“It’s a Three-Sided Film”: Alex Ross Perry and Robert Greene Discuss Sidewalks, a Lifetime of Music Obsession, and Val Kilmer

      Based on the following interview, if you plan to interview a director, it might be beneficial to invite the lead editor to join as well. In a conversation that felt apt for a film centered on the dynamic interplay of a remarkable rock band, Alex Ross Perry and Robert Greene, the director and editor of Pavements, effectively complemented each other during our discussion at last year's Venice Film Festival––perhaps swapping roles similar to the Bob Nastanovich-like hype man playing the cowbell for Stephen Malkmus’s charismatic frontman.

      Pavements is an imaginative and wild blend of documentary and fiction, taking the band's memorable line from “Gold Soundz” that “you can never quarantine the past” quite literally. Perry and Greene create a constructed history interwoven with unfiltered documentary footage and conceive a hypothetical current reality where the band is honored through a faux-Broadway jukebox musical and a mock-Oscar-worthy trash biopic featuring Joe Keery, Fred Hechinger, etc., resembling a distorted reflection of the recent Beatles casting news. The film crafts its unique twisted truth.

      Now, let's allow The Film Stage to briefly evoke the vibe of late-2000s Pitchfork.

      The Film Stage: How was the premiere at the Sala Darsena yesterday? I can imagine you were keen to see how the film was received.

      Alex Ross Perry: It was fine, I suppose. Watching a film in a theater you’ve never been in before is always strange. I’ve never experienced a film there, so I have no expectations. I haven’t sat in this space and loved what I’ve seen on the screen, and now it is mine. However, there were more young people in that room than I’ve noticed in the past six days in Venice, which is great.

      Robert Greene: I had the good luck of premiering Robert Kolodny’s film The Featherweight in that same room last year, so I had high hopes for how beautiful it would look. Though at one point, there were subtitles in Italian, English, Korean, and another English subtitle appearing just seconds later. It was quite chaotic! I noticed an elderly couple who got up and left. They were so lovely and managed to last 100 minutes into our wild film. But to directly answer your question: it went remarkably well. It felt like a significant success, and the band really appreciated it.

      Oh, the band is present too.

      Robert Greene: Yes, they are, but the couple making it that long felt like a real triumph. They stayed as long as they could before realizing, “We just can’t take any more.” And honestly, I understand; I could barely handle touring.

      Alex Ross Perry: Yeah, it was cool. It was great.

      Alex, I assume the project started with you, and Robert came on board later, as is often the case? When did you first get into the band?

      Alex Ross Perry: Um, Robert probably has a better answer for this than I do. I enjoyed songs like “Stereo” from Brighten the Corners, which played on alternative radio. I was definitely a fan, but by then, I was starting to lean more towards the Sex Pistols. I was excited about it, but back then, simply hearing a song on the radio didn’t mean you needed to own it. You could just say, “I really liked it.” So I left it at that. Then, they broke up about two years later. My story is relatively brief until I saw them at the reunion in 2010. Robert's response will take longer.

      Robert Greene: So what was it about the reunion specifically that made you want to go see them?

      Alex Ross Perry: It was similar to why I went to see the Pixies in 2004. I thought, “I never imagined this would happen.” I felt like I had missed out on something, and now there was an opportunity. Just like last week, when a million people attempted to buy Oasis tickets. There’s a whole generation––

      Robert Greene: Because they’re all suckers.

      Alex Ross Perry: Exactly. If you essentially wait an entire generation to give people a chance to see your concert, you’re providing an opportunity for those who have never experienced you live.

      Robert Greene: I believe that’s why the 2022 tour was so successful. There’s now a whole new generation, younger than me, that grew up thinking, “I missed out on this band.” They’ve heard about legendary or even chaotic live performances. My daughter, for instance, loves Pavement, and she’s 17. Her name is Ella, and we often listen to live versions and question: why does Bob interrupt every song by screaming incoherently? There’s a sense that something was missed.

      And the albums themselves still aren’t enough.

      Pavements premiered at the 62nd New York Film Festival. Photo by Sean DiSerio.

      Robert Greene: I’ve been