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Tom Sizemore is a retired hitman in this thriller that does anything but put you to sleep.

Jeffrey Goodman, director of the thriller The Last Lullaby, bring his love of noir films to the AFI Dallas film festival. Starring Tom Sizemore as an ex-assassin who finds that retirement isn’t exactly what it’s cracked up to be. Instead of tranquility his days are filled with an equal measure of emptiness, boredom and huge dose of loneliness. To top it off, he has a bad case of insomnia. That’s enough to make any hitman cranky. So what’s an assassin to do when his prey turns out to be a beautiful woman?

Q: A Matter of Principal was originally a short story written by the well-respected writer, Max Allan Collins (Road to Perdition). When you first read it – did you instantly visualize its potential?
A:  Yes.  Max’s original short story was extremely cinematic.  It all took place at night, in the snow.  Plus had this wonderful voiceover. Max wrote the Dick Tracy comic strip for many years and is an independent filmmaker himself so his writing is unusually visual.

Q:  But you chose to make it into a short. And it did quite well on the festival circuit, winning quite a few awards including Best Dramatic Short at the DIY Film Festival (Los Angeles) and Best Short Film at the Cedar Rapids Film Festival. At what point did you decided to take it a step further – more of a leap really, to your first feature-length film?
A:  When I finished the short film, it was the sixth short film that I had directed.  And quite involved for a short.  We shot on 16 mm.  It was 19 minutes long and all took place at night, in the snow.  I thought if I could pull this off then I was ready to take the leap to making my first feature.  And that was always the plan, I guess.  Get to a point with my shorts where I felt seasoned enough to move into the bigger leagues.
And then the sequence of the next set of events I’m a bit unclear on now.  I can’t remember if it was Max or I who first said, “how about expanding what we’ve already done into a feature-length idea?”  But, anyway one of us said that, the other thought it was a good idea, and we began a dialogue about how we would make that happen.  Eventually, we got to a place where Max and I were both really happy, and Max went off and wrote the script.

Q:  Why the name change to The Last Lullaby?
A:  Without giving away anything in the movie, the original title “A Matter of Principal” was mainly there because of the twist at the end of the short story.  That twist is still in THE LAST LULLABY but happens in the first ten or so minutes and really isn’t relevant enough for the rest of the full-length movie to remain as its title.

Q: Tom Sizemore was not your first choice to play the lead, a literate hit-man with a bad case of insomnia. Who else was on your short list?
A:  That’s actually not true.  Tom has always been on my short list.  I am a huge fan of the film HEAT.  His work is tremendous in that, and I also really admired his work in SAVING PRIVATE RYAN. 
Certain qualities were really important to me when it came to finding the right person to play Price (Tom’s character).  One thing I really liked about Max’s script and his writing in general was that it was more rural/heartland noir than your typical urban/coastal noir.  Most noir is set in the big cities and usually either in LA, San Francisco, Chicago, or New York.  Also most noir is usually ethnic.  Italian or Irish.
What jumped out at me about Max’s script and original story was that it was set in Anywhere Midwest USA and that the lead character was somebody you could pass in the street without noticing.  I just felt that these qualities made it fresh and different from most other noir I had read or seen. 
Given that all of these things about Price were important to me (could pass as Midwestern, wasn’t ethnic-looking), it really left me with a VERY short list of people who would work in the part.  Then, you add that he needed to be middle age and believable as a retired hitman, and the list became minuscule. 

Q: I think he’s perfectly cast, so for whatever reason, I’m glad he got the role. I hope you didn’t have to bust him out of jail/rehab for the role?  I think he relishes his bad-boy image, but it could make it tough for him to get cast. Did his presence boost your insurance premiums?
A: Thank you.  Yeah, I think Tom is really wonderful here, as well. No, we didn’t have to do anything crazy to work with him.  And were actually able to insure him just fine.

