"Apocalypse Now" DVD Release Contract Signed by Marlon Brando and Francis Ford Coppola. A stunning item, this 34-page photoc...

Description

"Apocalypse Now" DVD Release Contract Signed by Marlon Brando and Francis Ford Coppola. A stunning item, this 34-page photocopy of the original contract engaging Brando to appear in the 1979 Vietnam War epic is an updated agreement with language added regarding the movie's DVD release, and is signed by both Coppola and Brando on the next-to-last page in black ink. The original contract engaged Brando for principal photography on September 1-8, 1976, at the rate of $1 million in advance, for what would become one of the most contentious working relationships in film history. Coppola believed that Brando was familiar with Joseph Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness -- the basis for Apocalypse Now -- and would be prepared for the role before he arrived on the set. When Brando did arrive, Coppola was horrified to find that he had not only never read the book, or even the script, and had become extremely overweight when Brando's character, Colonel Kurtz, had always been written as a tall and emaciated. Coppola spent days reading Heart of Darkness out loud to Brando on the set, and used some creative cinematography to make him appear brutish and imposing instead of merely overweight. An ad-libbed script was agreed upon after days of arguments over single lines of dialogue, and Coppola had become so infuriated that he turned over the filming of Brando's scenes to assistant director Jerry Ziesmer. In the end, both Brando's performance and Coppola's film obtained legendary status. The document is in Excellent condition with virtually no wear. From the collection of Marlon Brando. Accompanied by LOA from PSA/DNA.

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