He turned down Airplane.
He’s the legend behind The Howling, Piranha and so many more.
Without further ado…
What do you remember aboutThe Movie Orgy?
And when was the last time you got to see it?
There was never more than the single 16mm print, with various film stocks spliced together.
We billed it as a 2001 Splice Odyssey.
Susan Sontag had just written herEssay on Camp, so we called it Camp Movie Night.
And some relief that were past them!
How do you feel about them remaking it?
Its already been remade once, for Showtime.
Why theyd want to do it again, other than to re-use the title, is beyond me.
How do you feel about it now?
John Sayles was a tremendous asset.
He was also writingAlligatorat the time.
Im still convinced one of our dream sequences ended up in their film and vice versa.
How was working onPolice Squad?
Did people get what the show was trying to do?
And how did you come to be involved?
I knew the Zuckers from second unit onRock N Roll High SchoolandKentucky Fried Movieand had turned downAirplane dont ask!
When they gotPolice Squad!
going, they asked me to do the second one.
It only lasted six episodes, two of which I directed.
It was lots of fun to do and was the first thing I ever directed on a studio lot.
I prefer the TV show to the laterNaked Gunmovies.
So how did you come to be involved withGremlins?
Suddenly my picture was in Time Magazine!
The last three months of shooting was only Gremlins!
It really did get maddening after awhile.
And as I said, the studio wasnt especially supportive.
And was there a distinctive decision to edge it more towards comedy than horror?
I was pretty burned out onGremlinsby the time they asked for a sequel, so I said no thanks.
I had in mind to do a kind of HellzapoppinGremlinsmovie as a social satire where anything can happen.
It was very satisfying.Youve said in the past that the aim withGremlins 2was to stop there being aGremlins 3.
Is that right, and if so, how did that shape your approach to the film?
The title is too well known not to exploit again.
Those movies were defined by the limitations of what was possible to do with the puppets.
InnerSpace, again, is a terrific film.
Do you get a feeling during production when things are going well?
It was funny to me but you cant help second-guessing yourself in a situation like that.
And are you generally satisfied with the way that your work turns out?
Thats true up to about ten years ago, when the interference factor ramped up all over Hollywood.
DVDs have opened up a treasure trove my generation could only dream about.
I loved the filmMatinee.
It feels like a love story to 50s cinema.
How hard was it to get a film like that off the ground?
It wasnt an especially commercial movie, but it opened wide anyhow and faded fast.
Is cinema crying out for more Lawrence Woolsey characters?
Were you under pressure withSmall Soldiersto deliver a straight kids movie?
Because theres some quite edgy material in there, that it seemed much of its audience failed to grasp?
Too late, as it turned out, and there are elements of both approaches in there.
Just before release it was purged of a lot of action and explosions.
Whats the story of you andThe Phantom?
I developed the script with the late Jeff Boam, who wroteInnerSpace, as a kind of a spoof.
Was it a love of Chuck Jones work that led to you taking onLooney Tunes: Back In Action?
Yes, I did it for Chuck.
The longest year and a half of my life.
Just how tricky is it in the modern day to mix in live action and animation?
Do you think there are too many digital tricks in the box that modern day moviemakers rely on now?
Is it hurting innovation?
Its actually hard to keep up with all the innovations if you dont work steadily.
Is television more where the risk taking is taking place now?
You seemed to have embraced the small screen with as much enthusiasm as you have the movies?
Im not sure the risk is taking place much of anywhere right now.
Theres a lot of money riding on everything, including TV.
Theres still nothing quite like seeing a film with an audience, however.
How did you get involved with theMasters of Horrorseries?
Was it nice to be brought on board?
Were there different challenges involved in making a one-hour standalone TV episode than in making a movie?
Both your episodes HomecomingandThe Screwfly Solution highlights of their respective seasons!
Do you think horror movies can be used to make strong political arguments?
I believe all movies are political, whether intended or not.
Its one of the reasons why these genres have outlasted others.
The site began with the fact that Id been collecting trailers for years and had nowhere to share them.
Larry Cohen surprised us with a devastating critique of HitchcocksMarnie, and Michael Lehmann really didnt likeEasy Rider.
Are there any jobs youve turned down you wish you could go back and do?
But there are some jobs I didnt get that I would have liked to.
No, Im not gonna tell you which ones they were!
What advice would you give someone coming into the industry now?
Make your own movies on HD or DVcam.
Dont wait for this dinosaur industry to embrace you.
What next for Joe Dante?
I cant imagine…
Joe Dante, thank you very much!
Related interviews at Den of Geek:Zach Galligan;Dee Wallace
