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THE MECHANIC (2011) PRODUCTION NOTESprocess every step of the way. He loves to get in there and get his hands dirty.”The process of putting a stunt together is quite extensive. For The Mechanic ‟s stuntteam it included walking the location, typing out an entire „story line‟ for the stuntsequence, shooting renditions of the stunt on a high def camera and continually revisingthe stunt per Jason and the filmmakers‟ input every step of the way. By the time eachstunt sequence was shot, the stunt crew and filmmakers knew exactly what they aregetting into.But as prepared as the stunt team was going into the actual shoot days, they were alwaysflexible for creating and re-creating elements on set.Action Designer and 2nd Unit Director David Leitch recalls a change that was made onthe day of shooting a „battle scene‟ between Dean Anderson and Bishop and Steve onthe streets of New Orleans. “We had developed a bunjee rig for one of the stunts using atire and chain to make it look like Bishop was protecting himself from being harmed in aparticular maneuver but Jason said „No, I want it more raw. Bishop wouldn‟t have hadthose things.‟ So we swapped the rig out. It actually created a much more violent, moreaction-y, cool look.”For Ben Foster, diving into the stunts was something he was both excited about andfrightened of at the same time. “Doing a film like The Mechanic is really a boy‟s dream.We‟ve all played with sticks as guns in backyards as kids. This film gave me permissionto do those kinds of things as a grownup – it‟s boys with guns doings bad things to badpeople.”One stunt in particular turned out to be of particular challenge for Foster – propellingdown 30 stories of a high-rise, 350 feet in the air. “Hanging from a single wire anddropping isn‟t that difficult,” Foster explains. “It‟s the four minute climb up that makesyou question why you didn‟t let the stunt man do it. It was almost a relief to fall. Afterthe second take, I didn‟t want to stop.“It helped that Statham was there to give Foster advice. “He told me to find a point on thehorizon line and focus on it,” recalls Foster. “Unfortunately, the wire started to spin so Icouldn‟t find the point. Just saying „f*ck it‟ gives you a lot of freedom.” The actionscenes ended up being Foster‟s favorite part of filming.THE MECHANIC SETS UP SHOP IN NEW ORLEANSA film‟s location ultimately ends up playing a character in the film. For The Mechanic,that character is New Orleans. As Bill Chartoff describes, “the mood and atmosphere ofa location bleeds as if through osmosis into the feeling of a movie.”The decision to shoot The Mechanic in New Orleans was made primarily based on thefact that the city has an international feel and could stand in for multiple geographiclocations (the film‟s various settings include Chicago, D.C., and South America).© CBS FILMS, All Rights Reserved 8
THE MECHANIC (2011) PRODUCTION NOTESLocation Manager Batou Chandler scouted the city and surrounding areas for just theright locations. She had seen the original film and used its tone and energy as inspiration- though the filmmakers would ultimately take a more modern approach to the look ofthe new version.The locations were incredibly diverse. Key locations used in the film include the NewOrleans World Trade Center which, though just a shell from Katrina, stood in for a highrisehotel; a house/wellness center with a mid - century modern feel in the bayou whichserved as Bishop‟s home (they scouted this location by boat as Bishop would seeminglylive in an isolated dwelling only accessed by waterways); the french quarter for Bishop‟ssultry lover‟s apartment; and a house in the city that looked like a dwelling out of PalmSprings for the setting of a hit on an opposing assassin.Many of the locations were virtual facades due to Katrina damage. The filmmakers builtout the interiors of some (such as „the Palm Springs house‟) and built interiors on a stagefor others (such as the „hotel‟s‟ penthouse apartment, where another hit takes place).<strong>Production</strong> Designer Richard Lassalle has been working with West for some time nowon various projects so when Simon asked him to head to New Orleans, he was delightedto hop on a plane. All of the sets had to be laid out in careful detail but none reflectedcharacter as extensively as Bishop‟s house.“I designed Bishop‟s house to be modestly sophisticated,” notes Lassalle. “Bishop is acraftsman and his home had to reflect that.”They shot at the house location (which was built in the „50s as a Catholic retreat) at thestart of the film‟s schedule but Bishop‟s „war room‟ was built separate from the house.The production shot this room‟s interior scenes at the end of the film‟s schedule due tothe large amount of research props (a reflection of the extensive research Bishopconducts on each of his assignments) that had to be gathered.**A MECHANIC’S LEGACYFor West, The Mechanic was a chance to direct a film “that operates on many levels andcan appeal to different sections of the audience.” The Mechanic promises to offer up justthat. According to West, “You can go along and enjoy the ride, but if you want to dig alittle deeper there‟s plenty there for you.”Irwin Winkler agrees and adds a personal lament on the experience, on behalf of himselfand Robert Chartoff: “It‟s wonderful to have a legacy to have your children involved inthe making of a film that you originally made. Here, it relates in a strange way to thefilm itself where there are significant father/son, passing down parallels in the story.”Perhaps Jason Statham best sums up the assignment of bringing The Mechanic back tothe big screen – “The story has great universal themes of revenge and redemption but© CBS FILMS, All Rights Reserved 9
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