The Double Act

Hey everyone.
Over the coming 8/10 weeks I will be shooting a feature film that im sure some of you would have heard of had you read any of my earlier posts.

It is a fantastical action buddy comedy if you can call it anything.
The two lead characters are called Dante & Rico. They are Beast Hunters of the modern age (imagine Starsky & Hutch crossed with GhostBusters but with fantastical beasts such as werewolfs and dragons).
My friend (a very good and rather experienced theatrical actor) and I will be playing the two roles respectively.
Id rather not play the other part as this way It will certainly be a much more trouble some and tough shoot. But I can act well to a certain extent - I just cant find anyone else who is willing to put in the effort and the commitment for the whole of the summer.

Anyway, Dante & Rico follow the usual odd couple scenario really - Dante is uptight and experienced and bossy and sticks to the rules. While Rico is relaxed and inexperienced and tends to get them both in trouble.

I am watching as many buddy movies as i can with my friend to see if we can take something from them and learn a little about screen chemistry.
At the moment we have watched a load of Starsky and Hutch episodes, whereas we have decided that Dante is Starsky and I am Hutch. We have watched 'The Odd Couple' which was extremely helpful, Dante is Jack Lemmon while I am Walter Matthau.

Now, we start shooting our really important dialouge scenes next week, some of the takes will be a few minutes long so we really need to get our act together and our characters fully developed.

So this post is all about me asking all you indie film-makers for help when it comes to the double act.

-Are there any more good buddy movies I could watch for research ?
- Any tips in developing a chemistry further ?
(although Dave ((my friend)) and I have been best friends for about 10 years so we've got a basic screen chemistry down already)

Also, Dave and I are northen welshmen - meaning we sound like posh scousers (people from Liverpool).
Any suggestions towards accents ? As at the moment we sound sort of dull with our own voices, but sort of camp if we use an english accent. I can do a great australian accent if thats any help.
Which accents make you cringe no matter who uses them ?
Which accents are you happy with ?

Any help or suggestions you could give towards any aspect of my project are gratefully recieved.
Thankyou.
 
Good luck with the feature.

On accents - Unless you've had good training (Rada, Central or the equivalent) I'd avoid changing your accent. Instead, just make sure that your diction is clear. That you actually open you mouth when you speak. (You'd be amazed how many people don't)

On the buddy movies, well, I don't think you can beat Bing Crosby and Bob Hope. Their series of "Road To" pretty much defined the buddy movie. If you are looking for something a little closer to home, check out Twin Town.
 
Ah yes I have seen Twin Town a while back, i think ill take another look at it.
As for the 'Road To' movies I have seen Road to Morroco and Road to Zanzibar but none of the others, i will take a further look at them too.
Thanks for your thoughts & recommendations :)
 
Ah yes I have seen Twin Town a while back, i think ill take another look at it.
As for the 'Road To' movies I have seen Road to Morroco and Road to Zanzibar but none of the others, i will take a further look at them too.
Thanks for your thoughts & recommendations :)
 
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