Tweet
AL PACINO STARS AS 'DR. DEATH' IN HBO'S 'YOU DON'T KNOW JACK'
Examiner.com
http://www.examiner.com/x-4305 3-HBO-Examiner~y2010m4d7-Al-Pacino-stars-as-Dr-Dea th-in-HBOs-You-Dont-Know-Jack
April 8 2010
Al Pacino, who won an Emmy for HBO's "Angels in America," returns to
the small screen to play Dr. Jack Kevorkian in HBO Films' "You Don't
Know Jack."
The film debuts Saturday, April 24 from 9 to 11:15 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.
In 1990, Dr. Jack Kevorkian (aka Dr. Death) astonished the world
as he took the end of life debate head-on with his "Mercy Machine"
and performed his first assisted suicide.
Starring Oscar winner Al Pacino in a film by Oscar winner Barry
Levinson ("Rain Man"), HBO Films' "You Don't Know Jack" is the story of
one man's obsession with challenging the rules by which we live and die
- and his stubborn, heartfelt insistence on breaking the law to do so.
The film also stars Oscar winner Susan Sarandon (Emmy nominee for HBO's
"Bernard and Doris"), Danny Huston (HBO's "John Adams"), Emmy winner
Brenda Vaccaro ("Once Is Not Enough") and Emmy winner John Goodman
("The Big Lebowski").
The film is written by Adam Mazer ("Breach").
Other HBO playdates: April 24 (2:45 a.m.), 25 (5:45 p.m.) and 27 (9:45
a.m., 8:30 p.m.), and May 2 (1:30 p.m., 2:10 a.m.), 5 (11:30 a.m.,
7:15 p.m.), 8 (3:45 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT), 10 (1:00 p.m., 9:00 p.m.),
13 (12:30 a.m.) and 16 (10:30 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: April 29 (10:30 a.m., 9:00 p.m.) and May 9 (11:00 a.m.,
9:05 p.m.), 14 (2:45 p.m.), 19 (5:45 p.m.), 25 (4:15 p.m.) and 31
(11:05 p.m.)
ABOUT THE FILM
"You Don't Know Jack" offers a rare look at the man behind the
sensational headlines, starting with his initial foray into patient
consultations and the media frenzy that ensued. One of the most
polarizing figures in modern American history, Kevorkian (Al Pacino)
and his allies - sister Margo (Brenda Vaccaro), friend and medical
supplier Neal Nicol (John Goodman), Hemlock Society activist Janet Good
(Susan Sarandon), and defense attorney Geoffrey Fieger (Danny Huston)
dedicated themselves to a cause fraught with legal and ethical hurdles,
not to mention the real possibility of long-term imprisonment.
Principal photography was completed in New York, with additional
filming in and around Detroit.
The task of bringing to the screen the behind-the-headlines story of
one of the most controversial, and perhaps most misunderstood public
figures of the modern day fell to an award-winning team of filmmakers
and actors.
"I think a lot of people have the wrong impression about Jack
Kevorkian," says director Barry Levinson. "He only exists through
little sound bites, so there's very little known about the man, his
private life, his relationships, etc. We're not trying to glorify
the character, but we're trying to give a human portrait of the man -
what he was about, how he thought, how he viewed the ethics of it all."
Adds executive producer Lydia Pilcher, "Jack Kevorkian was a lightning
rod for an issue that really is universal and more relevant now than
ever. What we've tried to do in the story is to show all avenues into
the debate. We have the opposition from the religious right and the
disability movement, and the opposition within the medical profession.
We have 70% of the population who supported what Jack was doing, and
of course the patients who considered Jack their Angel of Mercy. For
better or for worse, Jack forced the medical establishment and the
general public to take a hard look at how end of life issues are
managed."
Adds writer Adam Mazer, "I don't think it's about sympathizing or
empathizing with Jack. I think it's about understanding him - the
choices he made, who he was. I think we show a very honest portrayal
of the man - his foibles, his strengths, his weaknesses and his flaws."
Great care was taken to treat the subject matter with dignity and
truthfulness, backed by extensive research and interviews with the
individuals who were involved, and with Jack himself. The fact that
Kevorkian is still very much alive at age 81 made it imperative to
the filmmakers that his story be told with a sense of respect and
responsibility in an honest, unflinching way.
While Kevorkian was serving his nine-year prison term, executive
producer Steve Lee Jones began developing a movie about him and
contacted Kevorkian's longtime attorney, Mayer Morganroth. "This is
a story that no one knows," says Jones. "It is a tale that has many
layers, many emotions. It's controversial, it's epic in many ways,
and it's something that is gripping this country in terms of the
importance of rights."
