While streaming is convenient and accessible, it has stripped the film community of relics that we used to take for granted.The decline in physical media productionand sales is indicative of the prevalence of streaming services. DVDs and Blu-rays were not just collectible items, they also assured the consumer that they would own a copy of a film forever, without the risk of a streamer abruptly pulling it from their library. The best DVDs of the past included copious bonus features, with the prized supplemental feature being the commentary track. The strongest argument for the revitalization of physical media is to point at the legendary commentary track forThe Limey, which captured directorSteven Soderberghhotly debating with the screenwriter about the film you’re watching.
An extremely volatile and dangerous Englishman goes to Los Angeles to find the man he considers responsible for his daughter’s death.
Steven Soderbergh Perfected His Cinematic Vision with ‘The Limey’
The DVD commentary, an audio track that played over the film primarily featuring commentary by the director or various cast members, was a staple of the heyday of physical media. The supplemental feature was an open canvas for participants, as they could beinformative documents on the art of filmmaking, revelatory gossip corners, orunfiltered banter between cast members.They evoke the feeling that you’re watching a film with the principal artists. At the very least, commentary tracks were either insightful or hilarious, but the best ones, likeThe Limey, featuring Steven Soderbergh and screenwriterLem Dobbs, were both. Soderbergh’s 1999 film follows a hostile British ex-con, Wilson (Terence Stamp), on a revenge tour in Los Angeles to find the person responsible for the death of his daughter. He suspects that her death was at the hands of Valentine (Peter Fonda), a rock music mogul with a shady background.
The Limey,one of Soderbergh’s most celebrated films, was released afterOut of Sight, signaling a comeback period for the director after failing to perform a worthy encore to his triumphant debut,sex, lies, and videotape. This period for Soderbergh, includingErin Brockovich,Traffic, andOcean’s Eleven, was his apex as a filmmaker,making personal and original stories in the mold of familiar genres.His films carried an effortless sense of ingeniousness. He madeGeorge ClooneyandJennifer Lopezmovie starsinOut of Sight,wonJulia Robertsan Academy AwardforErin Brockovich, and re-tooled a disappointing Rat Pack heist movie from the ’60s into one of the mostcharming films ever inOcean’s Eleven. WithThe Limey, Soderbergh riffed on ’60s and ’70s revenge thrillers likePoint BlankandGet Carter. It’s rooted in Hollywood history, as the setting is evocative of sun-baked noirs likeChinatown, and the casting of Peter Fonda as an old guard of L.A. comments on the evolution of Hollywood archetypes, as Fonda’s breakthrough was playing the counter-cultural motorcycle traveler inEasy Rider.
Steven Soderbergh and Lem Dobbs Spar Over Creative Differences in ‘The Limey’s Commentary Track
However, not everyone was afan of Soderbergh’s vision, including the person who drafted the film, screenwriter Lem Dobbs, whoexpressed his frustration with the director’s artistic decisions on the commentary track. For those unable to obtain a copy of the DVD,the track is currently streaming on The Criterion Channel, a service committed to offering special features abandoned by most streamers. The two set the tone by forgoing an introduction and immediately hashing it out, with Dobbs upset by Soderbergh refusing to properly introduce the characters and provide clear context to the story. The writer found the director’sexpressive formalism superficial practices that undermined the story and character.“Despite what you think, I do like people,” Soderbergh wryly responds. Dobbs condemns him forbeing indifferent towards human relationsthroughout the commentary track. Dobbs, feeling alienated by the final product, is an open wound throughout the commentary, cynically referring to screenwriting as a “hopeless profession.”
Dobbs refreshingly confesses tobeing affected by the reception of the film. In particular, hetakes offense to critics praising Soderbergh for certain visual cues and ideas he conceived on the page. The person who takes the brunt of Dobbs’ animus is a critic who he referred to as the “motherfucker in Variety.” Even when Soderbergh adheres to his script, Dobbs still holds frustrations that require venting. The writer cited that many reviews criticized the film for being “style over substance.” According to him, this label falls solely on the shoulders of the director, and he rejects the notion that his script was “underwritten,” but rather, Soderbergh shortchanged the textual weight of the story.
While a critically acclaimed film, Dobbsbelieved Soderbergh unjustly mangled his script. Dobbs, who wrote Soderbergh’s second film,Kafka, expresses a sense of betrayal from his director. In his mind,The Limeywas more of a grand statement on the psychological burden of revenge and theinsatiable thirst for violence, but Soderbergh opted to experiment with nonlinear storytelling and avant-garde editing techniques. On the outside, Dobbs comes off as bitter and ungrateful, but his transparency in this commentary candidly speaks to thepersonal connections within every piece of creative art. The writer’s main point of contention was the lack of character detail and motivation that he believed was disregarded by the director, and as a writer,one develops a sentimental bond with these fictional creations.Ultimately, Soderbergh believed the heart of the film belonged to its genre sensibilities. As a revenge thriller/noir,The Limey’s story can be distilled into a simple story about a violent man seeking vengeance against an unknown figure for the death of his daughter.
What ‘The Limey’s Commentary Track Teaches Viewers About Filmmaking
Soderbergh and Dobbs, despite their sparring, arereverential to each other. Their passion for cinema, particularly British crime thrillers, exceeds any quarreling over artistic choices. Countering Dobbs’ contentious attitude is a level-headed Soderbergh, who is both sympathetic to his criticisms while standing behind his directorial decisions. Soderbergh oftenprovided practical reasons behind his unfaithfulness to the script.In one shot, Dobbs questions why a character is looking at her feet, and Soderbergh responds, “Because I told her to.” Even if they seemed practical on the page, the director insisted to Dobbs and the audience that scenes needed to be shot in aspecific way out of logistical concerns. Soderbergh’s commentary demonstrates thatfilmmaking doesn’t always allow unfettered creativity like it does in a screenplay. In Dobbs' script, a hallway in Valentine’s mansion features numerous framed pictures of Wilson’s daughter, but in the film, only one photo is displayed. Dobbs found this decision in the production design to be unrealistic, but Soderbergh claimed that, for whatever reason, the house did not lend itself to multiple framed pictures. Dobbs invokes a line byLawrence Kasdanabout the difficulties of adapting the page to the screen, which states"A screenplay can be filmed word-for-word the way you write it, and still be completely not what you had in mind."
Viewers will comprehend the stark differences between screenwriting and filmmaking when listening toThe Limeycommentary track. By the nature of their profession, writers are idealists in their creativity, as the possibilities of screenplays are endless. Directors, however, are forced toconfront the sobering realities of the filmmakingindustry–elements that may stifle the creative process. As tense as the conversation between Steven Soderbergh and Lem Dobbs is, the commentary never feels performative. Viewers are privileged to be invited to an honest discussion abouthow a writer’s vision can get lost in translation when it comes time to shoot.Because of its candor and transparency about the filmmaking process,The Limey’s commentary track is the quintessential DVD bonus feature.
The Limeyis available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S.
