By Desdemona Bandini
Executive producer Morris S. Levy knows how to do good business, period. Levy, a New York native, took his grandfather's small handkerchief manufacturing business and built it into a woman's clothing empire that sells major labels like Bill Blass, ABS and SHAG. He then turned his attention to tackling one of the hardest businesses of all: show business. But Levy has a passion for making films, particularly films he wants to see or films that seemingly cannot get made. Cut to the road to Descent.
"This entire film was an obstacle to overcome. Everybody who was approached with this project passed on it," says Levy. "The subject of date-rape was too controversial. But I saw the potential of this meaty role for Rosario and I knew it should be made. I move quickly to get things done. If I take something on, it gets done." Levy liked where Rosario Dawson's career was going, and fought hard with securing private equity financing to get this film made.
Descent is a dark tale of lost innocence avenged, written for Dawson by her longtime friend, writer/director Talia Lugacy. Dawson wanted to do the film; she sensed the topic was important and would free her to utilize a deeper range of her talent in a way that only an independent film would permit. (Dawson also debuts as a producer, with her own Trybe Films.)
Dawson's disturbing date-rape scene and the controversial script made it damn near impossible to finance, and all the doors stayed closed - until the day Dawson's mother, Isabel, told her family friend Levy about her daughter's struggles and asked him to take a look at it. Not the typical flick a mother might want to push for her daughter, but Isabel tries to support all of her daughter's artistic endeavors.
"I knew right away tackling an issue this deep and sensitive was going to be a challenge, and it was," Levy says. "The script is very raw and edgy, and some of the scenes are extremely graphic. People aren't used to seeing Rosario this way."
That didn't stop Levy from looking at the big picture and pressing forward - all the way to the Tribeca Film Festival. Every major player on this film is a native New Yorker, and having the film debut at Tribeca is practically a family affair as well as being icing on the cake of a tough project. City Lights Pictures has snapped up the film, and the pre-buzz for Descent has tongues wagging.
Levy, founder and president of M.E.G.A. Films, had already produced a collection of film festival favorites, including The Ten (starring Winona Ryder and Jessica Alba) and Little Black Dress (also starring Rosario Dawson). Currently in pre-production is Harold starring Cuba Gooding Jr., and The Prince Test (Noah Wyle's directorial debut). Also in the pipeline is Summerhill, with British Isle Director Gillies McKinnon set to direct the feature version of the documentary.
The obvious hard-to-watch-squirm-in-your-seat scenes that made the film almost impossible to finance continued to be hotly debated during the making of the Descent. There are moments, when the camera doesn't cut away and the viewer is sucked in and forced to feel the experience along with the characters, in real time.
Levy says there was still a lot of discussion as to how long those violent sex scenes should last, and most people involved leaned toward wanting to cut them down. Lugacy, the female writer/director and Dawson's childhood friend, was adamant about not pulling back and sitting there with those moments. She fought hard for those extended scenes and got them.
Levy ponders the question of whether there is ever closure when a woman is sexually assaulted or abused. Even if the rapist is convicted and jailed, is there closure? It was one of the reasons he was persuaded to keep the controversial scenes that are true for the characters and the lives they lead. It was the true story.
"Making good movies can be very tough and very expensive. But I don't give up. I never give up. If one door closes, you have to look for another opening. That is the only way to be successful in any business, especially film," Levy says. "You just have to press through when you believe in something, and get it done."
Morris S. Levy is "descending" all the way to the top. Descent stars Rosario Dawson, Chad Faust, Vanessa Ferlito and Nicole Vicius. |
