Waits and measures

(Tom Waits, John Lurie, and Roberto Benigni in "Down by Law")

Back in 2008, Tom Waits' record label put out an interview he conducted with himself about . . . well, all sorts of things. So it's been around awhile. Chances are, though, you haven't seen it, right? If you want to read the whole thing -- and it's guaranteed the funniest thing you'll come across in a long time -- NPR has the interview posted on its All Songs Considered website. Excerpted below are the two exchanges on movies.

Q: Favorite scenes in movies?
A: R. De Niro in the ring in Raging Bull. Julie Christie's face in Heaven Can Wait when she said, "Would you like to get a cup of coffee?" James Dean in East of Eden telling the nurse to get out when his dad has had a stroke and he's sitting by his bed. Marlena Dietrich in Touch of Evil saying "He was some kind of man." Scout saying "Hey Mr. Cunningham" in the scene in To Kill A Mockingbird. Nic Cage falling apart in the drug store in Matchstick Men... and eating a cockroach in Vampire's Kiss. The last scene in Chinatown.

Q: Can you describe a few other scenes from movies that have always stayed with you?
A: Rod Steiger in Pawn Broker explaining to the Puerto Rican all about gold. Brando in The Godfather dying in the tomatoes with scary orange teeth. Lee Marvin in Emperor Of The North riding under the box car, Borgnine bouncing steel off his ass. Dennis Weaver at the motel saying "I am just the night man," holding onto a small tree in Touch of Evil. The hanging in Oxbow Incident. The speech by Rutger Hauer in Blade Runner as he's dying. Anthony Quinn dancing on the beach in Zorba. Nicholson in Witches of Eastwick covered in feathers in the church as the ladies stick needles in the voodoo doll. When Mel Gibson's Blue Healer gets shot with an arrow in Road Warrior. When Rachel in The Exorcist says "Could you help an old altar boy, father?" The blind guy in the tavern in Treasure Island. Frankenstein after he strangles the young girl by the river.

(Presumably, Waits was too modest to mention his own gloriously irked response to Roberto Benigni's rhapsody over "Walt-a Whit-a-man" in "Down by Law." Also, he must have meant "Emperor of the North Pole," but thinking about Lee Marvin has a way of making even the strongest man lose his way.)