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Marty Poole, screenplay writer for
Reptilian (called Yonggary in the Korean version),
Diamond Run and Ground Rules, also participated in
the direction of Reptilian and played a small role
in the movie. |
Action buffs renting the monster movie "Reptilian" may
notice a familiar face near the end of the video.
Portraying a soldier reluctant to go to his death to fight
the simultaneous alien/prehistoric dinosaur Yonggary is
Gleason native Marty Poole. His role contains enough
dialogue to prove he has a knack for the art that sent him
packing some eleven years ago after graduating from UTM
with a degree in communications.
Never mind that the scene has no direct tie-in to the
storyline. As both writer of the screenplay and director
of stateside re-shoots of the Korean-based movie, Marty
himself refers to the flick as a "bad B monster movie." In
fact, his apologetics leave the viewer unprepared for the
altogether great scenery, fine acting and convincing
representation of the monsters in the internationally
distributed movie.
The venture paid off in dividends for Marty as he watched
his six-year old nephew, Dillon, enjoy the movie, yelling
at the monster on the screen.
"It makes it all worth it - it's perfect for kids," he
says. "When I see the happiness on my friend's faces I
like that, I enjoy that."
The story opens as a group of researchers, led by the
unethical Dr. Campbell (Richard B. Livingstone), explore
caverns in search of the remains of 200 million-year-old
Yonggary, a "dinosaur" left behind by an alien
civilization who await the creature's uncovering to launch
an attack against the planet earth.
An ancient prophecy regarding the earth's destruction by
the dinosaur had been discovered by veteran archeologist
Dr. Hughes (Harrison Young), whose previous two-year
disappearance from the limelight of the academic world was
linked to the discovery, with his warnings going unheeded
by the agency in which he had entrusted his findings.
The most prominent actor in the film, Harrison Young,
portrayed the elderly private Ryan in Steven Spielberg's
epic war drama, "Saving Private Ryan".
"Harrison Young is a great guy - wonderful," enthused
Poole, who was excited to work with the same actor as
Spielberg.
Leading lady Holly (Donna Philipson) is the beautiful and
virtuous research assistant who turns from the treachery
of Dr. Campbell, ultimately discovering the means by which
the aliens control Yonggary from their mother ship, poised
in space above the earth. With the taming of Yonggary,
however, comes an even more horrible beast, and the two
monsters battle each other in a clash that will determine
the fate of the earth.
Poole likened the hands-on experience of making the movie
to "two years of film school" that he was paid for. The
movie was originally shot in Korea under the direction of
Shim Hyung-rae, the famous Korean comedian whose more
recent pursuits have been a series of science fiction
fantasy films.
Beset by monsoons that resulted in a waterlogged set,
filming got off to a bad start. Back in the United States
with the finished film that had been released to
less-than-laudatory reviews in its home country, the
decision was made to re-shoot some scenes. An old bowling
alley was gutted and turned into the set for the re-takes.
As screenplay writer, Poole says he literally "dissected"
the movie into a puzzle in which some parts of the movie
had to be retained while re-shooting connecting segments.
The two main leads were brought back for the chore while
other parts were cut in the mad-paced, eight-day venture
that was directed by Poole.
"They surrounded me by competent people," Poole says of
the support crew who worked with him. On the last evening
of filming, 30 different scenes were shot to culminate the
task Poole describes as insane.
"Overall it's been a fantastic experience," he relates.
"Fate and faith have paid off."
Poole has "paid his dues" to reach this point in his
career that has included the writing of two other
screenplays: "Diamond Run", which Marty co-wrote with
Derrick Costa, and "Ground Rules" starring Frank Stallone
and Richard Lynch.
Following his graduation from the University of Tennessee
at Martin where he studied under Mr. William Snyder, Poole
saved his money for eight months then headed for New York
where he began his search for fame and fortune, a familiar
quest for would-be performers who flock to the cities of
New York and Los Angeles in a fresh wave each year.
Poole had friends in New York whose own dreams had led
them to leave small town U.S.A. to seek the city lights.
Kayla Carroll, from Martin (who had performed in the UT
theatre with Marty)had moved to New York to study under
Mike Nichols and Kim Barber, another Gleason native, had
moved to New York to pursue a career in theatre and
acting. Their support, plus Marty's belief that New York
was "the better place to get a sense of the business part"
of show business, led him to begin his pursuits in the Big
Apple.
"They did help me out a lot," he recalls, "I was naïve
enough to think a small town boy can get by in the city -
and eventually you do - but it's hard."
Ron Milky, whom he had met at a talent contest in Jackson,
also supported him in his pursuits. Poole won the contest
for his performance in the three-part competition that
consisted of a commercial spot, a soap opera scene, and a
monologue.
