Palling around in ‘Style’
THE aggregate nativity of “Going in Style’s” Michael Caine, Alan Arkin, Morgan Freeman and Ann-Margret predates Matthew, Mark, Luke and John who probably only blew this movie because their miracles didn’t include Hollywood agents.
We’re talking no shoot-’em or stab-’ems. No sci-fi, robots, outer space, car crashes or monsters. Just old-style, old-buddy, oldtime good, great delicious movie-watching, which opens Friday.
Caine: “We play nonfunctional elderly persons. Screwed by society. People in such circumstances get confused. Down on their luck. Lost jobs. No money. Mortgages. So what else to do? Rob a bank. And that’s what they do.
“I started my career here. Love it here. Been hanging out at the St. Regis, Polo Bar, ‘21’ — but since they don’t pick up my check I may not go back there again.”
Freeman: “We play guys who are desperate. Our plant moved on, our pensions are gone. One of us lost our house. Be on the street. Me, I’m riding around in a motorized grocerystore basket.
“Personally, I’ve moved myself to Mississippi to live. To get away from the madding crowd. The weirdos in our multicolored social scene.” About his superlux cashmere jacket, he said: “Softer than a baby’s behind.”
Director Zach Braff: “War- ners asked me to do it. They thought I’d be perfect. It has comedy and heart and the guys were like teenagers. Each backing the other up. Cracking jokes, telling anecdotes. We didn’t need stuntmen because, like riding around in electric carts, they all did their stuff themselves.” Ann-Margret: “Zach Skyped me about doing this. I knew Michael from his London restaurant in the ’60s, I did a film with Arkin but never worked with Morgan before. The set every day was fun. Always jokes back and forth.” And her dress that night? At SVA Theatre in Chelsea. “New. From Mark Zunino, who was Nolan Miller’s partner. Listen, I can’t fit into my own old clothes anymore. These days I’m mostly home taking care of my guy. Right now I’m just glad I’m working.” Peggy Siegal, who never knew an event she hasn’t attended: “I’m doing p.r. on this. In fact, it’s a redo. The original 1979 film starred George Burns, and I was the publicist on that one, too.”
When ‘Wrong’ goes right
THE Lyceum. “The Play That Goes Wrong.” Even Kardashians would laugh their fake eyelashes off. It sniffs like that old farce “Noises Off ” — only these noises are on. Props flop, doors stick, corpses walk. A line in it is, “The set’s a bloody deathtrap.” The all-Brit cast, none having ever been here before, gifted one another T-shirts that read: “The set’s a bloody deathtrap.” “Star Wars” writer-director J.J.
Abrams, the play’s star producer: “Stumbling onto this mish
igas in London, I laughed insanely, and asked, ‘Can I help?’ Unfortunately, they said, ‘Yes.’ See, I’m a theater geek. I’ve saved every Playbill of every show I’ve ever seen.”
Meanwhile, Zachary Quinto snaked by. Also Jesse Eisenberg, who’s filming here all month “but not sure of the title.” And Ste
phen Colbert, who avoided me like I carried the bubonic plague. His rep once said, “He’s not doing interviews.” Ratings, he likes; people — not.
GO see this. You’ll laugh so hard you’ll forget how much it costs to live here.
Entertainment like this is only in New York, kids, only in New York.