Cinema 1 on 3rd Avenue between 59th and 60th street is not your likely venue for a red carpet event. In fact, the carpet was maroon, with geometric shapes piercing the diluted palette to the point of psychedelic nausea. I was left waiting in four-inch heels, my friends; I have nothing nice to say of the simple décor, though the ornaments were worth waiting for.
Scott Hicks’ newest film, “The Boys are Back,” adapted from Simon Carr’s memoir and featuring the effortlessly striking Clive Owen. Yes, reader, the sigh you breathe is but one among many.
What began as an orderly press line soon morphed into a five-headed beast upon Clive’s arrival. The wry smile and startling blue eyes are, as his leading role, true to life. As the questions reached a crescendo, drifting from substantive to asinine, I noticed that he bore the onslaught with gentility, wit, and an earnest desire to charm and be charmed.
Tony Gilroy, of the Bourne series, who worked with Owen on “Duplicity,” extolled his virtues as “a true pleasure to work with, and a man without issues.” (Tony, if you’re reading this, do give us another Bourne film—I hate to think that you were serious when you said that it wasn’t in your mind; the vigorous head shake “to and fro” did not help either…)
I do not, however, wish to detract from the equally commanding presence of Scott Hicks, director of the award winning “Shine” and a true Hollywood visionary.
