached by director Gore Verbinski, she didn’t evcen read the script before accepting her role in ‘Rango’.

Isla Fisher didn’t read the script before accepting a role in ‘Rango’.

The Australian actress voices desert iguana Beans in the new animated movie but didn’t wait to find out the details of the movie before signing up as she was so flattered by director Gore Verbinski’s interest.

She said: “I never read the script, he just showed me some footage and images of the creatures, and I signed up on the spot. I was so flattered that he was interested in me for the role. I think it’s amazing what he’s done, he’s so imaginative and smart.” Unlike on many animated films, the cast of the movie – which also included Johnny Depp, Bill Nighy and Abigail Breslin – worked together on a sound stage when recording their roles and though Isla enjoyed the experience, she admits she felt self-conscious at first.

She added in an interview with Collider.com: “I think you approach it the same and hope to infuse your voice with as much colour and physicality s you would on a live action movie. We shot this on a sound stage, so it was like doing a play, we had the chemistry from interacting with each other and we pretended to jump down a ditch, carried a fake gun.

“The advantages are you have more chemistry, things feel real and the voices sound more honest. The disadvantages are you feel a bit more exposed because you can’t hide behind hair and make-up and you’re playing something like a lizard and have to make it real, so I felt a bit self-conscious until I really got into it.”

Making ‘Rango’ A Group Effort For Stars

Abigail Breslin and Isla Fisher have no doubt both been a part of many a-great ensemble casts, from “Little Miss Sunshine” to “Zombieland” for Breslin to “Wedding Crashers” and “Hot Rod” for Fisher. And thanks to the innovation of “Pirates of the Caribbean” director Gore Verbinski, they can also claim to have worked in an animated film among another set of prestigious performers: a luxury not afforded to most actors who lend their to voices to the genre.

Unlike most animated features, where each actor’s dialogue is recorded individually, the Western-flavored “Rango” rustled up all of its talent to record their dialogue while acting out the scenes on a soundstage.

In some ways, “Rango” was filmed a lot like “Avatar,” except that, instead of motion-capturing the characters’ movements, Verbinski was gunning for EMOTION capture. Instead of hooking his actors up to different sorts of digital bells and whistles to record their movements, Verbinski aimed to use the actors as living, breathing reference points for his animators.

“We filmed it like a play, and since we were all together, it gave us the opportunity to play off of each other,” Breslin said. “If an actor you’re working with changes the way they do something, you tend to change the way you do something. It’s a lot more fun than standing in a recording studio, talking into a microphone.”

Continue reading Making ‘Rango’ A Group Effort For Stars

Isla Fisher Talks Rango – HeyUGuys.co.uk interview

Isla Fisher used to be on Home and Away, just like Melissa George, whose turn in Christopher Smith’s Triangle was very impressive, and with her leading role in Confessions of a Shopaholic and her appearances in Burke and Hare and now Gore Verbinski’s Rango, the future is looking grand for Ms. Fisher.

Here she talks to James Kleinmann about her role in the animated movie, which thanks to embargo-necessitated cryptic messages the early reaction to the film is seemingly very positive and we love what we’ve seen so far.

– heyuguys.co.uk



Isla: Depp is second sexiest man

Isla Fisher has said Johnny Depp is the world’s second sexiest man, after her husband Sacha Baron Cohen.

The Wedding Crashers star worked with Johnny on new animated film Rango, voicing the character of his love interest Beans, and while they were set to stage a real kiss in the sound booth, Isla didn’t lock lips with the Hollywood hunk.

She revealed: “I was supposed to kiss him but on the day I had a little cold and so I didn’t want to do that with him – but he’s the second sexiest man in the world after my husband.”

Isla admitted she had expected Johnny to be a very serious actor, even voicing the lizard on the children’s animation, but he turned out to be great fun.

She said: “I think what I was most surprised about with Johnny Depp is just how funny he is. I thought he was going to be a little more serious because he’s done quite a few dark movies but he has a great sense of humour.

“He’s very warm and I think he acknowledges the fact that people are a little bit freaked out to be acting opposite somebody of his status and so he puts you at ease and he’s a very nice man and I had a really great time.”

And Isla insisted her husband didn’t mind her working with the world’s second sexiest man.

She laughed: “Well they’re friends so it’s OK.”

Photos & screencaps from this weeks talk show appearances

Isla has been a busy bee so far this week, appearing on several different talks show in New York City to promote Rango! As I posted about below, she appeared on Regis & Kelly, Late Night With Jimmy Fallon and The Early Show on Monday. She was also seen leaving the MTV studios that same day, but I don’t know what show she was taping in there.

I’m working on getting you videos from Regis, Jimmy Fallon and The Early Show, but for now I have a huge batch of photos from them for you! I’ve added stills/photos from the taping from Jimmy Fallon and The Early Show, and screencaps from Jimmy Fallon and Regis & Kelly. Isla looks gorgeous on these shows (I love her hair!) and was as funny as always. She even talked about her family briefly on Regis & Kelly, confirming that she did get married last year and that they did have a daughter. They’re keeping her name a secret though – I have lots of admiration for them being so dedicated to their privacy!!

2011 – Late Night With Jimmy Fallon (Stills) x17
2011 – Late Night With Jimmy Fallon (Screencaptures) x286
2011 – The Early Show (Stills) x20
2011 – Regis & Kelly x245



Isla Fisher on 98FM

Rango is the new animation starring Johnny Depp as a lizard chameleon. He aspires to be a real hero only to find himself in a Western town, plagued by bandits. Rango is then forced to become the hero to protect the town of Dirtonians. Rango hits cinemas March 4th, movies@.ie. Isla Fisher plays Johnny Depp’s love interest in Rango, Beans. I caught up with Isla in London….


LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW HERE

Isla Fisher’s Eastwood Inspiration

Isla Fisher studied Clint Eastwood in old Western movies in order to perfect the voice she used in ‘Rango’.

Isla Fisher’s director wanted her ‘Rango’ character to sound like a mix of Clint Eastwood and Holly Hunter.

The actress lends her voice to desert iguana Beans in the animated movie and revealed she watched a collection of old western movies to get the unusual inflections director Gore Verbinski requested.

She explained: “Gore already had the idea of the voice and then I joined. He wanted her to sound like Holly Hunter and a little bit like Clint Eastwood so I actually watched ‘Raising Arizona’ a bunch of times and just kept practicing until the pitch was nice and low and I watched, of course, a bunch of old Westerns.

“I didn’t really know the genre – growing up in Australia it wasn’t a big deal. So for me it was really exciting to see those amazing old movies.”

However, Gore has credited Isla with developing the character even further, citing her “neurotic sense of humour” as vital.

He told BANG Showbiz: “The accents are only a part of it, I mean she brought her own neurotic sense of humour, which is kind of more important.”