Spy Game: When Brad Pitt and Robert Redford recounted their reunion in Première

In 2001, the actor and director of A River Runs Through It were brought together by Tony Scott.

Directed by Tony Scott, Spy Gamewill return this Friday evening on Chérie 25. This thriller marks the cinema reunion of Brad Pitt with Robert Redford who had directed him in And in the middle there flows a riverin 1992. Shot between Great Britain, the United States, Morocco, Budapest and even Prague, the feature film, one of the suicide bombing sequences was modified just before its release, following the attacks of September 11, 2001, enjoyed great success at the cinema with 143 million dollars collected worldwide.

Gripping and rhythmic thrillerSpy Game worth the detour for the Pitt/Redford duo but also for the production of Tony Scott. “In a style that is always dynamic and increasingly controlled, he twirls his camera,” wrote First upon its release.

Above all, the duo agreed to be on the cover of magazine n°298, in December 2001, on the occasion of its 25th anniversary. During the interview conducted by Christian Jauberty, they of course talked about their reunion, emphasizing their mutual respect. Brad notably mentioned two cult works by Redford, Butch Cassidy and the KidAnd People like the othersas having had a huge influence on him, the first being “one of the films that most marked my childhood and made me want to make films”and the second, presented by the actor as “a big slap”. His sidekick confirmed for his part that he would have liked to hire Brad Pitt again sooner, to The Legend of Bagger Vancereleased in 2000 at the cinema, but as the star was not free at that time, he finally hired another American actor, Matt Damon.

Robert Redford’s career interview

Here is the extract from the interview where the two artists talk about their complicity, as well as their resemblance:

First: Everyone is going to talk about the chemistry between you two in Spy Game. How do you feel about it?

Brad Pitt: It was great to be together on the same side of the camera. We can see it as a father-son relationship, but I prefer to think that it is a mentor-protege relationship. I don’t know if we can talk about complicity, but there was a familiarity between us from the start which, I think, brings something to certain important moments in the film. On the other hand, I grew up with this image of Robert playing characters who have all the answers. This caused me some problems for the scenes where we are supposed to oppose each other. Even when it was in the script, I had a hard time not telling him: ‘Yes sir, okay, you’re right.’ Robert is an extraordinarily precise actor. I’m probably more instinctive. I like more to see what can happen in the moment. But he was patient with me…

Robert Redford: A lot of things were said about the two of us. That we look alike, that he’s another version of me but younger… When we worked together on And in the middle there flows a riverit was an actor-director relationship. At the time, I didn’t hire him because of a possible resemblance or the color of his eyes and hair. I chose him because it seemed to me that I could embody a certain prototype of an ideal young American, with a darker underlying side linked to the way in which the character perceives the world… Maybe it’s a role that I myself could have played 25 years earlier, but that’s it… Nine years have passed. People change, but I don’t think Brad has changed that much. I like it very much. We work well together. This time we were both actors, but that doesn’t change much. We have common opinions on a number of things, but our lives are very different. He lives in Hollywood, I live in Utah and New York. We are friends, but we rarely see each other. He is Brad, and I am me.

Brad Pitt no longer remembers the first rule of Fight Club!

The History of Spy Games: CIA veteran, Nathan Muir is about to retire but he will nevertheless embark on a very perilous mission to save one of his best men: Tom Bishop. The latter, with whom he teamed up, was captured in China while planning, without the agreement of CIA officials, the release of a foreign detainee. Under charges of espionage, he will be executed in 24 hours if Nathan, who worked with him until a young woman he met in Beirut separated the duo.

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