New Film ‘Dying of the Light’ Creates Behind the Scenes Controversy

Stephen Sloane

Paul Schrader’s latest work, ‘Dying of the Light’ will be hitting theaters Dec. 5. Paul Schrader came into film consciousness after a short stint as a movie critic under the tutelage of The New Yorker’s Pauline Kael.  From there, Schrader went on to write “Taxi Driver” and “Raging Bull,” both for director Martin Scorsese – not bad for someone who, due to his parents’ Calvinistic beliefs, never saw a film until he was 18. This success gave him the springboard to direct his own films (“American Gigolo,” “Affliction,” “Auto Focus”), and the latest of the dramatic Nicholas Cage vehicle “Dying of the Light.”

The film’s premise centers on Cage’s character, CIA agent Evan Lake, who has recently been ordered to retire. Evidence becomes known that Lake’s adversary, a terrorist called Banir, has apparently reemerged, and Lake takes things in his own hands to put an end to this enemy. With Lake’s recent diagnosis of dementia, questions arise whether Banir really does exist, or whether he died as initially believed.

“Dying of the Light” (the film’s name taken for the last line of a Dylan Thomas poem) has raised recent controversy, with Schrader publicly admitting that he’d been forced off the film during the editing stage. From the producers’ perspective, the cut that Schrader submitted did not accurately reflect the script that was initially greenlighted. One of the film’s producers, Gary Hirsch, stated, “We made suggestions, which Paul to a large extent didn’t approve of, and so he refused to make the changes that we all wanted, despite the fact that the changes we were looking for were very much in line with the script that he wrote and shot.” Schrader reciprocated with photos on Facebook of himself, Cage, actor Anton Yelchin and co-producer Nicolas Winding Refn, all wearing T-shirts showing a “non-disparagement” clause on the front, apparently from Schrader’s contract with distributor Lionsgate. The clause states: “No publicity issued by artist or lender, whether personal publicity or otherwise, shall contain derogatory mention of company, the picture, or the services of artist or others connected with the picture.” This might be seen as Schrader’s indirect finger pointing to the situation, without his personally breaking any contract rules.

As Schrader once said, “In this business, you’ve got to have a selective memory. Otherwise, it’s too painful.” The paying public will soon have their chance to see if the film stands up to the controversy.

“Dying of the Light” opens Dec. 5.