Albert Brooks - Movies

Albert Brooks and Sharon Stone in the Muse


	From The Muse press kit, Universal Pictures, 1999 Synopsis She has the lineage of a goddess, a touch of the diva, good story sense, the basic instincts of a freeloader, and the look of love. When she was made, the mold was broken. Who is this woman? 100% pure Muse. Only on Mount Olympus? Hardly – the cell phone reception up there is so erratic. Only in Hollywood! The Muse is the new film from one of America’s premiere humorists, Albert Broooks. Writer/director Brooks brings his incisive wit and social satire (seen and heard in Mother, Defending Your Life, Lost in America, Modern Romance, and Real Life) to the telling of a timeless tale, set in present-day Los Angeles. One fine night, Hollywood screenwriter Steven Phillips (Albert Brooks) basks in the honor of a humanitarian award, presented to him at a black-tie dinner as his proud wife Laura (Andie MacDowell) and daughters look on. One crappy morning later, a junior studio executive is telling Steven that he’s lost his creative “edge,” and releases Steven from his contract. Steven’s confidence is shaken: he wants to work, but how can he, if word is out that he’s over? Desperately seeking counsel, Steven visits his friend, enviably successful screenwriter Jack Warrick (Jeff Bridges), at Jack’s Bel Air estate. Jack confides to Steven that he himself was inspired to his ongoing success. Not by a muse, but by a Muse. Steven is incredulous as Jack tells him of Sarah (Sharon Stone), one of the nine daughters of the god Zeus (of Greek mythology fame). The Muses inspire creativity – and one, Sarah, has alighted in Hollywood. Steven is soon consumed by the prospect of becoming one of Sarah’s clients. As a favor, Jack agrees to set up a meeting between Sarah and Steven. The meeting, held in a guest house where Sarah is staying, gets off to a shaky start, but Sarah soon puts Steven at ease. In her capacity as Muse, Sarah explains, she does not do any actual work herself, but helps filmmakers get in touch with their own inner creativity. Sarah agrees to take Steven on as a client, but not before detailing her needs: food, lodging, car and driver, 24-hour access to Steve by phone, etc. Perks notwithstanding, Steven, impatient to get inspired, eagerly closes the deal. Closer to home, despite her misgivings, Laura accepts Sarah into the Phillips household. As Steven’s wife and Muse become fast friends, he realizes that their lives and work will never be the same again. Production Notes: Hitting a Wall, Then Coming Through the Other Side The Muse is the new film from one of America’s premiere humorists, Albert Brooks. Writer/director Brooks brings his incisive wit and social satire to the telling of a timeless tale, set in present-day Los Angeles. Early on in the story, Hollywood screenwriter Steve Phillips (Albert Brooks) is…well…”I think no matter what business you’re in, being fired is being fired,” says Brooks. “Your employer is not happy with you. You’ve hit the wall. You don’t know where to turn next. It happens in all lines of work.” In the 1970s, Brooks performed a bit on NBC’s The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson about a comedian running out of material. He explains, “It’s always been in the back of my mind: ‘Where’s the wall? How close am I to it? Is there anything on the other side?’ I think anyone who has ever had a creative thought has had those feelings.” Brooks has faced those demons in various forms, including the one he uses as his jumping-off point in The Muse. “The writing is the hardest, yet also the most satisfying aspect of what I do, because the writing is everything. If I finished a script and then got hit by a car, somebody could still make the movie. But if it’s not on paper, it’s never going to be anywhere.” Producer Herb Nanas, who has worked with Brooks for nearly 30 years, concurs, “Albert is a creative person, and all creative people live in a constant fear of sitting for days with blank pages. The Muse, like so many of his movies, is a cathartic experience – filmed in a very funny way.” Having completed several films and screenplays, Brooks has indeed seen the light at the end of the creative tunnel, and wanted to depict part of that process as well: “I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of someone who inspires and influences others.” Who better than one of the original creative inspirations? If Albert Brooks Calls, Don’t Let the Machine Get It After completing the screenplay for The Muse with longtime screenwriting collaborator Monica Johnson, Brooks set out to make his movie. He would once again be working both in front of and behind the camera, as director and star. First, though, he had to find his Muse. One actress came to mind immediately. Brooks recalls, “I said I wanted Sharon Stone. People told me, ‘She’s never done a comedy before.’” In fact, one of Stone’s earliest screen roles was a comedy (Irreconcilable Differences), and the actress had long wanted to do another one. Determined to make Stone his Muse, Brooks called her up, even though the two had only met in passing. Stone remembers, “Albert started telling me about the movie. I thought, ‘He probably just wants me to do a walk-on.’ As he’s describing the movie to me, I’m thinking, ‘This sounds really good!’” Brooks says, “After I described it to her, I asked her if she would play the part. There was, like, a 5-second pause, and she said, ‘I’ll be your Muse.’” Stone had accepted the role without reading the script first. While Brooks suggested that she might want to see the script before committing, Stone “told him I didn’t need to read it. The idea was so fantastic, that this character who could be the daughter of Zeus could inspire people and be sort of a bit obnoxious in the process…well, it was too wonderful a part to pass up! I couldn’t imagine anything better happening to my career than getting to do this movie.” Having landed his Muse by phone, Brooks decided to try the same approach to get his (on-screen) wife: “I called Andie MacDowell at home, and described the move to her. Like Sharon, she committed over the phone.” MacDowell remembers, “Getting the call from Albert was one of those rare gifts you dream about.” Elated with the responses he’d gotten so far, Brooks went for a hat trick by phoning Jeff Bridges to ask him to play Jack, Steven’s enviably successful screenwriter friend. This call proved to be a little tougher, notes Brooks, because “I knew Jeff had never really taken a smaller role before, and, speaking as an actor who does smaller parts in other people’s movies, it’s fun. Although his role is not the lead, I needed someone of stature to play it, because he introduces the Muse to the audience.” Brooks says, “I reminded Jeff, ‘You know, Jack Nicholson does it. You’re missing out on a good time. There’s no pressure.’ He decided it was exactly what he was looking for.” Bridges, like Stone and MacDowell before him, had committed to the project while on the phone with Brooks, without having read the script. Brooks reflects, “When you have finished filming a movie, and people come up to you and say, ‘I couldn’t have imagined anyone else playing that role,’ then you know you’ve cast a movie correctly. That’s what happened with The Muse.” And all it took was a few well-timed phone calls. Directing Actors and Acting Directors Production on The Muse took only 40 days, running from late August through late September of 1998. Such an efficient shooting schedule is rare for a movie filming in and around Hollywood, but common for an Albert Brooks movie. The secret? Preparedness. While the logistics of production were well-planned-out and implemented by Brooks, producer Herb Nanas, and executive producer/unit production manager Barry Berg, Brooks also insisted on preparedness from his actors. Only then could any improvisation(s) begin: “You must first have it on paper, and then you can play with it,” explains Brooks. “If it’s not down on paper, then you start reaching, and it looks phony.” Here, Brooks’ casting instinct for his Muse paid dividends: “As it turned out, Sharon was more than I could have hoped for. Aside from being funny, she’s smart and well-prepared. She was always coming at me with lots of ideas for the character, which made my job as director so much easier.” Stone adds, “Every day I came up with tons of goofy ideas. Albert would hear them all, tell me what would work and what wouldn’t, and would explain why. So, in the process, he not only got what he needed for the movie, but he also educated me about how to create comedy.” Back on the logistics front, the production filmed on locations ranging from an opulent mansion in Pasadena, to a home in Pacific Palisades, to the new Long Beach Aquarium. The last-named location was in part utilized for the appearance of one of the film’s notable cameo players, actor/director Rob Reiner. A high-school friend of Brooks’, Reiner is one of three major film directors who make forays in front of the camera in The Muse. The others are James Cameron and Martin Scorsese. Brooks notes, “I was amazed to get Marty. He hates to fly, and was about to start his own movie, so I was thrilled he even accepted.” Directing Scorsese marked the first time that Brooks had worked with him since Scorsese had directed Brooks in the 1976 classic Taxi Driver. Another star of Taxi Driver, actress Cybill Shepherd, appears in the opening sequence of The Muse, as the presenter at the black-tie dinner honoring Brooks’ character with a humanitarian award. Other actors appearing in cameos include Jennifer Tilly and Lorenzo Lamas. The cameo players lent verisimilitude to the film’s Hollywood setting, and recognizably “Hollywood” locations where filming took place included Paramount Studios, Universal Studios, and Raleigh Studios. Shooting was also done at the restaurant Spago, with Spago’s Wolfgang Puck participating in a few scenes as himself. Or, like the other cameo players, more or less as himself… The One During the film’s post-production phase, another major player joined the project – not for another of the film’s cameos, but to fashion a key component of the movie: the musical score. Pop music superstar Elton John, a fan of Brooks’ work, was introduced by his friend Stone to Brooks. At the suggestion of USA Films chairman Scott Greenstein, John took on the challenge of writing a purely instrumental score for The Muse. While he had scored the songs for the 1994 animated musical The Lion King, John’s new score for The Muse represents his first since 1971’s Friends. As a bonus, John also reteamed with his longtime collaborator, lyricist Bernie Taupin, to contribute a song that will be heard over the closing credits of The Muse. But it’s the music that will surprise, and delight, John’s legion of fans worldwide. “To write a cue that brings me [on-screen] from the car to the living room – that’s something [Elton’s] just not really done [before],” Brooks told Daily Variety. “I think I was a good fit for him, because, having gotten to know him, [I told him,] ‘I could never see you doing 95 minutes of music showing Steven Seagal being afraid.’ “The score is very string-based. But there are a few passages where it’s just him playing piano, and it’s really pretty. Elton’s got these melodies in his head that are very much his own. It was sort of ‘Eltonized.’ He made [the score] his own, but to me it has more of a timeless feel to it.” top of page

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