One of the all-time great action filmmakers of the modern era, Isaac Florentine is back with a men-on-a-mission action film called Hounds of War, starring Frank Grillo as the last member of his team who survives a betrayal from their handler, played by the always dependable Robert Patrick. Also in the film is Rhona Mitra, who steps in as the only person who’s willing to help Grillo’s character in his time of desperate need. Shot in Malta in early 2022 while the area was still under strict COVID protocols, the film looks incredible and should appeal to fans of action, and certainly to those who follow Florentine’s impressive career as a filmmaker.
You’ve been busy since the last time I interviewed you. I’ve enjoyed the films you’ve done in the interim, including Acts of Vengeance with Antonio Banderas and Seized with Mario Van Peebles and Scott Adkins. Hounds of War was fun, and I have to say that it looked incredible with the gorgeous Maltese locations. I felt like Malta was its own character in the movie because you featured it so well. I don’t think I’ve seen Malta in a movie in a while. I remember an old Van Damme movie called Black Eagle was shot in Malta.
Yes, yes, yes. Sho Kosugi.
I wanted to ask you about the photography in the film. Did you use drones or helicopters?
Drones, drones. We used helicopters maybe 20 years ago.
The drone photography is so clear and smooth.
And cheap! We wanted to feature the scenery more than objects. We did some chasing, using the drones. In some shows we did in New Zealand, we used drones to go around the hero and go up close, the Power Rangers. It’s safe and it glorifies the action, and that’s what we want.
Talk about shooting in Malta and how things had changed with COVID and all the protocols you had to follow.
The writer of the script and one of the producers were from Malta and they wanted to shoot it there. This was almost during COVID when regulations were very, very heavy. That was the first movie I did after COVID. I arrived in January 2022 to start preproduction. The director they had bailed out, so I had to start from the beginning. I had to rewrite the script. I went through it and said, “I don’t think it makes sense with the budget and the time that you’re talking about.” I scouted the island. It was beautiful, but I was not finding the locations that I really needed. There was a lot of stuff that was modified for whatever was available. For instance, the first part of the movie was in a compound that used to be in a hotel. In the script, originally, it was some kind of palace. I didn’t find a palace. Second, whatever I found we weren’t allowed to do any action, nothing. We saw this location that was 180 degrees in the other direction. It was a totally blown away location. The villain is not hiding in a palace, he was hiding in a bunker. A compound. So we changed it. Also, the square where the assassination happens – originally I wanted to shoot it in Saint George Square. Just before shooting they told us no, which was a pity because we planned it all there. So I had to go and scout for another location that was available, and it was not 100%, but sometimes you use what you can get, but not what you really want. Luckily, they were renovating a church across the street, which we could use for the sniper scene. For what we had, it was used pretty well. We also used real catacombs. Sometimes they would show me a location for a scene, but I would say no: It’s not good for this scene, but it would be good for another scene. I also caught COVID during the shoot, and so did my DP. We both basically worked from a tent for a week. We gave instructions, and it was very hard for us to do the movie like this. For instance, the ballroom scene where you had so many extras and you want to do it all in one shot, but you have to give directions from the tent. It’s easy if you were there, but very hard if you’re not. We were out of commission for a week, but we were still working.
This movie reminded me a bit of some of your earlier films U.S. Seals II and Special Forces, these men on a mission movies. This genre is not as common as they used to be, the Delta Force type movies, the type of films that Cannon or Nu Image / Millennium used to do a lot of. I suppose you’ve got The Expendables, but Hounds of War certainly feels like a throwback.
You serve the script. I came aboard when it was about to go and then it stalled. The structure and the template was there. It’s almost like two movies. The first part is the men on the mission, the second part is the revenge. It’s not that I could change anything. I wish there was more time to get to know the Hounds, but there was no time, no screen time. You want to know them more. It is what it is.
You’re right. That first scene when Grillo comes into the backyard area and he greets his old friends like he’s known them for years, and then ten minutes later they’re all dead.
Yeah.
It still had the spirit intact. I miss that kind of movie, so it was a pleasure to watch.
Thank you.
Frank Grillo is in tons of movies now. Sometimes he’s the lead and sometimes he’s just a walk-on role. Talk about working with him and his on-screen tough guy persona.
He was already cast in the movie before I came. Basically, he was the movie. I didn’t know his work, I admit. He was a very good actor who knows the character. That character fit him like a glove. He’s physical. He’s a black belt in Jiu Jitsu, so he felt comfortable playing the character and doing the action. He became the character and the character became him.
Robert Patrick plays the villain, and he does a role that he can play in his sleep. It seems like it fit him like a glove.
He was wonderful, a great person. A good sense of humor. It was a pleasure to work with him. He played the bad guy and he enjoyed it. (Laughing.)
Rhona Mitra is awesome. I always like her. Talk about working with her.
She’s a very solid actress. She comes very prepared. She knows her character, she knows where she wants her character to move. She takes her craft very seriously. This includes the action scenes.
Would you like to talk about the DP and the stunt coordinator?
Ericson Core was the DP, but also Ross Clarkson was with me and he operated the camera, and you can see it. When Ross operates the camera, it’s like magic. David Wald was the action choreographer, and we worked on Power Rangers 30-something years ago. He’s a super great guy and had super experience. Mike Moller is in the movie, and he’s from Germany. He brought a stunt team from Germany.
I’m glad you brought Mike up. He’s great. I remember when he came out to L.A. to promote Arena of the Streetfighter, a little movie he was in, and this was before anyone out here knew who he was. I did a nice interview with him and I’ve followed him ever since. He always makes everything better by being involved. I remember we talked about you, actually.
Yes, he came to the set of the first Ninja movie. And you came to the second one!
That’s right! Mike is amazing.
I agree. He is the European Jackie Chan. Amazing. A-mazing! And a super nice, nice, guy.
What’s been on your radar these days?
You’re going to laugh. I didn’t have a big TV until the kids pushed me to get a big TV. I started watching old westerns. A lot of John Wayne westerns, a lot of classics. Rio Bravo, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Rio Lobo. It’s been a real pleasure. They don’t do these movies anymore. Today’s movies try to be too serious, too depressing. The pace is too slow. I’m not saying everything back then was good, especially the Italian movies. Too hokey. You get a good one like The Great Silence. The story is in the genre, but it goes in a different direction. I’m watching these movies now and I’m really enjoying them.
You should make another western. You did a good one with Savate.
My favorite genre!
You have another movie coming out with Stephen Lang and Dolph Lundgren called Hellfire.
That’s a contemporary western, by the way! It’s a little homage to Pale Rider, which was an homage to Shane. I shot in Arkansas. Stephen was great – he likes to do his own action. Dolph, I’ve known him for many years. Always a pleasure to work with. I also had Harvey Keitel in it. There is no easy movie to make, but it was a smaller movie, and it was an overall nice experience. We are in advanced stages of post-production.
HOUNDS OF WAR will be available on Digital Sept. 20.