PotterCast #116: Big pack of stuff Transcript

News Talk (0:00 - 11:23)

Sue Upton (SU): Hey, this is Sue, John, and Melissa here, and you are listening to a Harry Potter podcast.

John Noe (JN): You geeks!

Melissa Anelli (MA): John!

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MA: Now, let's go and do the show.

SU: Okay! See you there!

JN: Geeks!

MA: John!

Melissa Anelli: Welcome guys, it's PotterCast number 116.

John Noe: Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo!

MA: Woo-hoo! I am Melissa, I'm here with John and Sue, and we are in for yet another week of exciting discussions, theories, and more on your favorite Harry Potter podcast. This week, as always, we have to check in with our friends at Borders.

JN: Sweet, I love our friends at Borders.

Today's PotterCast is brought to you by Borders.
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MA: Awesome. Well, okay, in this week's show, we have lots of- well, sort of lots of- since Deathly Hallows, "lots of" is a relative term- (JN: Yes.) but fun news to discuss. Our next Phoenix Files will discuss Harry going over to the Ministry, and his trial there at the Ministry. Our Canon Conundrums- what's Canon Conundrums about this week guys?

JN: It was a pretty cool Canon Conundrums, wasn't it Sue?

SU: It was, it was. It was why didn't Harry die (JN: Yes.) in the forest? (MA: Oh, boy.) Why?

JN: Yes. Because we know, (SU: Yeah.) definitely, because we were there when she wrote it. (SU: Yes, yes.) Except we don't, (SU: No.) and we're totally just hoping we're right. (SU laughs)

MA: I wasn't part of this one, and I have a feeling when I listen to it I'm going to be screaming at the audio like everybody else.

JN: Oh, come on, we weren't that far off! (SU laughs)

MA: No, no, no, I don't mean that in a bad way, I mean that when you're- it sounds like a juicy (SU: Yeah.) topic of conversation that your own ideas...already (JN: Yeah.) I want to say things.

SU: Yeah. You know, it really was, and it was a good conversation, and it's surprising, I keep saying this over and over, but every time we go and we talk about these things, and then you end up with something else, and it's just amazing (JN: Yeah.) that Jo is...

JN: Totally. We wanted you to be there, if your darn cat wouldn't attack everybody. We told everybody that...

MA: It wasn't my cat, I had an infection in my ear, and it was painful.

JN: No, we told everybody Moochka (SU: No.) had attacked a neighbor, and you had to help do the first aid.

MA: I'm so glad you're there to cover for me. (JN and SU laugh)

JN: You know me, (MA: Thanks, really.) good old reliable John here.

MA: It's wonderful.

SU: And he's telling tall tales about your poor cat. (JN: Yes.) Your poor, defenseless cat.

MA: My poor ear, okay? (JN: Aw.) I said in my e-mail, I'd rather cut off my ear than put on earphones to record

JN: Well, you were fine the next day, it was a quick ear infection, wasn't it?

MA: I have medicine, medicine is good. (JN: Oh.) Okay, moving on, we have Scribby Five in this week's show, and it's awesome, as per usual, so I think I want to hear from Sue what's happening in this week's Harry Potter news.

JN: Yes.

SU: Well, there is some. And I think this is good, because we have some new segments, and let's talk about movies now, because we're starting to hear a little bit about the movies, and that Helena Bonham Carter is gonna reprise her role as Bellatrix Lestrange, and she's gonna film in the spring, because right now she's pregnant with her (JN: Aw.) second child. But that means the Spinner's End scene is gonna be in, everyone!

MA: Unless...

JN: The which scene?

SU: Uh-oh.

MA: Unless, unless it just means that she's in the battle at the end.

SU: Oh, don't say that!

MA: You know?

JN: Wait, now, which scene are you talking about that's gonna get in?

MA: Helena Bonham- Spinner's End, John.

JN: Oh, hell, Spinners End, Jesus. (SU: Spinner's End, the beginning of the book!) Yeah, that's, like, the coolest one ever.

MA: But they have to do Spinner's End just to get that visual of the fiery snake- the Unbreakable Vow.

JN: (sighs) And I just wanna see Snape sitting there with (MA sighs) his leg up and a glass of wine swishing around, and God, that'd be so freaking hilarious. But if that scene is not in- (SU laughs) if I don't sit down in that movie, (SU: Wait.) and that's not one of the first things that comes up, I'm leaving, right there. (SU: Right.) I'm going to be like, (MA: Okay.) "Eh, that's all I came for." (laughs)
MA: I'll hold you to that in October or November, whenever it comes out. (SU: Yeah.) November. (JN: Yeah, all right.) November. A year and change away. Ah!