Marty, however, had always felt he would one day live in
Los Angeles, and about a year into his New York adventure,
he met a friend while working at the sports club of the
Paramount Hotel who was moving back to Los Angeles. The
two journeyed to California together where they stayed in
the pool house of his friend's parents' home in the
Pacific Palisades, an estate that once belonged to Rod
Serling.
"Serling used to write there in that pool room," Poole
says in awe.
But Marty quickly became disenchanted with the stereotyped
city.
"I hated it because it was not like you see in the
movies," he says matter-of-factly regarding the city that
has since become home. "It's not warm and sunny all the
time and all the people are not beautiful."
Marty considered abandoning his dream to attend graduate
school, having been accepted at Murray State University.
When he had been in Los Angeles a couple of months, the
struggle of just trying to get by, coupled with severe
loneliness during a time when his friends were away,
combined to send him into a spiral that led him to call
home looking for escape.
"I was pacing back and forth talking to mom and dad," he
relates, "'It wasn't what I had expected,' I told them. I
was not happy."
"Mom and dad said, "Get on a plane, we'll pick you up."
"I called an airline after talking to dad," he says, "A
ticket to leave the next morning was $1600. It was $400 if
I waited seven days. Then it hit me, 'If I wait seven days
I'm going to be fine.' I hung up the phone and laughed; at
that point knew I was going to be O.K."
Still, Marty stayed in survival mode for some years. It is
comforting to be able to pay the rent and have some money
to go out now and then, he explained, describing the
pitfall that sidetracks some performers irretrievably from
their intended goals.
He had been a bellman at Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel
for three or four years when, once again, the American
Film Market convention was held with buyers and sellers of
movies from around the world meeting at the hotel to
promote their businesses.
It was a scene that Marty had watched every year during
his employment at the convention center, but this year was
different.
"I had helped this lady out," he says, "Then later I
helped her check out. She was really nice both times I met
her. Something in my head clicked. I said, 'Excuse me, I'm
trying to get in the business and I really need to work in
it. Do you have any openings?'"
He was referred for an internship in international
distribution, which essentially meant he could work for
the company with no compensation. He worked three to four
days a week for six months before being offered a job in
sales.
"I never wanted to do sales but at least I could be in and
around the business a little more and it was a paying
job," Marty says, "So I started peddling videos to
distributors."
His job has taken him to Cannes, France 20-25 times over
the last seven to eight years as well as to Milan, Italy
and London, England. He has ventured as well to Scotland,
Amsterdam, Korea, Guam, and Australia.
His luck began to turn when film distributor Scott
Vandiver introduced Marty to Yong Ho Lee and David Smites.
Smites had joined Lee in Media Film International to
produce a Korean film that would sell internationally
using western actors speaking the English language. The
group needed a writer, a job Poole had found was to his
liking in previous pursuits.
"Acting is difficult, you audition with a hundred people,"
he says. "Writing was fun for me."
So was born the movie "Yonggary", which in the west became
"Reptilian".
"It's not like I'm doing great things, but I've got to
keep chasing my rainbows and I believe good things are
going to happen."
Having been approached to re-write the script for
"Tracers", a successful stage play over the last twenty
years that is being re-worked for the big screen, Poole
may be on the road for more success than he ever imagined.
"Tracers" follows the lives of eight young men "whose
lives were torn apart by military service in the jungles
of Southeast Asia" in Vietnam. The original stage play,
conceived for the stage by John DiFusco, was written by
Vietnam veterans as part of a 1980 workshop during which
Vietnam veterans sought to cope with the wartime tragedies
they had been forced to endure during the war.
"Matt and I did a small rewrite on it; it was still too
playish. I believe in it, it's worth doing. They were all
there; they were in Vietnam. It's a look of war from
people who have been there. It's gritty - raw - definitely
not a kid's film at all," Marty says, discussing the
project.
Poole continually refers to old friends, new friends and
family who have helped him along the way. He specially
mentions his aunt, Dixie Freeman, originally from Gleason
and now living in Paris, who he says "was always a big
supporter of mine, always pushing me, always behind me."
His mother, Diane Poole, and father, Randy Poole, have
been a source of unending support as has younger brother
Christopher Poole.
His appreciation of those who helped him in his own career
have led Poole to desire to help guide others who have
aspirations to leave home in search of success in show
business.
"It's a tough, hard, cold business," he counsels, "whether
you're trying to act, write, direct, sing, dance - any
entertainment. It's not all about talents and looks, right
place, right time and nobody falls off the truck.
"My suggestion is, you should ask yourself, 'Is this the
thing I want to do more than anything else in the world.'
If there is anything else you would like to do as well, my
suggestion is you can study hard enough, pay your dues,
and you are eventually going to be whatever you study to
become. There are no guarantees in this business. But I do
believe if that's what you want to do that you must follow
it, you've got to chase your dreams. I'm a rainbow
chaser."
Marty can be contacted at marvinrpoole@cs.com. |
