Friday, Jul 25, 2008
A film crew in Panama is too tired to work after sampling local specialties.
Oct 4, 2000 | Sony-Columbia studio executives learned a significant lesson during production of a film in Panama this month. Combining a crew of horny set builders from Ireland with the friendly climate toward prostitution in Panama does not always result in the highest levels of productivity.
The film in question is an adaptation of John le Carri's thriller "The Tailor of Panama," starring Pierce "007" Brosnan. But it might be more aptly titled "The Tail Chasers of Panama."
According to news sources in the U.K., the film's production has been delayed because Irish crew members have discovered the wonders of Panama's brothels. The crew is reportedly staying up until all hours, enraptured with sampling local examples of the world's oldest profession. When it comes time for work the next day, the spent men have lost their stamina and proceed at a snail's pace.
The delays were first discovered when Brosnan flew to Central America to begin filming, and observed that work had barely begun on construction of the sets. One would think that director John Boorman would have anticipated such difficulties, having previously worked under trying conditions on earlier films such as "Deliverance." But the languid progress of a hooker-chasing production crew is apparently even too much for him.
"I sent a construction gang from Ireland to Panama to build certain things, and when I got there nothing had happened," Boorman is reported to have told the Daily Star. "It turned out they were spending a lot of time in these brothels and were too exhausted to work."
Miss Moneypenny would be upset.
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