A Chat with 'Herbie' Fan Angela Robinson

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Born in San Francisco in 1971, Angela Robinson attended the graduate film program at NYU (New York University) and has gotten out of the professional starting gate with two quick films. Her first was D.E.B.S., a campy comedy about high school girls who are recruited to be government agents ("D.E.B.S." stands for "Discipline. Energy. Beauty. Strength"). Most recently, she shot a Disney live-action film, Herbie: Fully Loaded, which was a continuation of the wholesome Herbie films: The Love Bug (1968), Herbie Rides Again (1974), Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo (1977), and Herbie Goes Bananas (1980). Because Robinson, a relative newcomer, put together a better film than the three sequels, DVD Town was pleased to be able to get a brief phone interview with her to talk about Herbie: Fully Loaded, which is being released on DVD on October 25.

James Plath: At Disney theme parks, employees have to dress and act to fit the image. What expectations did you face in directing a Disney live-action feature? In your commentary, for example, you mention "Disney hugs" and how carefully you had to treat a lie from your main character.

Angela Robinson: I think Disney takes their responsibility to being what a lot of kids will be exposed to--kind of a parenting responsibility--very seriously. Actually, it was weird. It wasn't the stuff you'd think, like dress this way, act this way, do this thing. It was more about what kind of moral lessons that the movie and the characters were going through in order to import a kind of parenting lesson, what the parents in the movie were undergoing, and what the character arcs would be in order to reinforce a more modern message that kids can be independent and follow their own dreams.

What's interesting about Herbie is that the dad really has to change and kind of come to accept his daughter's dreams, which are different than what he wants for her, and so that's a big part of it. But also, in the kind of tactics that the Maggie character takes to follow it weren't necessarily the right way to go either. So it's just really making clear what the character journey is--if she lies to her father, she ends up feeling terrible about that, and of course the action kind of blows up in her face later. So it's kind of tracking those different character beats and making sure that they put forth a positive lesson.

Plath: Did you grow up watching Disney live-action? If so, what were your favorites or can't-stands?

Robinson: Actually, the Herbie movies were some of my favorites, and I loved The Cat from Outer Space (laughs), I loved Escape from Witch Mountain.

Plath: And did your favorites influence your approach to this film in any way?

Robinson: You know, I hadn't seen the Herbie movies in a really long time, and I went back to watch the original Love Bug, because I was really trying to synthesize why this car was so popular and kind of endured. I wanted to stay true to the spirit of those old Disney movies that I grew up with, and the spirit of Herbie, because it's really a specific . . . . Everybody thinks that the car talks, but the car doesn't talk, so how do people still understand everything that he's thinking and feeling, and why? That's so powerful and clear, though it's really just a Volkswagen. So I went back to the original movie to kind of capture some of that--the simplicity of that kind of Disney magic.

Plath: Is Disney live-action a genre in itself, by now? If so, how would you characterize it?

Robinson: It's interesting. Somebody--I actually felt like this was a great compliment--one of the sound technicians who was working on the movie said, "This is the most Disney movie I've seen in years" (laughs), in that it is kind of harkening back to some of the physical comedy and things that were part of the Disney movies that I grew up with. I do feel like it's a genre unto itself. You talk about the "magic of Disney," but I feel like when you actually watch all the movies, there's a real spirit to the movies. I know, for example, that they were very careful with their comedy. They never go scatological, they never go to something mean, which other kids' movies do, and I was very aware that they were actually trying to do the comedy without going to those places that a lot of times may be easier, but it's just something that they don't do. And I think that kind of spirit, you know it's a Disney movie, and parents and people have come to expect and know that it's safe for their kids to watch this movie.

Plath: Well, Herbie: Fully Loaded pays tribute to the original with those opening clips, but also with a retro feel. I was wondering, though, do you think that extending a classic into new narrative territory, as you did, is easier or more difficult than if you had been asked to do a straight update, ala Freaky Friday?

Robinson: I don't know, actually. I think each different movie has its challenges. It was a little different, in as much as you have a similar character. The concept was taking Herbie from the old movies and bringing him forwards in time. So Herbie was the same, but everything else was different.

Plath: But you didn't just go back and re-do the original Herbie, and I'm wondering if that would have been easier or more difficult for you to attempt.

Robinson: Yeah. Each has their perils, but I think I really wouldn't have wanted to re-do the original Love Bug, because I think it's such an amazing movie in and of itself. I don't think I would have wanted to go there. Then again, there's been tremendous success in kind of re-adapting, so I think both would have worked. It's just which tact you have. It's a kind of directorial challenge.

Plath: You said your basic take on the movie was "Seabiscuit with a car," but the storyline--where a teenaged girl who loves to race but is kept down by a male-dominated sport and an overprotective, widowed father--also appeared in an earlier 2005 fantasy/live-action film, Racing Stripes.

Robinson: You know, I didn't see Racing Stripes. Somebody mentioned that a while ago, but I've never seen it, so (laughs) I don't really know. I think it's just coincidence.

Plath: You said you enjoyed working with Michael Keaton because he likes to roll takes and ends up doing the correction you would have told him to do anyway. Could you give an example?

Robinson: Oh, let me see. There was one scene he had with Matt Dillon. Actually, it's one of the deleted scenes. It's great when you roll takes, because shooting a movie is actually incredibly boring (laughs) and you always lose time when you cut and everybody resets and starts tweaking, and the make-up people come in, so actually it's very efficient what he does. You yell, "RESET," then everybody runs back to their first position, and all the background extras run back to their positions. But he just kept going (laughs), I just kept resetting, and he'd just do like each thing with such . . . . A lot of actors do that, and they give you something completely different. They do it angry, then they do it happy, and they really kind of . . . it's a Smorgasbord. What he does, it's like he's turning up the dial--like a volume dial, almost, but it's an emotional dial, different interpretations and takes. It's incredibly subtle, but he did it like six times, and I remember being really amazed at how precise he was, because it was really like every interpretation of that particular moment.

