THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY

"It wasn´t easy because Guy Hamilton is not a character that initiates a lot. And you´re on from the beginning to the end....It´s hard doing that puppet sort of part without being basically boring."

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In 1982 Gibson reteamed with Gallipoli´s director, Peter Weir, for another war drama, THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY. The film was the first to pair Mel with a hot Hollywood actress, in the person of ALIEN star Sigourney Weaver.




The Year of Living dangerously is set in Indonesia during the downfall of dictator Sukarno, in 1965.
Mel portrayed Australian Broadcasting Service reporter Guy Hamilton, arriving in Djakarta in 1965 at all costs to make a name for himself on his first overseas assignment. Indonesia at the time was a tinderbox threatening to ignite into a bloody civil war.
Hamilton becomes increasingly involved with the political turmoil of the country, and meets elegant British embassy attaché Jill Bryant (played by American actress Sigourney Weaver).
The two fall in love but Hamilton must choose between swashbuckling journalistic adventures and his passionate relationship with Jill.



The third major character in the film is a photographer, Billy Kwan, who provides Guy with many local contacts, helping him scoop the opposition. Kwan was played by American actress Linda Hunt, who went on to win an Academy Award for best supporting actress in the part.
While filming in the Philippines, which stood in for Indonesia, the cast and crew truly were living on the edge of danger.
Although everyone was assigned bodyguards, they were subject to repeated dead threats from Muuslim Philippine radicals, who thought the movie would insult their religion.
After a five-week period of shooting in Manila, the production moved to Australia for the final week of filming.

"I worried. I wanted to leave right away, after the first phone call. I´ve got a family, a real life, and this was only a movie. I mean, there´s nothing I won´t to do on screen to put food on the table for my family. But when it comes to my own life, I´m a pretty careful guy."


THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY


The 1983 Peter Weir film was lauded by critics upon release but failed to make a significant amount at the box office. Gibson´s subtle performance did not go unnoticed, either. "Gibson, in his most demanding role to date, shows he´s capable of achieving just about everything on screen," declared one critic.





"The important thing is to have job satisfaction. I want to keep doing different things. I want to keep growing and getting better at what I do. it´s what keeps me going."




THE THREATS

"The phone would ring and this bloke speaking broken English would ask: "How brave are you Mr. Gibson?" I´d say "What do you want to know that for?" Then would come the threats - always something to do with bombs and death. The threats were real. They´d come in like clockwork and the phone would be snatched off me by the bodyguard, who would start jabbering down the line in tagalog, the native tongue. Then he would slam the phone down and tell me not to worry."
Mel Gibson
Mel Gibson
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PETER LINDSAY WEIR
21 August 1944
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
His characters often interact with technology, especially television, in ways that harm them or surprise the viewer, e.g. the church big screen TV in Mosquito Coast, The (1986); the living room TV and TV control center in Truman Show, The (1998); radio playing in the barn in Witness (1985), and so on.
Weir is famous for making well-known comedy and genre actors into credible dramatic actors such as Harrison Ford, Robin Williamsand Jim Carrey.
His films very often deal with people, who find themselves in surroundings, where they do not fit in (e.g. a Philadelphia Cop among the Amish or a progressive teacher on a strictly conservative school).
He was a part of the movment dubbed the "Australian New Wave" by the press. They were a group of filmmakers and performers who emerged from Down Under at about the same time in the early 1980's and found work in other parts of the world. Other members included actors Mel Gibson and Judy Davis and directors George Miller and Gillian Armstrong.

"Hamilton is a hybrid like me, belonging to two cultures but really belonging to none. He´s the sort of fellow who goes in boots and all. He takes chance. He gets off living dangerously."

CREDITS

  • Metro-Goldwin-Mayer presents "The year of living dangerously"
  • Director.- Peter Weir
  • Producer.- James McElroy
  • Screenplay.- David Williamson, Peter Weir
  • Photography.- Russell Boyd
  • Editor.- Bill Anderson
  • Music.- Maurice Jarre
  • Release Date: 1982 (USA)
  • Cast: Mel Gibson, Sigourney Weaver, Linda Hunt, Bill Kerr, Michael Murphy.
  • Country: USA/AUSTRALIA
  • Language: English
  • Color: Color

"American actors had tons of energy. It was as if they got charged up a bit more than I´ve ever seen somebody do in Australia. That´s their way, The american way of doing things."

"We (Sigourney and Mel) had a close friendship. It´s very difficult to work with someone you don´t get on with."




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