JN: There's no way they can't put that in.

SU: Well, they have to have it in there. I mean, it just sets the whole tone for the book, and the whole movie, I would think. I was just glad to see that it was gonna be coming back. Because I could see them easily writing her part out, actually. (JN: Yeah.) In other film kind of related news. The first of the deleted scenes was posted on the British Board of Film Classification website, and we're getting only about ten minutes of deleted scenes, and they don't look very good to me. (MA laughs) From Order of the Phoenix.

JN: Oh, no. That's all? (SU laughs)

MA: Well, okay.

SU: (laughs) Well, let's talk about these names, though. "Trelawney eating?"

MA: Well, I heard David Yates- (JN: Oh, that sounds so cool.) yeah. I heard David Yates talk about this before, and apparently, (SU: Okay.) while they were filming Umbridge's scene where she speaks to the Great Hall, (SU: Uh-huh.) they filmed for like thirty seconds or a minute or maybe even ten minutes, Emma Thompson (JN laughs) doing this Charlie Chaplin routine with her food. Like, this silent, trying to corral her food on her plate, and she- in that kooky Trelawney way- and couldn't do it, (JN: Aw.) (SU: No.) and was dropping things, and so they said it was so great they had to- they couldn't use it in the film but they had to put some of it in the deleted.

JN: Well, there's a cut to her in the film where she is eating something.

MA: Yeah, exactly. (JN laughs)

SU: Yeah, yeah. It's real quick, but when I saw that I thought, (MA: Yeah.) "Now, why are they going to show more her eating?" (MA: Exactly.) But the way you described it, that sounds awesome, because she's (MA: Yes.) so brilliant. I bet it was just hysterical. Oh, man.

MA: She's such a great physical actress that- I mean, and look at the timings on these clips. It's almost twice the length of any other deleted scene. (SU: Yeah.) Oh, no. I'm sorry. It's one of the longest deleted scenes. It's two minutes and thirty-one seconds, which is huge for a deleted scene. (SU: Yeah.) (JN: It's two minutes long for her eating?) Two minutes and a half.

JN: Oh, my gosh!

SU: Yeah. (MA: Yeah.) That's a long scene. And speaking of- that could be funny, though, because she's so...she's just a genius actress. (JN: Oh, for sure.) So, and speaking- there is another scene, though, with her and Umbridge. It says "Umbridge questions Trelawney," (JN: Hm.) which is a scene that I had been hoping for. (MA: Mm-hm.) And that's kind of good news.

MA: Okay, here are the rest of the titles in case you missed them. (SU: Okay.) "Neville speaks up for Harry," "Steady Cam Around," which apparently is just a scenic shot of the camera spinning around. (laughs)

JN: I cannot wait for that. I love steady cam shots. (MA laughs)

MA: Yay! I want it in HD. (SU laughs)

JN: Yeah. Maybe it's in 3D, too. Maybe they have it for the IMAX. (MA laughs)

MA: The most boring IMAX ever.

SU: Oh, that would be kind of cool. Like, random.

JN: You think I'm kidding, but I'd love to see Hogwarts in 3D.

MA: You? I know, I know.

SU: I would too.

MA: "Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle Bully a Student."

JN: Jerks.

SU: Yay, yay for Crabbe. We didn't get to see him that much. Our friend Jamie Waylett, we love.

MA: Well, we'll get to see him in Seven, won't we?

JN: He's a good Crabbe-y Crabbe.

MA: I hope.

SU: Yeah. Yeah, that's right. He's got a good scene (JN: Yes.) coming up, for sure.

MA: Wait. "Filch Blows On Umbridge's Hair?"

JN: Whoa, that sounded dirty for a second.

SU: No, we saw- remember, we saw a photo. We saw like a bunch of stills before that whole...we got so many photos before the movie came out. And there was a scene- it looked like Umbridge was on fire.

JN: Yeah!

MA: Ah, okay.

JN: She comes out on fire.

SU: Like a firework, or something. Yeah. So, I'm thinking that's probably it. (laughs)

JN: That wasn't a romantic scene.

SU: Not some- no. (SU and JN laughs) I was just going to say that!

JN: It's no wonder it was deleted.

MA: I wasn't going to say that, either of you. Thank you.

JN: That's not a very popular ship, (SU laughs) I don't think. Is it?

MA: Oh, my. No, I think it's a very popular ship. (laughs) Okay.

