FILM / Director's cut: Renny Harlin on Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now

THIS is a very silly example because it has nothing to do with my movies, but the first scene that pops into my mind is the love-making scene in Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now. It's a scene that had a very strong impact on me because of the unusual way it was shot and edited. It's not unusual today; today everything has been done or tried. But when I first saw it, when I was about 13 years old, it really blew my mind. Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie are making love, and it has been intercut with them getting ready to go out and putting their clothes on. It was a very unusual and beautiful way of shooting a love scene. Powerful and tender, and at the same time artful and non-exploitative. That to me said, hey, here's a film-maker who's an artist and has an idea behind what he's doing. There's always the pedestrian way of doing things and having a vision behind things. I always hoped that in my movies I'd be able to do that kind of concept thing, instead of doing things the pedestrian way.

Renny Harlin's films: 'Prison', 'A Nightmare on Elm Street IV', 'Die Hard II', 'The Adventures of Ford Fairlane' and 'Cliffhanger'.

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