INTERVIEW: OLIVER RALFE, DIRECTOR: “JOURNEY OF THE CHILDMEN: THE MIGHTY BOOSH ON TOUR”
On Friday June 4 2010 I attended a screening of Journey of the Childmen: The Mighty Boosh on Tour at Los Angeles’ Cinefamily/Silent Movie Theatre - read my ***1/2 review of the British documentary here. Before the film’s encore screening at Long Beach’s Art Theatre the following Sunday, I met with the film’s director, Oliver Ralfe, over beers and shrimp enchiladas at Long Beach’s best place for Mexican food, Lola’s Mexican Cuisine.
Was the Cinefamily show your first screening in the States?
There was one at Brookline, Massachusetts. The Cinefamily screening was sold out! It was amazing! The crowd was really positive - they laughed a lot, no one left. It was great! Do you know the Cinefamily well?
Yeah! I’ve been out there quite a few times. I signed on to be a member the week they opened - I’d definitely still be a member if I still lived in L.A.
It’s a fucking great place! I really had an amazing…I’m gonna go up there tomorrow. I love those guys!! Hadrian’s a great guy.
Their video store is fantastic too. They have a great thing going. They put on some fantastic screenings.
I love the sort of anarchic energy of that place. It’s sort of like a film-as-rock-show vibe. There’s an amazing scene here for cinema. You have the Egyptian as well, playing older films. We actually used to have something similar in the UK.
How was the Brookline show?
I wasn’t there. They told me it went well. It was an independent cinema club type thing. It’s weird - it’s been sort of like an ad hoc theatrical release.
Is the film still a work in progress?
A little bit. I want to put a little more animation in it. Something dreamy.
I really dug the opening titles. Who did those?
I did. I did the drawings, and they were animated by a guy named Adam Leary. A really talented guy. He’s worked on the Boosh show. He does the blue screen work.
Were you surprised that the Cinefamily screening was sold out? And that there’s such an interest in the Boosh in the States?
The following here really surprises me. They have quite a following. Because they belong to that sort of…freestyle sort of, Spike Milligan tradition. There’s also a lot of English sort of - like - Julian’s character is very Tony Hancock. Quite traditional English kind of comedy as well.
I’m sorry, who’s Tony Hancock.
He was this comedian from the 50’s, 60’s. He had a show called “Hancock’s Half Hour.” He played this frustrated bank clerk. The Boosh is sort of traditional in this way, but sort of in this…surrealist landscape.
Your first film was “The Ballad of AJ Weberman,” about the Bob Dylan-obsessed writer who dug through Dylan’s trash and coined the word “Garbology.” What brought you to that project?
Well I love Dylan. I’ve loved him since I was 14. The guy I did that film with, James Bluemel, is also a big Dylan fan. We really wanted to make a feature documentary about this man - we were both inspired by these cinematic documentaries about characters, like “Grey Gardens” and “American Movie.” We managed to contact Weberman in New York - we just went out, with a camera, to see what would happen. We shot Weberman and all his strange sort of friends - all these oddball characters. We went out three times over a year and a half. It got into Slamdance, and won an award at the British Independent Film Awards. It won the “Raindance Award,” which is for films with shoestring budgets. The quality of dialogue that he and his friends provided - these wisecracking, New York oddballs.
And then - Boosh.
Noel and Julian - I’ve been friends with them for a long time. I’ve been on their show myself, and do music with them. But they also know about my film-making, and they liked “Ballad of AJ Weberman,” so they wanted to get someone to film the tour, and they asked me to do it. So I ran with that opportunity. And I got to take a free hand - they’ve had no involvement with the editing.
How large was your crew?
Me.
Okay that totally makes sense. Because while I was watching the film, there are all these moments…these tight moments, like on a bus, or in the back seat of a car, where I couldn’t imagine more than one other person squeezing in there with the guys. Which made it all the more intimate.
Exactly. I could have had, you know, a couple of people with me - it wouldn’t have been hard to organize - but at the end of it I thought, that will intrude on the intimacy I could have with them, whereby they could be relaxed and open. Because we’re friends. And I had a very non-questioning approach to it - I never interviewed them. Much more just sort of…be there, get in on a conversation. I kind of like that - it provided for a lot of quiet shots that I rather liked. If they didn’t want to say anything, I could just film them, not saying anything.
There’s a fantastic shot where Julian just stands on the bow of a ship, looking out quietly, his hands sort of clenched to the boat. And he just doesn’t move or say anything.
Julian didn’t want to fly, so I went with him. Maybe what was going through his mind then was, “What’s Oli filming!?”
How many total hours of footage do you have?
I think about fifty. Forty or fifty.
How well did you know Rich Fulcher before the tour?
I got to know Noel and Julian earlier, and then I got to know Rich. I’d done some bits of filmming with him too.
Is he always “on” ?
…Yes. Yes. Generally speaking, Rich is always on. And that’s sort of valuable material, when you’re looking for things for the film. He brings a different sort of energy to it. I was quite kind of careful as to where to place those bits of Rich into the film. They’re sort of regular, but not so much that they drown anything.