Plath: And your young actors work quite differently too, you remarked on your commentary, referring to Lindsay Lohan and the young man who played her love interest, Justin Long?

Robinson: Yes. Lindsay's amazing. She's such an incredible performer, but she's really efficient and just really likes to do one or two takes. And she always gets it pretty much perfectly. If something goes wrong, it's usually something technical. So she just kind of comes in and pops it off. Meanwhile, Justin is a comedian, and so he does a lot of improv comedy and stuff like that. He's just hilarious when he gets up there, but will do it like eight different ways and throw in jokes and change the lines--all sorts of stuff.

Plath: So when they get together on a scene, who gets their way--or is that where the director finally has her say?

Robinson: (Laughs) We do a lot of compromising. Lindsay'd be like, "Let's GO," and Justin would be like, "Gimme another take" (laughs), and so we'd end up doing like four. Lindsay wanted two, Justin wanted six, and so we'd compromise.

Plath: You mentioned that Herbie was allowed on the track during an actual NASCAR pace lap in front of 180,000 fans. Who drove?

Robinson: Oh, Steve Kelso, in a red wig, which was hilarious. He's a pretty famous stunt driver, and we got a lot of the NASCARs from him and then he actually drove. We worked with him in conjunction with NASCAR.

Plath: And did your insurance costs rise?

Robinson: (Laughs) No, it's all covered with the movie. It actually was pretty safe. The car wasn't going that fast, but they did outrig a new Volkswagen in order to make it to speeds where it could appear to keep up with the NASCARs.

Plath: Was that one of the 37 Herbies you used in the film?

Robinson: Yeah.

Plath: I just wondered if you had sprouted any gray hairs during that sequence.

Robinson: You know, that was just so fun. We couldn't believe it was going on, because it was such an incredible negotiation between all the safety factors and NASCAR and audience and all these different things. It was like a summit, or something. You know how these things are arranged over months and months and months? When I actually saw Herbie out there on the track in the actual scene, it was like the greatest moment because for so long we weren't sure if they were going to let us do it.

Plath: And it probably took you back, since you were a fan of the original, to being a spectator again.

Robinson: Yeah, and it was just so fun, because you saw the whole crowd recognize Herbie, and there was kind of like an incredible outpouring of excitement to see him out there (laughs). It was really kind of what the emotional meaning of the movie was all about--that we actually got this Volkswagen out on the track.

Plath: This is going to seem off-the-way, but Disney has always had a stable of actors for their live-action films--repeat performers--and I was wondering if you could add a few regulars who right now are not working for Disney, who would they be, and why? If Disney said, okay, you're going to direct more pictures for us and you could add anybody you wanted, who would it be?

Robinson: Oh, goodness. That is really hard. (Pause) You know, there's this actor, Eric Christian Olsen, who I really like who I thought was hilarious and who's a young actor, and I thought he would be great. A lot of it is just that kind of old-school physical comedy. Another actor I put in the movie, Jimmi Simpson, who played "Crash," I thought he had such a funny (laughs) villainous Disney feel to him. He was in my first movie too, and I thought he was incredibly funny. But movie star wise? Eric Christian Olsen, he just gave a great read, and we ended up changing the character that he was reading for, so he was too young to actually be the character. But he came in and just gave such a fun, vibrant read--he was in Dumb and Dumberer, I think, and a bunch of other stuff--but he came in and gave such a fun, vibrant read that I was disappointed I couldn't cast him.

Plath: Which direction would you like to go next? Is there a project on the horizon?

Robinson: Disney actually gave me a deal to produce and direct movies for them.

Plath: Well congratulations!

Robinson: Thank you, I'm excited to be kind of setting up a production company. And also, I sold a pitch with my writing partner to New Line to write and direct, and that's what we're working on too.

Plath: Now, Herbie: Fully Loaded seems a world apart from D.E.B.S., the first feature you directed, and yet you've said that all your films are about "feeling the cozy."

Robinson: (Laughs) It's so weird, you listened to the whole director's commentary!

Plath: Hey, we take things seriously around here. Come on! Anyway, could you explain what may not be so obvious to viewers? What a hip and sassy PG-13 comedy has in common with a wholesome Disney live-action film?

Robinson: Well, I think the girl-power element is very similar. I mean, I think thematically D.E.B.S. and Herbie: Fully Loaded are very similar. They're both about a young woman trying to buck the system and follow a voice in their head telling them what they know to be true, and about what they want to do, and I felt that the internal thematics were similar--I always like underdog stories--but also of the use of music and the use of kind of a poppy sensibility, but with a lot of heart. One of my favorite compliments about D.E.B.S. is that people tell me that they didn't expect to really care for the characters and really want them to get together. They thought the movie was so funny and silly when they first started watching it that they were surprised to find that they were so invested in the characters' relationship.

I feel like it's similar with Herbie. I mean, it's an incredibly silly movie--it's a magical car, and there are so many broad conceits to it--but my goal was to make people get emotionally involved with the characters' journey, so that by the time Herbie finally got to the race, you are emotionally connected, and got a little, you know (laughs), choked up in your throat, like embarrassed tears. You know, for somebody to be getting all emotional over it but saying, "No, no, I've got something in my eye." They'll never admit it.

Plath: I see I'm out of time. One last question. You said you just got a contract with Disney. Could you give us a hint of what you'll do for them next? A title, a concept?

Robinson: Ummm, I'm right now working on a movie for them about witches (laughs).

Plath: Live-action again?

Robinson: It's live-action, yeah. And then I'm working with New Line on a project, and that's called Jenbot.

10-21-05

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