Father Geek here with a bit of uber coolness from the Paris subway... There are some MAJOR spoilers ahead (spoil the mystery type), mostly after a warning Adrien has posted below, I would totally avoid these if you haven't already seen this phantastic, magical, mystical motion picture.

This film made an old horror buff like Father Geek get very excited. Harry and I just love it. By all means catch it on the BIG screen if you possibly can. Annnnnnd if you live out in the boondocks grap a copy of the DVD for sure.

Now here's our off-the-cuff interview from deep beneath the streets of Paris in the former haunts of The Phantom of the Opera...

Adrien here ; has I was getting to my university in Paris, I went through the train station, has usual, but there was something unsusual about that day... It had started very well cause I had downloaded the Star Wars Episode II trailer, and it looked fantactic!

So I'm getting down the stairs to the subway, when I see an interesting face. Interesting meaning that it seemed familiure, taking his coffee. Adding all this up in a glipse of a second, I told myself, HEY! THAT'S CHRISTOPHE GANS !! Cool !!

I mean this is the guys who made "Brotherhood of the Wolves" and "Crying Freeman" !! Our own little Martin Scorcesse when it comes to movie knowledge !! Since I'm not really the type of guy who goes to a known personnality and tchats easely, I continued down the stairs... Then I told myself 'Hey come on now, your a film student, go see him, you might learn something about movies in general...'

So I turned around, and grabbed my balls, and went to see him.

The following will only feature the public side of the story, because he told me stuff like where he lives, etc... So I won't say anything about that, this for two good reasons: first off, it's not correct for his private life, and all second, he told me he knew AICN, and read it sometimes...

Let me just say before I start, in French there are two kinds of spoken languages, the very polite type, and the casual type. Useless to say I was using the polite type but he on the other hand was speaking the casual type, I mean this guys is really nice to people...

The beginning was something like a virgin steping on new grounds: "euh, hi, euh, ... I just wanted to say hi, and tell you how much I love what you do" he of course answered "Thanks" with a big smile than I noticed he was just closing a magasin with "...Woolves" on a page, so I kind of used this as an excuse to start up the conversation.

Adrien.M (me): so I see you're still reading papers about the "Brotherhood..."?

Christophe Gans: Well kind of, the news-stand clerk knows who I am and whenever he sees an article about the movie he tells me about it"

I thought "oh yeah, that's right, the DVD is coming out just now!" (a incredible Triple DVD with a booklike cover...,)

A.M: Oh that's right the DVDs are coming out!?

C.G: Yeah it is, are you going to buy it?

"Am I going to lie to him to please him, or shall I be honest?... Let's go for the honest one..."

A.M: Well... no, I don't think so

C.G: Why? (amused)

A.M: There are parts of the movie that I didn't understand, so it got over the cinematic view I had on it...

C.G: Really? What didn't you like?

SPOILERS

SPOILERS SPOILERS

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

A.M: I don't know how and why Grégoire de Fronsac (LeBihan's character) turns all of a sudden into a ninja type of warrior, I mean where did he learn all this??

C.G: Well, first of all he doen't turn suddenly, he had time to learn it from his brother Mani (Dacascos), plus when Mani dies, he takes all of that knowledge for him, and 'becomes' Mani...

A.M: In a Hong Kong style?

C.G: I guess there are references to the Hong Kong cinema.

A.M: Well absolutely, there are references to Sergio Leone's movies! (he said 'yes' with his head), plus you're the one who supervised the HK Collection Series ! (the HK Collection Series, is a series of something like 50 Hong Kong films that he personnally selected, it goes from Honda's 'Godzilla' to Woo's 'The Killer', passing by Harks' 'The Legend of Zu'...)

C.G: I guess you're right

A.M: What's with that sword?

C.G: That sword really existed, I saw it in an antique store once... I assume it didn't work like the one in the movie, it didn't used to come back and all, and I guess at that time, when a warrior used it once, that was it. Plus I think he got tangled up in it, probably smaking himself with it...

(We both laught)

A.M: What about the beast? Where did it come from?

C.G: Well it's a lion!

A.M: A lion?? the eye seemed more like a wolf ?!

C.G: No it's a lion, it's supposed to be a lion, Jean-François de Morangias (Cassel) brought it back from Africa, plus in the movie, deFronsac says "it's a beast in an arnor", so it's fare to assume that the unground people gave it it's armor... But you know, it's not supposed to be realistic...

A.M: I know, but...

SPOILER ALERT IS NOW LIFTED

C.G: Cause if you want realistic stuff don't watch it, nor my next one "Bob Morane" (The Adventurer ; 2002).

A.M: Yeah, Morane, How is that coming?

C.G: Well as soon as I'll be finished with my coffee, I'll head to the station for a train to Italie, for Pre-Prod.

A.M: Say, you wouldn't need someone to help with the coffees and all on the set, would you??

C.G: Well, sorry but no, since we're shoting in England and in Italie, the law says we need to take people from these countries... Thats why so many movies are made in Roumania and all, thats because, it less expensive.

And That's pretty much all I can decently say about our discusion, after signing a few autographs, he finished his coffee, which he almost hadn't touched, shook my hand, and went off to his occupation... Now I can tell you, with all he told me about 'Brotherhood of the Woolves", and how nice he was with me, I'm going to buys the triple DVD tomorrow...

Adrien.M