Jones enlisted writer Adam Mazer, who had his initial meeting with Jack
four days after he was released from prison in June 2007. Mazer made
several trips to Michigan, interviewing Kevorkian over several weeks,
as well as interviewing many of the people involved in the story,
among them Neal Nicol, one of Jack's oldest friends, and various
family members of the patients that Jack assisted. "Jack had 130
patients," explains Mazer. "That's 130 really compelling, emotional
stories to be told. Of course, we couldn't show them all in our film,
but we show a few that give us a real sense of who these people were
and why they came to Jack for his help."
One of the people closest to Kevorkian during the ten-year period
depicted in the film was attorney Geoffrey Fieger, who provided legal
counsel and representation pro bono for years, maintaining that Jack's
legal woes were a civil rights issue and not subject to charge. It
seems unlikely that Jack could have paid legal fees anyway, as he
himself never charged a patient for his services and paid for all
the materials necessary for the procedures.
When Jones called Fieger to interview him about his experiences with
Jack, the attorney hung up on him, just as he had done on the 20
or so previous occasions when "Hollywood types," as Fieger refers
to them, called to solicit his participation in Kevorkian-themed
projects. He hung up on Jones several more times until the filmmaker
assured him he was the real deal. Notes Fieger, "I was very rude to
him until he convinced me that he had a sensitivity to the story,
that he understood, that he cared and that he wasn't going to portray
Jack's story in an exaggerated, phony manner."
Fieger credits writer Mazer with synthesizing a lot of the information
and details that Fieger shared with him into an accurate and effective
script that was very close to the issues. "I thought the script
was magnificent, and I knew in the hands of good actors and a good
director, you could do some amazing things with it," he says.
Al Pacino, who portrays Kevorkian, finds the title of the film
appropriate, observing, "Jack Kevorkian is a person you think you
know. But at the end of the story, you find yourself saying, 'He's
different than I would have thought he would be.' And that's what I
found out as an actor throughout all my research - that this guy is
much different than his image. Hopefully, this comes across in the
movie, because this acknowledgment is really overdue for Jack."
Danny Huston, like Pacino, portrayed a character who is still very
much alive. "I felt somewhat duty-bound towards Geoffrey Fieger,"
he admits. "He's still an attorney, he's still running a business
and he may go back into politics at some point. So I didn't want
to do him an injustice. He's a larger-than-life character with a
wonderfully large sense of self that you can't help but explore. But
my translation of his character was done with the best of intentions."
Brenda Vaccaro, who plays Margo, Kevorkian's beloved sister and
emotional rock, credits her Italian heritage and sense of family as a
helpful tool in understanding the influence of the Armenian matriarch.
"Here was this woman who was completely devoted and saw the genius
in her brother," explains Vaccaro. "She spent her life - every waking
moment - taking care of him and making life easier, helping him find
the direction and keeping him calm and on the straight line."
Kevorkian also came to share an unlikely bond with Janet Good, head of
the Hemlock Society in Michigan, who is portrayed in the film by Susan
Sarandon. Says Sarandon, "She was interested in this issue because
she had a mother that suffered for a long, long time in a nursing home.
But she was Catholic, and that was really interesting; she was
Catholic, but she was pro-choice. She stood up for women's rights and
employees' rights and was married and had a bunch of kids - not at
all what you think of as your urban guerilla activist kind of person."
Completing the circle of friends was Neal Nicol, who was a medical
technician when he met the doctor and became a devoted follower and
trusted friend. Says John Goodman, who portrays Nicol, "Neal served
as a support for Kevorkian as Jack tried to help these dying people
shift to another dimension. He videotaped the pre-procedure interviews,
set up the equipment for Jack and helped him get supplies, which Jack
paid for out of his own pocket."
Says the real-life Neal Nicol, "I think Jack Kevorkian was a gift to
people. I think he offered a service. He saw a need. The government
ignored it. Medical society ignored it. The church ignored it. He
saw the need, and he filled the need. And once he filled the need,
they all got their hackles up and said, 'You're a bad man.' I can
tell you 130-plus people who'd say he's not a bad man."
Despite the seriousness of the subject matter of euthanasia, director
Levinson was determined not to present a maudlin, issue-oriented film
and credits the actual Kevorkian's quick wit and dry sense of humor
with the levity that found its way into the script.
"There's nothing worse than just making a movie that's just issues,"
explains Levinson. "At some point we have to relate to and connect with
the characters. We have to take the journey with them. And that means
- in almost every situation I've ever been involved with in life -
in serious times there is humor. We are seeing very strong-headed
characters with strong personalities interacting with one another
dramatically and humorously. I think that's an essential part of what
this piece is about."
Commenting on the film, Jack Kevorkian says, "I consider it an honor,
of course. I like the attention and all that, but it's not to the
magnitude it would be if I were younger. When you're older, you've
seen it all and you take more in stride whatever happens."
