From Horror Cinema to Farhadi's Cinema: An Interview with George Romero

George Romero, one of the masters of horror cinema, passed away on Monday at the age of 77. Romero, a father of modern horror cinema, began his work in the 1960s and gained global fame with films like 'Night of the Living Dead'; a humorous and witty filmmaker who quoted Stephen King saying: 'We have no nightmares because we give them all to you!' Mohammad Abdi interviewed this master of horror cinema two years ago at the 50th Karlovy Vary Festival in the Czech Republic, which was published by Radio Farda. On the occasion of George Romero's passing, we republish this interview. Robin Wood in his book 'Hollywood from Vietnam to Reagan' argues that horror films reflect the wounds and problems of society. On the other hand, some believe that horror cinema speaks more about the inner problems of humans rather than society. Which aspect is more important to you? I think it is difficult to separate them. For me, if I do not want to say something, there is no reason to make a film; it must speak about the conditions of society and humanity. I have never made a film like 'Friday the 13th,' meaning I have not made a slasher film that just wants to scare. I always try to have a reason for it. Although horror exists on the surface of the work - and even comedy exists - I always try to have something deep, and my greatest failure is that I do not have something deep. If we consider you one of the fathers of modern horror cinema at the end of the 1960s... Thank you!... I wanted to know where the roots of this wave of horror cinema come from? What drives this wave? There is a documentary called 'American Nightmare.' This film is about a few of us; me, John Carpenter, and Wes Craven. I do not know, something unconscious must have inspired everyone. We were all somehow looking for a way to enter this profession. We were trying to make commercial films to enter this field. I believe that more than anything, the effort for commercial success was our motivation rather than, for example, a conscious political motivation. Although even if we did not want to be political, there was always a shade of it found in the film. The events that happened naturally made us conscious of sensitive issues, but we all tried to make a film that would sell. So I must say that both motivations exist. You also have experience acting in films; 'The Silence of the Lambs'... Yes [laughs]. Pittsburgh was an important place for film production. After 'Night of the Living Dead,' several films were made there, including 'Flashdance.' 'The Silence of the Lambs' was also made there. Jonathan Demme was an old friend of mine and said you should come and act! I agreed and played the role of someone who accompanies Jodie Foster out. How was it working with Alfred Hitchcock in your youth? I never met him... Apparently, you worked behind the scenes of 'North by Northwest,' right? Yes, but we were the second unit and I never saw Hitchcock. But I did meet Cary Grant [laughs]. Everything in the film was already specified on paper. Tell me about working with Stephen King... Stephen King wrote the script for 'Creepshow' for me, and it had never been published before. I adapted two novels myself; 'The Dark Half,' which Stephen liked, and the other 'The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon,' which unfortunately was never made... When you work with Stephen, you have to respect him. You have to be careful. You have to be careful not to change what he likes. Who are your favorite filmmakers throughout the history of cinema? I really like Orson Welles, as well as most of Michael Powell's works. I learned from them how to tell stories. I met Michael Powell, but I never saw Orson Welles. As a final question, what do you think about Iranian cinema? I have seen films that have been sent for the Oscars. I am a member of the Academy and have to watch the films. It was two or three years ago that I saw 'A Separation.' It was amazing. Do you know other Iranian filmmakers? Like Abbas Kiarostami? Unfortunately, no. We do not have much access to this type of film. Non-commercial films are rarely screened.