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| by Cochaman Peef with additional writing by Bridget Petrella | ||
| Bravo's ‘Inside the Actors Studio: Johnny Depp’— Insightful. | ||
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Of course, what really makes
this DVD interesting is Depp himself. Before Pirates of the Caribbean,
it was probably easier to praise Depp for his risk taking: the
cross-dressing director Ed Wood, the speechless monster Edward
Scissorhands, and the real-life gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson.
With the guaranteed box-office of the Pirates series, it’s harder to say
he’s “taking risks.” Still, for those of us who followed his career
before he became Jack Sparrow, this interview with Depp— and the
audience’s warm response— is a nice tribute to an unbelievably talented
man. Highlights from the interview include Depp discussing his technique
for finding his character. When reading the screenplay, he’ll often
visualize a few key images that give him the essence of role. For
example, for Depp, Ed Wood was a combination of the blind optimism of
Ronald Reagan, the Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz, and Casey Kasem. In
Sleepy Hollow, Depp says he played Ichabod Crane as a girl detective. If
you don’t like Depp, this DVD won’t do much for you. Also, if you’re
looking for advice from Depp on your own career, you probably won’t find
get much from it. When asked for advice, Depp encourages the young
actors in the audience not to let the industry package them in any way
they don’t like. Good advice if you’re a young Johnny Depp: teen
heartthrob, but if you’re one of the other 99.5% of actors out there,
that situation doesn’t seem likely to come up. Without a doubt though
watching Depp interact with Lipton makes the DVD worth watching. |
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Despite a number of short-term
unwarranted arrests for a virtual plethora of misdemeanors,
which, for some odd reason, remain "classified", Cochaman Peef
has continued to let his beloved hemp play a substantial role in
his ever-waning life. Whether he’s smoking from a hand-blown
glass pipe while studying Eastern religion and Woody Harrelson
philosophy, or just smoking Jamaican sticks and watching Kung-Fu
with David Carradine on DVD [he claims to know Carradine
personally, a fact we've yet to dispute]. |
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Long
regarded as one of the top character actors of his generation,
Johnny Depp has established himself as a spectacular character actor in
such films as Edward Scissorhands, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, Donnie
Brasco, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and the Pirates of the Caribbean
series. Johnny Depp is notorious for giving very few interviews, but he
agreed to go on Inside the Actors Studio in 2002, a year before Pirates
of the Caribbean. That appearance is now available on DVD from Shout
Factory and Bravo. Depp was the most popular guest ever to set foot on
Inside the Actors Studio. Let's face it, most celebrity interview shows
are vapid, but a few, like Charlie Rose or Inside the Actors Studio,
rise above the rest and allow us an intellectual perception of the actor
and the process. This interview contains over 50 minutes of questions
and answers that quickly take us from Depp’s childhood through his work
in Sleepy Hollow. It is edited tightly; some might say it’s edited too
tightly. The conversation often takes an abrupt turn, and there is even
a jump cut from a segment where Depp is wearing a jacket to a segment
when he’s in just a t-shirt. Lipton is a gracious and attentive host. He
is very well prepared. He knows the answers to many of his questions
before he asks them, rather than wasting time getting to know his guest
personally or coyly fishing for anecdotes. So when he asks Depp about
his family— even reminding Depp to give his daughter’s full name— Lipton
is not prying, but rather giving his guest a chance to speak about the
people he loves.
Johnny
Depp is indeed one of the most versatile and intriguing actors
working today. Depp walks on stage, wearing a raggedy jacket and torn up
boots like a vet straggler found on the street. Within minutes of
sitting down he lights up a hand rolled cigarette and lights up, an act
that would get almost anyone else banned from the stage. Lipton is old
school in the best sense. He talks as if he were a Shakespearean actor
and though it is obvious he has tremendous respect for Depp... and there seems
to be a lot of silent tension between them. It is obvious in a lot of
the question and answer period that Depp is trying to not give a straight
answer, and in truth that shows a lot about his personality. For
instance, near the end of the segment Lipton asks Depp what turns him on
the most. Depp answers, without batting an eye “breathing” and
immediately afterwards admits that “not breathing” is his biggest turn
off. Like a boy who has just been sent to the principal’s office for
being too rebellious Depp dodges a lot of the big questions thrown his
way. Getting the chance to hear Depp’s side of a lot of great films is
truly interesting. He explains that as a teen idol in the late 80’s he
felt as if he was being turned into someone else’s product. It was
during that time that he vowed never to become the property of anyone
and he began taking riskier roles. 
The
DVD itself is bare-bones. The only “extra feature” is an
introduction by host James Lipton, who explains that Depp was their most
popular guest ever, and that he got away with smoking on stage on a
no-smoking campus because, well... he’s Johnny Depp. Some outtakes or an
extended Q&A might have been nice for the die-hard fans, but as it
stands, this DVD is a quick little easily digested hour of television,
sans commercials, and it’s far better than your standard celebrity
interview. Overall this DVD will give most Johnny Depp fans an in-depth
look into what he is like off camera. Whether or not that merits going
out and buying the disc is really up to the viewer. The “Inside the
Actors Studio” interviews have been going on for well over 12 years and
the Johnny Depp interview is just one of many. If the concept of serious
interviews with big name stars really piques your interest it might be a
good idea to invest in a box set of the series rather than just the one
interview. This DVD has more value on the educational front than as pure
entertainment. UB
