I recently had a chance to speak with Billy Bob Thornton, Virginia Madsen, and Mike Polish and Mark Polish, the writer/director brother team behind The Astronaut Farmer. The movie is an inspirational family throwback in the style of Field of Dreams and it mixes fantastical elements with science in its 104 minute running time.
The story is a farmer who is building a rocket to launch himself into outer space. The farmer is played by Billy Bob Thornton, his wife is played by Virginia Madsen. They have three kids, and a somewhat tumultuous yet rewarding life based upon the launch attempt.
The first thing Billy Bob said to me as we shook hands was “Laremy? I wish my name was Laremy.” As it was an Oscar winner soliciting my moniker I graciously told him he could have it. So if future interviews with him seem a little off there you have it.
I’ll let the “talent” take it from here, we discussed family films, independent cinema, politics, Monster’s Ball, future projects, and even a few life lessons for all y’all looking for guidance.
Talk about following your dreams and the family aspect of The Astronaut Farmer.
Virginia Madsen: It’s important that you’re showing your kids you’re fulfilled. Or that you’re trying to be. That you’re striving for something.
Thornton: I grew up with one guy who was a guitar player who was unbelievable. He’s still back there in my hometown because he took the safe job at the factory. He’s been working there forever and he’s going to get his pension but he’s a sad guy. I’d rather be happy and maybe not quite as safe. My kids think it’s cool I’m an actor and a musician. They don’t need me to be an accountant to feel like I can take care of them. You’ve got to go after your dreams, no matter how big or small. Otherwise I don’t know what you’re doing here.
The teenaged son in the movie, Shepard, isn’t a typical teen is he?
Madsen: He loves his dad. He wasn’t this dysfunctional grunge goth. Teenagers are not often portrayed in a realistic way. I loved my mom and dad when I was a teenager. My brother did. It does exist but we hardly ever see that anymore. We see the negative side of teenagers.
Mike Polish: It’s almost become the cliché, the teenaged son who hates his dad. It’s nice to see character that admires his dad and wants to be his dad because growing up I wanted to be my dad. The things that were positive in our family we wanted to show because you haven’t seen it in a long time.
Mark Polish: And then they call it “Disney” because everyone gets along!
This movie feels different than a lot of the stuff that’s out now.
Madsen: I don’t want to go to the theatre to be devastated by hideous violence. There’s just been so much darkness. I mean, I know we’re in a time of war and the artistic world is responding to that. But (with current day) movies it’s horror or dysfunction. There needs to be an alternative to that. Yes, that’s great, I like to see the intense drama, I liked Notes on a Scandal but where’s the alternative? I don’t always want to go see Happy Feet. I didn’t want to see Monster House so I asked my son’s father if he would take him to that one. So where is the film that all of us can enjoy that has that message of hope and love? And what’s wrong with that? Why can’t we have that once in awhile? People have gotten too cynical.
Is there a political element to The Astronaut Farmer?
Thornton: It kind of sneaks through the back door which is usually the only way people will listen. Say you’re doing a movie about racism. Well racists aren’t going to see it. When you do a movie whether it’s seven people who get affected or 7000 it doesn’t matter. But I truly believe when you’re trying to affect 250 million people with something you fail. This has some knocks at the system but they’re done in a humorous way.
Mike: A lot of people have said we’re taking stabs at the government but it’s just the truth of the situation. He’s building a model you can obtain and launch with highly explosive rocket fuel which would be a big red flag. From the research we did this is an honest portrayal of what would happen. The V2 is a ballistic missile. That would send up some red flags. So down the line the reaction is what would happen.
Was there any negative reaction to the sexual element of Monster’s Ball?
Thornton: It was hugely successful and the reviews were all amazing. When geeks get on the internet and start talking to each other I shut it off. You do a sex scene that’s about two lonely desperate people, if anybody wants to talk about that they got nothing to do. They need to get a job. I think there are other issues other than Halie got an Oscar because she was naked. If that’s all you saw in that movie well…
Madsen: You don’t get nominated for that. The other thing is if you’re naked you don’t get nominated. So that changed a lot of things because they actually looked past that to the dramatic content. The level of achievement. As a woman and an actress I thought that was fantastic.
