Half-Assed Internet Research
Production; casting; cinematography; nudity; fashion; locations; music; title origins
In the discussion (17)
Approx. transcript time · 00:04:46Read transcript
- Schrader’s background is described as a repressed Calvinist upbringing followed by film criticism and Los Angeles exploration of guns, sexuality, fashion and self-development.
- Bret Easton Ellis’s White is cited for the film’s bright, ominous Los Angeles and influence on men’s magazines, fashion advertising and Armani; athletes imitating Gere are recalled.
- Schrader’s explanation credits Italian collaborators Moroder, Armani and Scarfiotti with refreshing Los Angeles; sleek synthesizer scores are compared with Thief, Risky Business and Blade Runner.
- Travolta reportedly kept the Armani suits after withdrawing two weeks before filming.
- Travolta also reportedly declined An Officer and a Gentleman, giving Gere another defining role.
- The score reportedly received a Golden Globe nomination, Blondie’s song became a major number-one hit, and the film grossed 52 million dollars on a 5 million budget.
- John Bailey is identified as cinematographer and later Academy president; this early major assignment was followed by Ordinary People.
- The prominent male-star nudity is said to have been unscripted according to Gere and then used in marketing.
- A reported perk supposedly lets Gere take clothes from any Armani store because of the film’s impact.
- An Air Mail oral history describes Sunset Plaza residents including Teri Garr, Robert Forster and George Hamilton, with its pool and beige carpet emblematic of the era.
- Debbie Harry reportedly wrote Call Me after seeing the opening footage; the song stayed number one for six weeks.
- Schrader liked Julian being called Julie because it reinforced the character’s gender ambiguity and traditionally female narrative role.
- The final window scene is a direct Pickpocket homage, an ending Schrader later reused in The Card Counter.
- Stevie Nicks reportedly declined the song because her record contract barred the side project, leading Moroder to Blondie.
- Nina van Pallandt’s past connection to Clifford Irving is linked to Gere later portraying him in The Hoax, where Julie Delpy portrayed her.
- Schrader’s unverified account says he forced Diller’s hand by offering Gere the role and framing continued production as a better public story than collapse after Travolta’s exit.
- Schrader is said to have conceived the title and premise while listing jobs to a classroom, including gigolo; the anecdote fits the film’s emphasis on mood over plot.
