There's nothing flashy about indie yarn Half Nelson, but its star Ryan Gosling did grab the headlines. He got an Oscar nod for playing a drug-addicted teacher, "flitting between comedy and tragedy" at will. Teenage actress Shareeka Epps was a good match as his student. She originally played the role in the short film Gowanus, Brooklyn also by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden.
Too Cool For School
In an in-depth interview, Fleck and Boden explain how the initial spark of inspiration came out of their disillusionment with the build-up to the Iraq war. Although the film doesn't address war directly, they apparently wanted to vent their "frustrations" through the character of Dan. However, Fleck doesn't want people to be swayed by the usual clichés of drug-addicted antiheroes; "It's not about a particular issue," he says, "it's about characters dealing with issues."
Fans of the film put their own questions to Fleck and Boden in The Fabulous Picture Show. Here, they talk about developing the idea from a short film to a feature, and the nuts-and-bolts of getting it done on a low budget. We're told the finished film closely resembles the script, but using a handheld camera afforded a degree of spontaneity that allowed Gosling to experiment. Boden particularly likes one scene where a stray cat roams into shot and Gosling stops to pet it before approaching the house of a local drug dealer.
Fleck and Boden heap praise on Gosling in their commentary for their film. As well as adding character details like nervous humming and saggy y-fronts, he would play a scene in numerous ways to give Boden a generous choice of cuts in the editing room. Although she admits this posed a problem for continuity, she adds that it was an "exciting" way to work that gave the film new life from script to screen. Fleck also gives props to Canadian rock band Broken Social Scene for lending inspiration during rewrites of the script. (Their music also wound up on the soundtrack.)
Parts Of The Whole
A reel of eight deleted and extended scenes showcases more sparkling, improvised moments courtesy of Gosling, but there are a couple of well-written gems as well. For instance, after Dan gets his daily fix of crack in the staff room toilets, the pedantic yet inattentive headmaster reminds him: "Don't forget to wash your hands!" Gosling gets a few more laughs in an outtakes reel, proving that films about drug addicts don't have to be a downer.
The spotlight is on Shareeka Epps for Gowanus, Brooklyn, the video short that started the ball rolling. A little-known actor called Matt Kerr plays the role eventually usurped by Gosling, but Epps easily outshines him. A photo gallery completes this thoughtful set of extras.
It's a shame that we don't get to hear directly from Gosling, but discerning moviegoers who missed Half Nelson in cinemas, will surely be gripped by his performance on DVD.
EXTRA FEATURES
Half Nelson DVD is released on Monday 24th September 2007.
