Interview: The Bad Guys director Pierre Perifel on “Reservoir Dogs for kids”

They’re Mr Wolf, Mr Snake, Mr Shark, Mr Piranha and Ms Tarantula, they’re known as The Bad Guys – and the Reservoir Dogs flavour is inescapable.

It’s just one of the film references in the directorial debut from Pierre Perifel, who made his name as an animator with the Kung Fu Panda franchise, among others. Based on the graphic novels by Aaron Blabey, it’s the story of a gang of criminals notorious for their audacious heists and who eventually fall foul of the law. They have two choices – a long prison sentence or turning over a new leaf. But deciding to go straight isn’t as easy as it looks – especially when they discover a real villain is hiding in plain sight.

As he describes in the exclusive interview below, Perifel was sold on the idea of turning the books into a film as soon as he saw the cover. “It was a no-brainer – and a fun read,” he says. “It was like Reservoir Dogs for kids.” With its 70s retro feel and references to other movies, including Ocean’s 11, The Blues Brothers and Lock Stock, it’s a family film that appeals just as much to adults as children.

Getting the right voices for the characters was crucial to making the film work. “The characters were so well defined on the page” that a lot of research went into finding the perfect match. It was a search that ended with Sam Rockwell adopting some velvety tones to play Mr Wolf, Marc Maron as the grumpy Mr Snake and Awkwafina voicing the frantic Ms Tarantula.

There’s a whole series of The Bad Guys books, so is a movie series on the horizon as well? Perifel won’t say, but the idea clearly appeals …..

The Bad Guys is released in cinemas on 1st April | Read our review of the film.

About the Author

Freda Cooper

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Freda is a Senior Writer at The People's Movies. A lifelong movie fan and a film critic for over ten years, Freda’s natural habitat is the darkened rooms frequented by fellow cineastes. She can also be found asking questions of some of the biggest names in the business – from Cate Blanchett to Daniel Craig or Mike Leigh to Pete Docter – or crafting reviews for a number of sites and publications, including The People’s Movies. And listeners to BBC Local Radio can catch her views on the latest releases. She always – and probably always will – cite The Third Man as her favourite film of all time. Her top ten? That’s a moveable feast …..

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