INTERVIEW: UWE BOLL (Director/

Boxer
By Evan Chan

www.boxingcinema.com

oxing Cinema would like to
B welcome back director Uwe Boll

(In the Name of the King, Postal,
Bloodrayne) for another interview to

speak more about his upcoming boxing
movie “Max Schmeling”.

EVAN CHAN: Uwe, thanks again for
doing another interview for the Boxing
Cinema. First off, how has your new
movie Max Schmeling been doing? I
heard that it did a festival not too long ago
and had a positive response.

UWE BOLL: I was in Moscow and
Astana in festivals with the movie and
the response was really good. In Astana,
Kazakhstan was also Mike Tyson and
he watched it with me. We talked for
over two hours later about Joe Louis,
Schmeling and Iron Mike....his career
and his life. On October 7 “MAX
SCHMELING” is starting in Germany
with a big release.

EC: What did Iron Mike think of the
movie?

UB: He liked it a lot because the movie
shows also the war and the political
background Schmeling was living in.
But of course he liked also to see Arthur
Abraham playing the last fighter against
Schmeling, Richard Vogt. We have the
Cuban champ Pablo Hernandez as Joe
Louis and also Stipe Drews, (Zeljko)
Mavrovic, Michael Becker, Enad Licina,
Alexander Frenkel, Ruediger May and
others fighting....

EC: Now how important was it to cast
actual fighters in the film? Hollywood is
more known for turning actors into boxers
rather than the other way around.

UB: This time I made it the other way
around, and with Henry Maske we were
lucky. I think the fact to have all the real
fighters in the ring makes that movie
something special.

EC: Did the boxers have any problems
transitioning into actors?

UB: Only Joe Louis (Pablo Hernandez)

had to act, everybody else had to box only.

EC: Which portion of Max Schmeling’s
life did you try to focus on for this film?
UB: We show roughly the time from 1933
to 1949 where Schmeling’s boxing career
developed and ended. Also we focus on
his role in Hitler Germany, the marriage,
and his time as a soldier.

EC: How important do you feel it is to
boxing and history in general, for stories
like his to be preserved?

UB: Boxing is the most direct sport...

it’s a mirror for life and death, and life
and death is of course history. If you
jump into any historical period and you

 

summarize it, what was important? War,
life and death of important people.
Violence is so far the driving force in
history.

EC: You told me before that Henry Maske
was Max Schmeling’s choice to play him
in a biopic. What were the things that you
did to help Henry prepare for the role?
UB: Henry met Max a few times and
talked with him a long time about his

life. Henry is obsessed with Max and read
all the existing books about him

EC: So it sounds like he was already
pretty well prepared for the part. How

would you compare the end result of Max

Schmeling to films such as Cinderella

Man and Raging Bull?

more realistic movie and is not over

dramatizing. I love Cinderella Man and

Raging Bull, but was the boxing in Raging

Bull realistic? No! And was Jim Braddock

UB: I think with our movie we present &
what kind of character he was. Where

he knocked out Joe Louis, this was a r

Tyson at his peak. I think also because he nm

almost stayed alive until he was 100 years ‘INO & POKER
old makes him something special.

shot in Croatia. Why did you choose

Croatia? Were there any parts of the film

that were shot in Germany?

cheaper there and tons of old cities look

like World War 2. We shot only the scenes

of Schmeling’s farm in Germany. We

no reason to shoot there.

EC: I saw some behind the scenes photos

of you wearing boxing gloves during

in the movie?

UB: I play a referee, but I made a sparring

during the shoot and I also wanted to

what they should do.

EC: When can we expect to see this

movie to play in Canada?

UB: In a way Max Schmeling is a

an important boxer? Not really... D i Wa) ¢ ie
EC: Do you feel enough has been done to
preserve Max Schmeling’s story?
moment like you knocking out Mike

EC: Now I read that this movie was

UB: We shot in Croatia because it’s

didn’t have subsidies in Germany so I saw
filming, what was that all about? Are you
show my actors from time to time exactly
UB: Max will go out on DVD in Canada

 

 

next year.

EC: Is there anything else you want the TONY PEP BOXING & FITNESS

fans to know about Max Schmeling before -Located at the Corner of 6th Street & Royal
we wrap up this interview? Ave- a
UB: Check it out and don’t forget to

check out my movies right now in the

video stores: STOIC, FINAL STORM, *$80 per Month for UNLIMITED Basic Open Gym*
RAMPAGE. *$70 per Month with 3 Month Sign Up for Basic Open Gym*
EC: Thank you very much for once *$10 per Day Drop In Fee for Basic Open Gym*

again doing an interview for the Boxing (Mon/Wed 6:30-9 pm; Tues/Thurs/Fri 5-9 pm & Sat 1-5 pm)
Cinema. Wish you all the best of luck with $60 per Month for 4 Sessions or $120 per Month for 8 Ses-
Max Schmeling! sions

CARDIO BOXING & CIRCUIT TRAINING CLASSES

 

 

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