Q:  Sizemore exhibits a perfect blend of intensity and composure. Of course, he’s played hit-men before; did that make it harder or easier for you to direct him?
A:  Tom’s intense.  There’s no doubt about that.  But I think what made it most intimidating for me was just how many great directors he’s worked with.  I mean, his resume is pretty incredible.  He’s made films with Steven Spielberg, Michael Mann, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, Lawrence Kasdan, Oliver Stone, Kathryn Bigelow, and Carl Franklin.  I just knew every day that I was working with someone who knew a lot more about film than I did and had worked with guys far more seasoned than I am.  But, ultimately, Tom trusted my abilities, and we fortunately shared a very similar vision for who Price was and why Tom was the perfect guy to bring him to life.
I remember, when we first met, I’d been working with Max’s character by this point for eight years or so, and Tom went into an explanation about who this guy was, and I thought, “man, that was amazing.”  I mean, Tom articulated Price and who he was better in those five minutes than I ever had in my eight years of working with this material.  I wish I had that on tape.  Both David Koplan (the producer) and I were in the room and blown away. 

Q:  Sasha Alexander is not a household name (yet). She’s lovely as Sarah. Did you find her through a conventional audition process? Or are you a fan of NCIS?
A:  My casting directors, Emily Schweber and Jennifer Levy, first brought Sasha to my attention.  Her audition was extremely strong and then she and I met for coffee one day and really connected.  I could tell she would make an amazing Sarah.  Which, like Price, was not an easy role to cast.
Apparently when David Lynch auditions you don’t come in and read for him.  He walks a block with you, just chatting and then tells you goodbye.  I guess there’s a lot to be said about whether a director and their actors connect and seeing, if on a human level, you can work with each other.

Q:  I read that the film was shot in Louisiana. You’re from Shreveport, correct?
A:  Yeah, born and raised there.

Q:  I think the location augments the theme of isolation and loneliness. Minden, LA is hot – several films have been shot there recently. Is Louisiana’s growing film industry trying to overtake Dallas as the Third Coast?
A:  Thank you.  It was really amazing for me to make a film in and around my hometown.  It’s the first time I’ve ever shot in Louisiana.  All of my other shorts were made in California.  And I think that’s one of the beauties of LULLABY is being able to show places that we maybe have never seen before on film. 
It’s funny I first came back to Shreveport in January of ‘05.  Previously, for the last seven years, I had been living in Los Angeles.  And before that I had been in college in St. Louis and had spent a couple of years living in France.
When I came back to Shreveport in ‘05, there was already a great deal of film production happening in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, because of the aggressive tax incentives the state had passed in the middle of ‘02.  But none of this film activity had made its way up yet to Shreveport, which is in the northern part of the state.  In fact, when I was raising money for LULLABY, I was selling myself as the guy that was going to bring this burgeoning new industry in the state to my hometown.  And, I was on my way to becoming that guy.
But then the hurricanes hit in late ‘05 and made it impossible for people to continue filming in Baton Rouge and New Orleans.  And so almost immediately after the hurricanes, production companies discovered Shreveport, the third largest city in Louisiana.  And now the activity in and around Shreveport is staggering.  Just in the last two and a half years, the following movies have filmed there:  THE GUARDIAN, PREMONITION, MAD MONEY, FACTORY GIRL, WELCOME HOME ROSCOE JENKINS, THE GREAT DEBATERS, HAROLD & KUMAR 2, THE MIST, MR. BROOKS, and right now the Judd Apatow produced THE YEAR ONE starring Jack Black and Michael Cera.  It’s pretty amazing for a town that really had never seen a major movie production prior to the hurricanes.   
Are we trying to become the Third Coast?
I know that the area is definitely very excited to have this new industry and is trying to do all that it can to sustain it.  But, the people in Shreveport are also trying not to be naive and think that the film industry will definitely be there forever.  They know that the industry has had short stints like this in other cities and then picked up and moved on as soon as another place made a more attractive offer.
Shreveport’s created some infrastructure and is trying to grow its local crew base in hopes of being able to withstand challenges from other states or even other countries.  They’re also hoping to establish an indigenous industry, like Austin has been able to do. 