Rich spent the entirety of the tour with the group. Since Noel and Julian have had this relationship for so long, was there ever any sort of…clash of personalities because of this sudden four-month intimacy with such a new character? There were scenes where it seemed like Noel was staring at Rich like he was some sort of…strange space alien he was still sort of trying to figure out. He’d get this bemused smile - like, “This guy’s funny, but I just don’t get him…”
I think…yeah, I think some of that may have been playing up to the camera a bit. There’s a little element to which the guys sort of go into character when they’re not filming. They just love Rich, and they find him hilarious and fascinating.
Fulcher reminds me of what might have happened if Sam Kinison and Divine had a kid.
I’ve laughed more than I’ve ever laughed with Rich. I’m quite proud of the show he did at the Cinefamily - he’s a very funny man.
Were all the venues in the UK receptive to you shooting at their locations?
Well truth is we never asked for any sort of permission. The general rule, in the UK at least, is…you can shoot in any environment you want to, as long as you can’t tell where you are. Backstage. You have to be very careful what you shoot out front.
In another film, we would have seen more of what’s going on onstage. There were all these moments in your film where one thinks, okay now we’re going to see some stage footage, and more often than not, you cut away and we’re back on the bus, moving on to the next gig. I thought this was very smart, and novel.
I really saw this as a “road movie.” I did put in a little stage footage, because it seemed appropriate to, especially at the end. But I spaced those little moments out.
I truly appreciated that this was much more of a portrait of these artists, less about the shows themselves. Though I would imagine you’re going to run into some fans who will criticize the film for not including more Boosh material.
Yeah, it’s definitely a portrait. It was just about…these men dealing with the tour. Dealing with this situation.
I love that moment where Noel is expressing his frustration about sandwiches. He’s sick of sandwiches. The film already had a sort of “Spinal Tap” vibe to it, but that just took it to the next level.
I’m glad you liked that! I think they were a bit worried…they’re worried that the film is basically just them complaining about sandwiches.
Those moments just add to the insanity of the whole thing. There’s this whole rhythm to it that I imagine can get sort of exhausting. Put on a show, jump on a van, get to next venue, sandwiches, put on show, go to next venue, sandwiches. Being along for the ride, how was that experience for you?
Oh absolutely. It’s repetitive. Even the variety of new faces is repetitive. It’s strange how something so incredible can start to become routine.
If you knew nothing about Boosh, you’d really think you were watching a movie about rock stars. A rock band. They’re treated like rock stars, they dress like rock stars - well, Noel Fielding dresses like a rock star. Julian dresses like -
Julian looks and dresses like a very elegant coal miner.
I like that. A very elegant coal miner. He definitely seemed a little more subdued than the rest of the guys. At least in the film.
Julian was sort of holding it together on the tour. He was sort of the Quiet Captain.
it was so fascinating to see the level of fandom - these Beatles-esque shots of little girls screaming and crying and snapping pictures.
Yeah, actually the fans in the film get some of the biggest laughs. In an affectionate way, I feel. Yeah, I was quite…I had never seen that before either. I know them as friends, so you’re slightly oblivious to the fact that they’re pretty big. I had never seen it myself.
The impression I got from watching the film is that the guys are still pretty taken aback by it as well. Is that right?
Yeah. Though on their previous tour they were pretty big, so they weren’t totally shocked. I think they sort of knew what was coming.
Is there a lot of improv in their shows?
There’s some, but you know, it’s quite choreographed. The scale of it - there’s this staging, and these props. So, there’s very little room for it. The banter would vary. The delivery of lines would vary.
I’d be curious to know how you’d pair an act with The Boosh. Were there ever any opening acts?
No. No, it was always just their act.
How do you define “Boosh” ?
…I don’t know how I can define it. I just think, like, Noel and Julian are incredibly talented, charismatic, funny, and creative people. In a broad sense. They’re very creative people. They’re artists, really. Julian’s a great musician, Noel’s an artist - even Julian can draw very well. I think…ultimately, they’re original. You can generally say that Boosh is original. I don’t think that many things are original - they might be very good, within a certain format or genre, but they’re not necessarily groundbreaking. Whereas I think Boosh has truly been groundbreaking.
Has the film been released in the UK?
Not yet. We’ve had some small screenings. We may have a small theatrical run in October in advance of the DVD release in November.
Where can people keep posted?
www.journeyofthechildmen.co.uk. We also have a Twitter. All the screenings and stuff will be there.
Do you have any more screenings lined up?
On the 12th I’ll be showing it in New York at a place called 92Y Tribeca. A sort of arts space.
How about the Alamo Drafthouse?
They contacted me. They want to show it. Good place?
Oh God yeah!! Absolutely good place. Austin’s got a fantastic independent film and music scene.
My band has played in Austin.
What’s the name of your band?
Ralfeband.
Where can people hear you?
We have a website - www.ralfeband.com - and we’re on Myspace as well. We did the soundtrack to “Bunny and the Bull,” which was directed by Paul King, who directs Boosh. And Julian and Noel are in it as well.
I’m sure you’re still in promotion and editing, but do you have anything lined up next?
I want to do another film. Part of me wants to do a drama. Something more cinematic, more…not to do with any pop culture thing. Something completely different. Maybe something a bit more personal. Atmospheric. Quite like, sort of, Antonioni. Quite poetic sort of cinema.
- Logan Crow, speaking with Oliver Ralfe
Lola’s Mexican Cuisine, Long Beach CA
Sunday, June 6, 2010
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