Very solid interview with Oliver Stone by Matt Zoller Seitz on his new film Savages. I really liked this back and forth:
Seitz: There’s a scuzzy little character moment between John Travolta’s DEA character and Del Toro that’s like something out of seventies drama. Lado drops in on Dennis. Dennis has just made himself a grilled cheese and tomato sandwich. Lado takes the sandwich away from Dennis, but before he eats it, he takes the tomato slices off and tosses them away.
Stone: [Laughs.] Yeah, that’s Benicio. Only Benicio could come up with a detail like that. He’s that way, very instinctive. To take the sandwich was probably enough, but Benicio pushes it further and makes it funny.
Seriously, having seen Savages over last weekend, Del Toro just rocks. That little Travolta/Del Toro scene was easily better and more natural than pretty much anything either actor has done for years. Overall, Savages is more than anything else a great showcase for 90s talent making a comeback: Travolta, Del Toro and Salma Hayek all nail their roles.