The Cut Director Sean Ellis talks how John Turturro changed the script and why they shot on film
Boxing movies have been so similar over the years that they can feel like you already know where they’re going before they even begin. So it was exciting to see The Cut focus on some lesser-known elements of getting into the squared circle. You can check out my review of the film HERE. I was able to chat with director Sean Ellis about his film, and we got into a variety of topics. First up, was why Ellis wanted to look at a lesser focused on aspect of boxing: the weight cut.
“You know, I like boxing movies, but I think everything’s been done to death and it’s just [about] finding a new angle. When I read the script [the news was highlighting] an issue with boxers that had been so dehydrated before the fight that they sort of got injured or there was this health issue. You know, people cutting weight in order to be at the top of their of their division. And I thought that was really interesting. But yeah, I thought that, that was a really interesting take on a boxing movie: it’s boxing movie that has no boxing, in that sense. And I thought that was that was a really interesting way of doing something that was a bit less commercial as far as “the Rocky format” goes, but definitely something that I thought was interesting from a psychological point of view and what it takes to get an athlete into the arena, that drive.“
And with star Orlando Bloom actually cutting a ton of weight himself for the role, I asked how much involvement he had in that process: “I kept myself out of that, to be honest with you, because it was a very complicated process. And he [Orlando] had a whole team of people that were helping him achieve what was what was needed. And then there was a whole team of people on set because he had to come to us at his lightest weight. You can’t lose weight while you’re filming. You have to arrive at your at your absolute lightest weight, and then you shoot in reverse chronological order. So you shoot the ending first, and then he starts to eat and put on weight. And so you shoot in reverse. And then at the end of the movie, you shoot the beginning of the movie with his weight put back on. But that was very strategic in its execution and there was a whole team of people that were literally calorie counting the whole way through. And I had enough to deal with. So I just passed that over to them. I said, okay, you just tell me when he’s ready and we’ll shoot that weight, you know? But yeah, bless him. He went through it, to be honest with you. And it’s just like weeks and weeks of just tuna and cucumber. When he showed up and we shot the Weight In first, he had so little energy and he would literally be lying on the floor in between takes and his skin was like paper thin and his body weight was down to like 3%.“
It clearly paid off as Bloom’s performance is one of the best of his career, and really helped showcase the lengths that athletes will go to win. But it clearly wasn’t just Bloom who knocks it out of the park, as John Turturro gives a great performance as the man who helps the boxer make weight. However, the role was originally written with a bit of a different tone, which Turturro put his own twist on.
“He turned up and Boz was [fully formed]. I mean, he even turned up with his own outfit. And I was like, ‘Okay, great. John’s done the work.’ Because I remember the producer actually said, ‘Is that how he’s gonna play it? ‘Cause in the script, he’s a bit more like a drill sergeant.’ And I was like, yeah, but we’ve asked John and John’s shown up and John has this absolutely clear idea about who was it and what was it. And I think it’s amazing. It’s a gift in that respect. So you kind of just, you surround yourself with the best people for the job and, and you let them do their job.”
I was also surprised to hear that Ellis shot the independent movie on film versus digital. “Ultimately, it’s still a viable, interesting way of making a film. And, you know, it’s been around for over 100 years. It’s been, you know, it’s been tested. It’s the longevity of film [which] is obviously greater and more expectant than, say, the longevity of digital files. I mean, digital doesn’t really interest me to be honest with you. I don’t really get excited about pixels whereas film is that, you know, and we actually struck a 35 mm print [and it] is something that you kind of connect with and align with in a different way to digitally.“
THE CUT IS CURRENTLY IN THEATERS AND AVAILABLE DIGITALLY.
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