- Title: JAPAN: Brad Pitt, Tarantino in Tokyo to promote "Inglorious Basterds
- Date: 5th November 2009
- Summary: TOKYO, JAPAN (NOVEMBER 4, 2009) (REUTERS) ACTOR BRAD PITT ARRIVES AT "INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS" NEWS CONFERENCE IN DOWNTOWN TOKYO MOVIE POSTER READING "INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS" IN JAPANESE AND ENGLISH FILM DIRECTOR QUENTIN TARANTINO AND PITT ON STAGE (SOUNDBITE) (English) QUENTIN TARANTINO SAYING: "About the refund campaign, the Japanese distributor came up with the idea. And they proposed that to me, like what do you think about that? And I'm like, 'Hell yeah! No one is going to be leaving my movie after an hour! Let's go for it!" REPORTER TAKING NOTES (SOUNDBITE) (English) QUENTIN TARANTINO SAYING: "The first idea, the thing that first gets me to go into something like this, is simply I love movies. The whole thing is I like war movies, all right? So the first thing is I like war movies and I like to do my version of war movie. And in particular, I kind of like a bunch-of-guys-on-a-mission kind-of war movies." TARANTINO, PITT ALONG WITH CO-ACTORS MELANIE LAURENT AND JULIE DREYFUS ON STAGE (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRAD PITT SAYING: "It's almost revolutionary, and that is, everyone's speaking in their native tongues, their native languages. And I think that as we get closer and the world gets united, we understand more that we would help relate with each other and that we really are neighbours. I'd like to see more films go that way." NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRAD PITT SAYING: "Yes, I did have a little mishap... No injuries except for my ego... I was trying to get away from a paparazzi... and instead gave him that really good story." TARANTINO, PITT, LAURENT AND DREYFUS WAVING THEIR HANDS TO CAMERAS JAPANESE FANS AND CAMERAMEN CROWED AT THE "YELLOW CARPET" EVENT TARANTINO GIVING AUTOGRAPHS TO JAPANESE FANS PITT GIVING AUTOGRAPHS TO JAPANESE FANS (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRAD PITT SAYING: "It's good. Irreverent, and you didn't learn any of this in your history books."
- Embargoed: 20th November 2009 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Japan
- Country: Japan
- Reuters ID: LVA3TH0GRJNIBFRZ010RXQDTUBS9
- Story Text: In a show of confidence, director Quentin Tarantino offered a full refund on film tickets on Wednesday (November 4) for Japanese moviegoers who might find his latest movie, "Inglourious Basterds", boring.
"About the refund campaign, the Japanese distributor came up with the idea. And they proposed that to me, like what do you think about that? And I'm like, 'Hell yeah! No one is going to be leaving my movie after an hour! Let's go for it!" Tarantino said at a news conference in Tokyo.
The film will open in theatres across Japan on November 20. Refunds will be given to those who leave the cinema in the middle of the film between November 20 to 23.
The World War Two shoot-'em-up epic stars Brad Pitt as chief of a squad of Jewish-American troops who butcher Nazis in occupied France. Their plot collides with that of a Holocaust survivor bent on assassinating Hitler.
"The first idea, the thing that first gets me to go into something like this, is simply I love movies. The whole thing is I like war movies, all right? So the first thing is I like war movies and I like to do my version of war movie. And in particular, I kind of like a bunch-of-guys-on-a-mission kind-of war movies," Tarantino said.
The Anglophone, German, Austrian and French cast interact in their own tongues, with some Italian thrown in -- a departure for the 47-year-old Tarantino, whose past films tended to focus feverishly on the style and lingo of American urban toughs.
"It's almost revolutionary, and that is, everyone's speaking in their native tongues, their native languages. And I think that as we get closer and the world gets united, we understand more that we would help relate with each other and that we really are neighbours. I'd like to see more films go that way," Pitt told the news conference.
Though the story is steeped in fantasy -- by Tarantino's own account, it's a spaghetti Western transposed to war-torn Europe -- he said original languages were key for building a sense of immediacy, especially scenes such as a tavern showdown where a faulty accent gives away a British spy disguised as a German.
Meanwhile, Pitt also told the audience a little bit about his recent motorbike accident.
"Yes, I did have a little mishap... No injuries except for my ego... I was trying to get away from a paparazzi... and instead gave him that really good story."
During the "yellow carpet" event, Tarantino and Pitt gave autographs to hundred of Japanese fans clamouring "Boo-ra-pi," or his Japanese nickname.
"It's good. Irreverent, and you didn't learn any of this in your history books," Pitt said to Reuters.
According to studio estimates issued in late August, the film had already sold a total of 65 million U.S. dollars (USD) worth of tickets in North America and 22 foreign territories, a promising start after the disappointment of Tarantino's previous effort, "Death Proof," two years ago.
In the United States and Canada, the tally surpassed Tarantino's previous best opening of 25 million USD for "Kill Bill Vol. 2" in 2004.
The foreign contribution has been led led by No. 1 openings in such countries as France (6.1 million USD), Britain (5.8 million USD), Germany (4.3 million USD) and Australia (2.7 million USD). - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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