This is Later with Lee Matthews, The Lee Matthews Podcast More What You Here weekday Afternoons on the Drive, Las Monio is with us. He's a writer and director. He's got a new release out called mob Land. It is out now, starring John Travolta. Nick. The main character is no Chili Palmer or Vince Vega. Is he? He is not? He is not in this one. So this Uh, I don't know that a lot of people realized that John Travolta is still making movies, that we haven't seen him
in a while. No, I think he took a little time off there some you know, personal life gets in the way, and you know, his career is still chugging along, and he's doing well, and he's choosing the right sorry, the right roles. I think I'd like to think at least from right. Well. This story takes place in deep in the heart of Dixie, where a small town is struggling with the rise and addiction. So it's timely and an intrepid sheriff, John Travolta, is trying to keep
things in check as best he can. But then a frenetic family man, uh Shiloh Fernandez, robs a pill mill and starts a whole line of events that starts to Domino. That's that's a that's pretty fair. That's that's that's the basics. Yep. So this is uh, I mean deep in the heart of Dixie. What are we talking about here? What state? Uh takes place in northern Alabama as in Huntsville, a rab muscle shoals. That's that's pretty much it. It's a trinity, uh, Trinity County right up
in there. Okay. And uh So if for you, the the love of this genre all started with Reservoir Dogs. Yeah, that's what I that's what I blame for this. All it was, you know, being in my friend's basement getting the getting the VHS copy of Rosword Dogs and having my mind blown that that movies can look like this, the movies can be this, and and that that set off a whole chain of events. Talking about mob Land, it's Nicolas Mazio who's with us. He is the writer and
director. And what inspired this story for you? You know, it was I'm a I'm a car guy, m gearhead. I was in northern Alabama shooting a photo series of drag racers, kind of backyard builders, and I just fell in love with the environment, with the landscape, with the demographics, and I just figured, I, you know, I had to set
a film there. And then from there on the dark side of my of my writing took over, and I came up with the heist and just all the the rest of the story, and I just wanted to get to that location and that that's that's kind of what inspired the whole thing was cars the New Orleans and mafia enters the picture, which we don't have to reach very far to see to see what the New Orleans Mafia has been up to.
No, absolutely not. And uh, you know, and incomes Clayton played by Stephen Dorff, so he uh, he comes in and starts cleaning up and taking care of business mob land. John Travolta stars in it. It's out now. Is the town where this takes place a real town or is it just ficus fictitious? No? I wanted to I wanted to stay a little ambiguous because it's not so much about the town as it is just the
the situations. But you were exactly right with Hansville, Decatur right up in there, the little, uh, the small towns outside of those towns. It's definitely uh what uh what we pay homage to up there? Yeah, that's I've I spent some time up in there, and uh, it's it reminds me very much. You know, northern Georgia, northern Alabama, northern Mississippi, all of that together along that Tennessee Valley is very distinct, and I don't see a lot of movies made that, aren't you know, backwoods
hick type movies. Yeah. You know, I grew up both my parents born and raised in Mississippi. I'm not unfamiliar with the South. I definitely didn't want to be a you know, a Hollywood story kind of exploiting the South or you know, this podunk rednecks. It's it's you know, I wanted to make sure that we are honest to the people, to the locations, and I think we did that with this. Well, that's one of
the things that I think. And I haven't seen this yet, but just by the looks of the trailer and the looks of some of the publicity stills. Travolta, who is you know, very Italian, very New York, but he seems to have gotten into this role very well and looks like one of the law enforcement officers you'd see in a town like that. These are regular people who do most of the working and slaving and living and dying.
Yeah, I mean, I figured, if if the Magios can settle in rural Mississippi, you know, coming in through Ellis Island and going down to Mississippi, I figured a Travolta maybe just as home down there as well. But yeah, he uh, he he loved the role. He settled in really nicely. He he knew the character. We talked a lot about it beforehand, and he came in ready and I think he uh, you know, I think he nailed it. As far as Sheriff Boat is concerned.
Well, and he's had so much happen in his life, what with the pandemic and the various tragedies, his son, his wife, and he seems to be aging well into his roles. Yo, he is. I think he's uh, he's he's getting to a place where, not to say he hasn't before, but he's choosing his roles carefully. He's really getting into Uh. I would hazard a guest that he probably doesn't need the money and he's he's really uh, only taking roles right now. That they really speak to
him, and he was very excited to play Bodie. He was very uh, he was all in with it. Uh. And it was really fun to see somebody like that. I mean, let's call it a I mean what it is. He's a movie star and seeing him uh, you know, to vote that much time, effort, energy, passion loved into this role, even on a small budget film like this, was really really inspiring to see. Well. And I don't see him doing a lot of where he is the the You don't see him being a law enforcement officer that often.
No, I can't really think of another one where he did. I haven't seen his whole catalog of works. Uh No, but he uh, he's played the bad guy recently, you know, especially with Gaudy and a couple others. He's he's kind of worked himself into those roles. But no, he I don't think we have seen him like that, and he's a I think he was perfect for this. The empathy that he plays, the sensitivity, but also that that kind of toughness, that that that real uh
toughness that a lot of those older southerns than him and have. I think he embodied that extremely well. Oh yeah, Yeah. Did he have to work on the accent? Uh? You know, he says, he says he did. But somebody like that, I think I probably could have said this thing anywhere and he would have showed up prepared with pretty minimal effort, not to minimize anything, you know, he did to prepare, but his accent. Again, having grown up around the South for so long, I'm
pretty sensitive to that. And I think anyone who watches this will you know, heyman doorf shiloh, everybody. I think they put it enough effort in that I don't think you're you're going to question too much. Well, the movie is called It's Nicholas Maggio and it's mob Land. It's out now with John Travolta, and it's everywhere you get your movies. We'll look forward to it. It'll be a great weekend view this weekend. Nicolas Maggio, thank
you for joining us, Thank you so much for having me. Thanks for listening to Later with Lee Matthews, the Lee Matthews Podcast, and remember to listen to The Drive Live weekday afternoons from five to seven and Ihearts Media Presentation