Q:  Water plays a big role in the film. It’s obviously cathartic for Price (Sizemore) on many levels. Did he need a swim coach? He’s got a great stroke!
A:  His freestyle is solid.  But if you ever get the chance, you should really see him do the butterfly.

Q: The film is very sexy, without any nudity, just some tank tops and bathing suits. Why not a gratuitous sex scene? Everybody else does it….
A:  I guess I like the power of suggestion.  One of my favorite moments of all time in any movie, and I know this is obscure, is in Robert Bresson’s AU HASARD BALTHAZAR.  We see a car racing down the highway, slowly lose control, and then the screen suddenly cuts to black and we only hear it crash rather than see it.  Ever since first seeing that movie, I think I became interested in the power of suggestion that the cinema can have, whether it is through the use of sound or depriving the audience from seeing certain things that they might be expecting.

Q:  You took on the role of chief cook & bottle washer. How long did it take you to raise the money for the production? Did you at least give the investors small roles?
A:  It took me about a year to raise the money.  I spent a few months putting together the business plan and then began cold-calling people to see if they would meet with me.  It’s great. I have 40+ investors and every single one is from the Shreveport area, with the exception of one investor who came in at the $50,000 level.  They were really great about giving me creative control and none of them really asked for roles, believe it or not.

Q:  Did the scene that took place in the barber shop come from the short story or was it written in to give a plug to Valerian? I heard it works! But not as good as a clear conscience and love. Ask Tony Soprano.
A:  That scene actually was something that was added when we expanded the short into a feature.  Should I contact Valerian for product placement money?  I’ve never actually tried it.  We just thought it was important to highlight the fact that Price’s insomnia was still there, even though he had gone back to work temporarily.  That short scene seemed an efficient way to convey that. Plus it gave us an opportunity to show Price and his world and routine one more time.

Q:  Your love of the “film noir” genre shines thru – what’s your next project? Please don’t tell me it’s a comedy! That’s not to say that there weren’t a few humorous lines (especially his response in the diner to the question, “Do you have children?”)
A:  My next project is about a young boy who sees a murder take place.  The murderers find out that he is a witness and come after him, and it soon becomes this movie about a young boy on the run.  I guess you could safely say that it’s not a comedy.

Q:  So tell me – what did happen to the dog??? Us dog lovers want to know!
A:  He survived.  Last I heard he was with Price.  No, Sarah.  Or was it both of them?

Q:  And one last comment, would you please buy Ominous Figure (Ray McKinnon) a bottle of shampoo!
A:  After his time at the clearing, I’m not sure he’ll be needing one.

The Last Lullaby

Target 10 Narrative Feature Competition
(USA, 2008, 93 mins)
35mm
World Premiere

Directed By: Jeffrey Goodman
Screenwriters: Max Allan Collins, Peter Biegen
Cast: Tom Sizemore, Sasha Alexander
Producer: David Koplan
Cinematographer: Richard Rutkowski
Editor: Philip Harrison
Music: Ben Lovett

Price, a former hit man, is struggling to cope with retirement. He left the assassination business to live the “easy life.” However, retirement arrived with its own agenda. It was not the instant peace and calm that Price expected. Rather, it was emptiness, boredom, and, worst of all, restlessness.

The Last Lullaby plummets Price back into his old life and forces him into a corner from which he may never escape. Price’s old ways no longer work for him when his heart opens, and he finds life beyond his profession. The tension finally boils, as Price must decide to close himself off again or open himself up to a world beyond his control.

Screening Times:

Monday, March 31st 10:15pm
Northpark 7

Friday, April 4th 4:15pm
Magnolia 4

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