Examiner.com
http://www.examiner.com/x-4305 3-HBO-Examiner~y2010m4d7-Al-Pacino-stars-as-Dr-Dea th-in-HBOs-You-Dont-Know-Jack
April 8 2010
Al Pacino, who won an Emmy for HBO's "Angels in America," returns to
the small screen to play Dr. Jack Kevorkian in HBO Films' "You Don't
Know Jack."
The film debuts Saturday, April 24 from 9 to 11:15 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.
In 1990, Dr. Jack Kevorkian (aka Dr. Death) astonished the world
as he took the end of life debate head-on with his "Mercy Machine"
and performed his first assisted suicide.
Starring Oscar winner Al Pacino in a film by Oscar winner Barry
Levinson ("Rain Man"), HBO Films' "You Don't Know Jack" is the story of
one man's obsession with challenging the rules by which we live and die
- and his stubborn, heartfelt insistence on breaking the law to do so.
The film also stars Oscar winner Susan Sarandon (Emmy nominee for HBO's
"Bernard and Doris"), Danny Huston (HBO's "John Adams"), Emmy winner
Brenda Vaccaro ("Once Is Not Enough") and Emmy winner John Goodman
("The Big Lebowski").
The film is written by Adam Mazer ("Breach").
Other HBO playdates: April 24 (2:45 a.m.), 25 (5:45 p.m.) and 27 (9:45
a.m., 8:30 p.m.), and May 2 (1:30 p.m., 2:10 a.m.), 5 (11:30 a.m.,
7:15 p.m.), 8 (3:45 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT), 10 (1:00 p.m., 9:00 p.m.),
13 (12:30 a.m.) and 16 (10:30 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: April 29 (10:30 a.m., 9:00 p.m.) and May 9 (11:00 a.m.,
9:05 p.m.), 14 (2:45 p.m.), 19 (5:45 p.m.), 25 (4:15 p.m.) and 31
(11:05 p.m.)
ABOUT THE FILM
"You Don't Know Jack" offers a rare look at the man behind the
sensational headlines, starting with his initial foray into patient
consultations and the media frenzy that ensued. One of the most
polarizing figures in modern American history, Kevorkian (Al Pacino)
and his allies - sister Margo (Brenda Vaccaro), friend and medical
supplier Neal Nicol (John Goodman), Hemlock Society activist Janet Good
(Susan Sarandon), and defense attorney Geoffrey Fieger (Danny Huston)
dedicated themselves to a cause fraught with legal and ethical hurdles,
not to mention the real possibility of long-term imprisonment.
Principal photography was completed in New York, with additional
filming in and around Detroit.
The task of bringing to the screen the behind-the-headlines story of
one of the most controversial, and perhaps most misunderstood public
figures of the modern day fell to an award-winning team of filmmakers
and actors.
"I think a lot of people have the wrong impression about Jack
Kevorkian," says director Barry Levinson. "He only exists through
little sound bites, so there's very little known about the man, his
private life, his relationships, etc. We're not trying to glorify
the character, but we're trying to give a human portrait of the man -
what he was about, how he thought, how he viewed the ethics of it all."
Adds executive producer Lydia Pilcher, "Jack Kevorkian was a lightning
rod for an issue that really is universal and more relevant now than
ever. What we've tried to do in the story is to show all avenues into
the debate. We have the opposition from the religious right and the
disability movement, and the opposition within the medical profession.
We have 70% of the population who supported what Jack was doing, and
of course the patients who considered Jack their Angel of Mercy. For
better or for worse, Jack forced the medical establishment and the
general public to take a hard look at how end of life issues are
managed."
Adds writer Adam Mazer, "I don't think it's about sympathizing or
empathizing with Jack. I think it's about understanding him - the
choices he made, who he was. I think we show a very honest portrayal
of the man - his foibles, his strengths, his weaknesses and his flaws."
Great care was taken to treat the subject matter with dignity and
truthfulness, backed by extensive research and interviews with the
individuals who were involved, and with Jack himself. The fact that
Kevorkian is still very much alive at age 81 made it imperative to
the filmmakers that his story be told with a sense of respect and
responsibility in an honest, unflinching way.
While Kevorkian was serving his nine-year prison term, executive
producer Steve Lee Jones began developing a movie about him and
contacted Kevorkian's longtime attorney, Mayer Morganroth. "This is
a story that no one knows," says Jones. "It is a tale that has many
layers, many emotions. It's controversial, it's epic in many ways,
and it's something that is gripping this country in terms of the
importance of rights."
