This month’s MK3D was so jam-packed that it made our 46th edition the longest running show (so far). All of tonight’s guests have been involved in projects that were shot on Kodak, who are our special supporters!
We began with Here’s The Thing in which Mark exclusively revealed an upcoming screening of Mark Jenkin’s Bait at BFI Southbank, accompanied by a live score from award-winning musician, Gwenno Saunders. Mark also paid tribute to the great actor and producer, Robert Evans, who passed away last month. In cinemas now and on Netflix from Friday (29th November), Mark flagged-up Jérémy Clapin’s brilliant animation, I Lost My Body. Mark also mentioned John Pilger’s new documentary, The Dirty War on the NHS, and reminded that it is the final few days in which you can register to vote! Finally, Mark flagged up his upcoming show at the Royal Albert Hall, ‘A Hollywood Christmas’. This will see Mark and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra perform an array of festive film scores, from the likes of Elf, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Love, Actually.
For Coming Attractions, our first guest was the sublime Lesley Manville, who talked about her new film, Ordinary Love, in which she co-stars with Liam Neeson. Directed by Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn, whose previous work includes Good Vibrations, Ordinary Love charts a middle-aged couple and their journey as Lesley’s character is diagnosed with breast cancer. Mark and Lesley also talked about working with Mike Leigh, and her award-winning performance in Another Year. Mark asked Lesley about her experience of working with Paul Thomas Anderson on her academy-award nominated role in Phantom Thread. Mark ended the interview by urging people to see Ordinary Love, and mentioned Lesley’s upcoming role in The Visit, which opens at the National Theatre early next year.
Next up, the incomparable Edgar Wright took on one of the show’s most well-loved features, Guilty Pleasures. Mark touched on the multitude of brilliant films that Edgar has directed, including Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, Scott Pilgrim v. the World, and Baby Driver. Edgar is currently working on not one, but two, films: a psychological-horror set in central London starring Thomasin McKenzie and Anya Taylor-Joy, called Last Night in Soho, and a documentary about the band, Sparks. Mark revealed we had asked Edgar to choose a film for The Film That Changed My Life, but Edgar sent through six choices (An American Werewolf in London, Raising Arizona, Carrie, The Driver, Evil Dead II, and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly). Instead, Mark focused on Edgar’s guilty pleasure, Michael Winner’s The Sentinel. Edgar adeptly spoke of his complicated love for the film, the trailer of which inspired his own Don’t trailer. Edgar even read aloud from Michael Winner’s autobiography, to share an excruciating anecdote from it.
Mark turned to the audience next for Ask the Audience, and answered questions about which films he is most and least looking forward to seeing in 2020, about Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut, and the recent controversy over Vue’s decision to pull Blue Story.
The brilliant guests just kept on coming, and Maxine Peake was next for The Film That Changed My Life. Mark asked Maxine about her plethora of work, including her latest film Fanny Lye Deliver’d, which premiered at this year’s BFI London Film Festival. Maxine also spoke of her work in The Falling, Gwen, and Funny Cow. She also touched on Lesley Manville’s earlier comments about working with Mike Leigh, and the great experience she had on Peterloo. Mark then turned to Maxine’s choice: John Cassavetes’s Gloria. Expressing her admiration for the great Gena Rowlands, Maxine talked about the kinds of roles on offer for mature actresses.
Our final guest of the night was Dexter Fletcher, actor and director of Caravaggio, Wild Bill, Sunshine on Leith, and Rocketman. Mark congratulated Dexter on the great Rocketman. They talked about Dexter’s early work as an actor, including his role in David Lynch’s The Elephant Man. Mark brought the focus to Dexter’s role in Fernando Trueba’s The Dream of the Mad Monkey – and Dexter raved about the film that changed his world-view, professionally: Emir Kusturica’s Black Cat, White Cat.