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    “Red Rocket” Goes “tick…tick…Boom!”

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments3338 Views

    By Robert Goldrich

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    In a pandemic-induced era of uncertainty, there’s much to be said for persevering as reflected in this week’s installment of SHOOT's The Road To Oscar Series.

    In its coverage of writer-director Sean Baker's Red Rocket, SHOOT referenced an AFI Fest actors’ roundtable in which Simon Rex recalled Baker telephoning him out of the blue about Red Rocket. At the time Rex said his Hollywood career was at a low ebb, describing himself as “halfway out the door in this business.” Instead Baker helped Rex to knock that proverbial door wide open, casting him as washed up porn star Mikey Saber.

    Now Rex, who felt like he was on the edge of a professional precipice, has been thrust into awards season relevance. Among the recognition he’s earned thus far are Best Actor distinction from the L.A. Film Critics, as well as Independent Spirit and Gotham Award nominations.

    Meanwhile cinematographer Alice Brooks, ASC is in our Road To Oscar Series on the strength of her work on tick…tick…Boom!, which came on the heels of her lensing In The Heights. Tick…tick…Boom! marked the feature directorial debut of Lin-Manual Miranda, an adaptation of Jonathan Larson’s autobiographical musical show dealing with the pressures of being an artist, in this case sacrificing much of one’s personal life to craft a successful musical. The film pays tribute to Larson (played by Andrew Garfield) whose artistic struggles ultimately yielded the Broadway hit Rent, a success he never lived to see. 

    “This movie is about a man who doesn’t give up his dreams no matter what,” said Brooks who revealed, “For me, there were so many times that I wanted to give up. Making movies is not an easy business. Six months before Jon (Chu) called me to shoot In The Heights, I felt like I was done. It felt like a moment in the movie (tick…tick…Boom!) where Jonathan goes to his friend Michael and asks that he get him a job in advertising. I remember my husband saying wait six months and if you feel the same, we’ll seek something else out. But there are lessons to be learned from Jonathan’s life. This is a movie for anyone who has a dream and it constantly feels there is no way forward. You endure no matter what. You take punches and keep getting up. You start your day all over again. This story is so personal. It feels universally personal.”

    Robert Goldrich is editor of SHOOT.

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    Tags:Alice BrooksRed RocketSean BakerSimon Rextick...tick...Boom!



    Sir Anthony Hopkins on his debut album: “My first love is music”

    Wednesday, August 12, 2026

    It may be hard to believe, but even Sir Anthony Hopkins doubts himself sometimes.

    "There's a part of me which says, 'you didn't write that,'" he recalls of composing his debut album, "Life Is a Dream." "What's it called? Impostor syndrome."

    Thankfully, it did not stop him from finishing the collection of 12 compositions he crafted over six decades.

    Conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, performed by the Philharmonia Orchestra and recorded at London's Alexandra Palace in April, it will be released by Decca Records on Aug. 21.

    "My first love, or vocation really, is music," said the 88-year-old actor. "That sounds very official, but I was raised with a lot of music (of the) postwar years, and it influenced me. And I started playing the piano when I was quite young."

    He picked up the instrument at 4 and began composing years later, writing his first piece, a waltz, in 1960. He was 22 at the time.

    "I find more freedom with music," he says, compared to acting, which he labels "a discipline, you have to know your stuff. But music for me is a freewheeling kind of art form."

    And he's had his fair share of experience. Prior to the release of "Life Is a Dream," Hopkins had composed scores for a number of films.

    "The opening of 'Shadowlands' is my first adventure in composing music," he said, referring to the 1993 film he starred in as "The Chronicles of Narnia" author C.S. Lewis. Then he became the principal composer on a few other movies that he also starred in and directed, including 1996's "August" and 2007's "Slipstream." 2020's "Elyse."

    Hopkins' childhood informed "Life Is A Dream"
    "It's about my childhood," he says of the album, which shares its title with the Pedro Calderón de la Barca play.... Read More

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