Jones enlisted writer Adam Mazer, who had his initial meeting with Jack
four days after he was released from prison in June 2007. Mazer made
several trips to Michigan, interviewing Kevorkian over several weeks,
as well as interviewing many of the people involved in the story,
among them Neal Nicol, one of Jack's oldest friends, and various
family members of the patients that Jack assisted. "Jack had 130
patients," explains Mazer. "That's 130 really compelling, emotional
stories to be told. Of course, we couldn't show them all in our film,
but we show a few that give us a real sense of who these people were
and why they came to Jack for his help."
One of the people closest to Kevorkian during the ten-year period
depicted in the film was attorney Geoffrey Fieger, who provided legal
counsel and representation pro bono for years, maintaining that Jack's
legal woes were a civil rights issue and not subject to charge. It
seems unlikely that Jack could have paid legal fees anyway, as he
himself never charged a patient for his services and paid for all
the materials necessary for the procedures.
When Jones called Fieger to interview him about his experiences with
Jack, the attorney hung up on him, just as he had done on the 20
or so previous occasions when "Hollywood types," as Fieger refers
to them, called to solicit his participation in Kevorkian-themed
projects. He hung up on Jones several more times until the filmmaker
assured him he was the real deal. Notes Fieger, "I was very rude to
him until he convinced me that he had a sensitivity to the story,
that he understood, that he cared and that he wasn't going to portray
Jack's story in an exaggerated, phony manner."
Fieger credits writer Mazer with synthesizing a lot of the information
and details that Fieger shared with him into an accurate and effective
script that was very close to the issues. "I thought the script
was magnificent, and I knew in the hands of good actors and a good
director, you could do some amazing things with it," he says.
Al Pacino, who portrays Kevorkian, finds the title of the film
appropriate, observing, "Jack Kevorkian is a person you think you
know. But at the end of the story, you find yourself saying, 'He's
different than I would have thought he would be.' And that's what I
found out as an actor throughout all my research - that this guy is
much different than his image. Hopefully, this comes across in the
movie, because this acknowledgment is really overdue for Jack."
Danny Huston, like Pacino, portrayed a character who is still very
much alive. "I felt somewhat duty-bound towards Geoffrey Fieger,"
he admits. "He's still an attorney, he's still running a business
and he may go back into politics at some point. So I didn't want
to do him an injustice. He's a larger-than-life character with a
wonderfully large sense of self that you can't help but explore. But
my translation of his character was done with the best of intentions."
Brenda Vaccaro, who plays Margo, Kevorkian's beloved sister and
emotional rock, credits her Italian heritage and sense of family as a
helpful tool in understanding the influence of the Armenian matriarch.
"Here was this woman who was completely devoted and saw the genius
in her brother," explains Vaccaro. "She spent her life - every waking
moment - taking care of him and making life easier, helping him find
the direction and keeping him calm and on the straight line."
Kevorkian also came to share an unlikely bond with Janet Good, head of
the Hemlock Society in Michigan, who is portrayed in the film by Susan
Sarandon. Says Sarandon, "She was interested in this issue because
she had a mother that suffered for a long, long time in a nursing home.
But she was Catholic, and that was really interesting; she was
Catholic, but she was pro-choice. She stood up for women's rights and
employees' rights and was married and had a bunch of kids - not at
all what you think of as your urban guerilla activist kind of person."
Completing the circle of friends was Neal Nicol, who was a medical
technician when he met the doctor and became a devoted follower and
trusted friend. Says John Goodman, who portrays Nicol, "Neal served
as a support for Kevorkian as Jack tried to help these dying people
shift to another dimension. He videotaped the pre-procedure interviews,
set up the equipment for Jack and helped him get supplies, which Jack
paid for out of his own pocket."
Says the real-life Neal Nicol, "I think Jack Kevorkian was a gift to
people. I think he offered a service. He saw a need. The government
ignored it. Medical society ignored it. The church ignored it. He
saw the need, and he filled the need. And once he filled the need,
they all got their hackles up and said, 'You're a bad man.' I can
tell you 130-plus people who'd say he's not a bad man."
Despite the seriousness of the subject matter of euthanasia, director
Levinson was determined not to present a maudlin, issue-oriented film
and credits the actual Kevorkian's quick wit and dry sense of humor
with the levity that found its way into the script.
"There's nothing worse than just making a movie that's just issues,"
explains Levinson. "At some point we have to relate to and connect with
the characters. We have to take the journey with them. And that means
- in almost every situation I've ever been involved with in life -
in serious times there is humor. We are seeing very strong-headed
characters with strong personalities interacting with one another
dramatically and humorously. I think that's an essential part of what
this piece is about."
Commenting on the film, Jack Kevorkian says, "I consider it an honor,
of course. I like the attention and all that, but it's not to the
magnitude it would be if I were younger. When you're older, you've
seen it all and you take more in stride whatever happens."