Thornton: If anyone has a problem I was nude in a sex scene too and I didn’t get an Oscar and look what I did to her! Wore her out.
Talk about the obstacles you’ve faced in becoming filmmakers.
Mark: Making an independent movie you’re kind of drained emotionally and financially. Your partner goes “we have no money. Is this going to work?” and you have to work it out with your partner. My wife, I can do no wrong, it’s so supportive to a point where It’s movie-esque. So when people say (in Astronaut Farmer) “well that’s movie-esque” no, that’s real life, that’s love. When someone loves you they’ll do anything. I had to put that in the movie.
Mike: If you don’t have those depths than the high isn’t as high. We were splitting McDonald’s number two meals to make our first couple of movies. So our lows were very low. If you’ve got $100 are you going to go to Tijuana with your friends or are you going to spread that money over two weeks to eat? What’s going to keep you on your path?
Mark: I remember we shot a 16mm film in a hotel room in New York and we had $20. And it was $14 to develop it. We could go eat or take the $6 change and find out if we could go eat. You could do both, but we starved. We were hungry. But we were hungry in both areas.
How realistic is this film?
Mark: We asked Dave Scott, the astronaut on Apollo XV, the guy that drove the rover on the moon, we gave him the script and figured he was going to kill us. But he was like I’m sure you can get all this stuff and put it together. The thing that would be the hard part is mission control.
Mike: You could do it but there would be some serious problems with logistics. Anyone can push a button but the reading of what could go wrong is where you’d want the manpower. You want to make a movie that’s entertaining. You have to suspend your disbelief somewhere down the line. Keep the rocket real, keep the rocket science as much as you think people are going to attain. You can’t do anything these days you can’t find on a blog. Somebody’s going to blog about it. You have to let that go aside and say is it entertaining? Can it happen? Yeah, it could happen. Is there someone out there doing it? Yeah there are probably five guys we met that are close to doing it.
What’s the difference between this and your independent projects?
Mike: The thing is the financial stability. You’re able to concentrate on the production; you’re not looking for money. I’m not on the phone at night looking for additional funds to shore up post.
Mark: But it started as an independent. We wrote it, we casted it, Billy was attached. We didn’t have a studio involved. We went to Warner Independent which is their boutique company. Warner Brothers treated this as an independent. They said “You guys are over there making a movie, when you’re finished we’ll release it in a few theatres.” When we finished they said “Whoa.” It was something that was a good family film and they didn’t expect it so then we were with big Warner Brothers.
Mike: It was the most ideal way to make your first studio film.
Mark: There was no change the title, change this, change that because it was already done.
Mike: Everything based on fear, they have jobs to do, I respect that, but everything is tested. Everything, commercial spots, everything. We fought and fought on trailers until we finally gave up.
What have you guys got coming up in the way of future projects? Billy Bob, will you direct again?
Thornton: Yeah, I’m trying to get it made. You can’t imagine how hard it is to get a period drama made. But it’s a great story and I really hope we get to do it. I’m still wrestling with the studios, trying to get enough of a budget. It’s the Floyd Collins story, a guy who was trapped in a cave in the 20’s in Kentucky. It was the biggest media event of its time. It’s about exploitation and it really addresses the sort of reality television problem. (The True Story Here)
Mark: (Our project is called) ID, where your personal information is the highest form of currency and it will become a commodity. Every move you make is worth something to somebody. So if you pick up a pen, and it’s a Bic, that’s worth something to somebody. It’s very hyper realistic.
Mike: So when you are talking to someone in a bar and they say “Hey, buy me a Bud” they’re really working for Budweiser. We start working on it in three weeks. We’re going to properly sell out on that one.
Virginia, there’s a rumor of a project your brother is working on called Being Michael Madsen. What is it?
Madsen: It’s a documentary but it’s more of a mocumentary. I haven’t seen it and I don’t know really what it’s about. I don’t know what the story is, he just wanted me to go in and talk about him. What he does with that I don’t know but he’s got something up his sleeve!
The Astronaut Farmer opens nationwide February 23rd, get more here.