JN: Oh, he's such a gruddy old man, though.

MA: All right. The next one is, "Harry, Hermione and Umbridge - Extended," so it look like just more forest stuff. (JN: Yeah.)"Harry Enters." Don't know where he enters, but Harry enters. And then "Harry and Ron Packing." So what else is going on in this news?

SU: Mr. Dan Radcliffe has been promoting his new film December Boys, which actually opens next- well, on September 14. But he's here doing a whole slew of mass media interviews and stuff, and he says that- he actually confirmed that those rumors of them bringing Equus over to Broadway are true, and that it looks, it's (JN: Hm.) very, very hopeful. And he wants to reprise his role in the stage play, and Richard Griffiths would appear with him, as well.

MA: Wow, wow.

JN: Well, of course he's gonna come along! What else is he going to do?

SU: Mr. Richard Griffiths is a very acclaimed stage actor. (laughs)

MA: John.

JN: Oh, no! He's an incredibly great actor, but I'm saying if Dan Radcliffe can, you know, be arsed to go over there, I'm sure he could too. That's all I'm saying.

SU: Our resident theater critic. Thank you, John. (laughs)

JN: Well, no, it's great. You know, it's- (MA: Sue!) (JN: Hey!) Sorry.

MA: "Our resident theater critic." That was great! (laughs) Sorry. Okay, I'm better.

SU: Well, I think Dan will be good. He said in a bunch of interviews, one, he thinks it might be in the fall, because there's- the filming for Half-Blood Prince is gonna take, you know...

MA: Yeah. How, how can he... Seriously, let's think about this, how can he come over and do Equus? When are they thinking of bringing Equus here?

SU: Well, first they had had it in spring, but it's gonna have to be until- he said later, and in more recent interviews that it would be in the fall. (JN: Yeah.) And it has to be, I mean just...

MA: It has to be. And it has to be, he can't be in it in the four to five weeks leading up to Half-Blood Prince, because he has to be busy doing press. (SU: Oh, yeah.) There's just... I don't know how they'd make that happen.

SU: I think it would have to, after, because the movie- Half-Blood Prince is scheduled for release I believe on November 21, which is Thanksgiving weekend of next year here in the United States. So I'm thinking, I would think they would want to either try and launch it after that, you know, if they were smart. Because there's no, like you said, that just, that whole month of...

MA: And then there's the Christmas season, so maybe...

JN: I'm sure we'll be hearing more about that soon.

MA: It's a great Christmas show. (SU laughs) It's a great (JN: Yeah.) holiday event.

SU: Yeah, it puts you in a real festive mood. (laughs) (MA: No!) And there's just one more thing I want to talk about. There's another rumor, too, about a new director of photography for the movie. And his name is Bruno Delbonnel. Someone help me pronounce that. I don't know. He's a French cinematographer.

JN: No idea.

MA: I can't pronounce French stuff.

SU: But he's done some really good movies. He's doing one that I think looks kind of good. It's the one that Julie Taymor's doing. The Across the Universe. Kinda The Beatles. (MA: Okay.) And you know, she's so brilliant. She staged (MA: Well...) The Lion King, right? On Broadway?

MA: Titus Andronicus and The Lion King. Yeah.

JN: Oh. Cool.

SU: She's very innovative, so... I don't know, it looks pretty good, so... But, that's it.

MA: Well, now what happens to Stuart? Isn't- I thought Stuart Craig was...

SU: Well, I can't...

JN: Stuart Craig is art direction. It's a different job.

MA: Yes, I know, but he's been director of photography in the past, hasn't he? (SU: Well...) As well? Am I crazy?

SU: Yeah, but the last one, they had that guy that shot Black Hawk Down, he was really, really good. But I think that they're going for- what that tells me, that they're bringing in a different cinematographer, means they're going for a different look. Like the cave scene might be a lot more (MA: Mm-hm, mm-hm.) very- just a lot more- (JN: Good!) I don't know. What's the word to describe it? More spooky?

MA: Production design! (SU: Yeah.) Not director of photography. I'm sorry. Stuart Craig was... (SU: Yeah, that's okay.) I'm sorry. No, I'm losing my mind. (SU laughs) Yeah, but it sounds interesting.

JN: (whispers) Stuart Craig!

MA: (whispers) Stuart Craig! (laughs) I hate you. Okay.

JN: All right. Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm ready to start talking about Order of the Phoenix again.

SU: Oh, I'm excited about Phoenix.

JN: That was one hella cool movie.

MA: Sure! Let's keep doing it!

JN: All right!