They say the three times the charm.
But when youre interviewing Renny Harlin, the second times not too bad either.
Especially one doing his first gig for this site, and praying to God that the tape worked okay.
And its the same story here.
This is 20 minutes, Roadrunner-style.
Especially that one aboutA Sound Of Thunder.
How did you get from that to 5Days Of War?
Well, it was interesting.Mannerheimhas fallen apart so many times I dont know any more whats going to happen.
But I was prepping that, and the final scenes fell apart at the last minute.
I was very depressed about that, and5 Days Of Warreally became like my therapy.
And I felt very passionate about this one.
Did that appeal to you, the sense of getting your teeth into something?
I could give these people a voice.
Well, I really developed the script.
It seems like an enormous undertaking.
You shot the film in 36 days, is that right?
Was there a point where you thought, how am I going to do this?
Some of the action set pieces youve got in here are huge.
Yes, we made the movie for only 12 million dollars, so it was a real challenge.
So it was made in very challenging conditions.
That made it very powerful, and very emotional.
How much does the atmosphere change on the set when youre making a film like this?
Its a grueling film to watch at times.
Is it harder to make this jot down of film than, say, a12 Roundstype film?
Yes, it is fairly hard, but its a different experience.
And hes been everywhere, from Rwanda to Bosnia to South America, and Iraq and Afghanistan.
And for him, a lot of the scenes were very emotional.
With all the firefighting, he hadnt even noticed.
So that kind of thing made it definitely a different kind of experience.
Does that add a certain amount of pressure on you, then?
A responsibility to tell a story about something thats still being felt?
Yes, definitely, definitely I had a sense of responsibility.
And the hard thing is that people …
I fully expect people to say, Oh, you took so-and-sos side.
And, Oh, youre telling the story from this point of view.
And, Oh, its not fair and balanced.
And that is one of the hardest things.
What I found interesting was how you paint a picture of the role of the media in todays wars.
That was the guy who was always with him.
Yes, and thats based on a real character.
The real characters name is Daniel Kunin, and he was an American who was there with the president.
And we did our research, and totally based the character on him, and that is true.
I wanted to get that across.
Thats a really interesting question.
Im flattered and impressed that you would remember that shot fromPrison.
Youve even got an early role for Viggo Mortensen in there.
And its supposed to be Viggo Mortensens hands in that opening scene.
But its really interesting.
So, to answer your question, I dont really look back at my movies.
But other than that, I never really look back at them.
Only if there is some really special reason.
So I think its just instinctual.
And a Finnish flag.
I couldnt see one here, though.
So I felt like, okay, at least Finland was mentioned in the film.
People had their knives out forCutthroat Island,Shane Blacks script was a huge, record-breaking three million dollars.
Was it a fun film to shoot?
Because its a hugely enjoyable film to watch.
And then I wait and say, Okay Geena, you could get up now.
And she tries again, and she doesnt.
And its like, Geena, were going to run out of film, just get up.
And shes like, I cant!
So that gives you an idea of the circumstances.
They are the two most professional actors I have ever worked with.
So she said, Ive got to try that!
So Geena had her assistant go and buy a deep fry cooker, like an oil cooker.
And they were amazing.
you’re free to imagine, a giant dripping doughnut that has all the hamburger stuff inside.
And it must have like 6000 calories, but we ate those on a cold night.
We ate deep fried burgers, and it was fun.
That sounds like a proper dinner.
Whats next for you, then?
I dont want to jinx it and sayMannerheim, but is that still on the horizon?
Theres a directors seat going free, it seems, onThe Expendables 2.
Are you tempted to re-team with Stallone for a third time?
No, thats not on the cards.
With Sam Jacksons Mitch Henessey character?
Sam is 100 per cent committed, he is 100 per cent on board.
Its actually going to be sort of a buddy story between Geenas daughter and Sam.
And would you get Shane Black in for that, or is he busy onIron Man?
I think I speak for a few people when I say well look forward to that one.
Renny Harlin, thank you very much.
5 Days Of War is out now andavailable from the Den Of Geek Store.
