"Gus is the best. Idaho was one of the first movies with which I fell in love. I would watch it repeatedly when I was a teenager. River Phoenix gives the performance of a lifetime, original and inspiring. As a young actor, I needed nothing more than this performance for inspiration. The film is a collage of techniques, plots, and themes, expertly wound together as only Van Sant is able to do. When Criterion released this DVD with a film-length interview between Todd Haynes and Gus, it was a gold mine for an acolyte like me. There are also great old magazine articles, and an odd conversation with J. T. Leroy, before he was exposed. Mala Noche is Gus’s first film. He financed it with his own money. It’s a great early glimpse into many of the themes that continue to consume him."

"Gus is the best. Idaho was one of the first movies with which I fell in love. I would watch it repeatedly when I was a teenager. River Phoenix gives the performance of a lifetime, original and inspiring. As a young actor, I needed nothing more than this performance for inspiration. The film is a collage of techniques, plots, and themes, expertly wound together as only Van Sant is able to do. When Criterion released this DVD with a film-length interview between Todd Haynes and Gus, it was a gold mine for an acolyte like me. There are also great old magazine articles, and an odd conversation with J. T. Leroy, before he was exposed. Mala Noche is Gus’s first film. He financed it with his own money. It’s a great early glimpse into many of the themes that continue to consume him."

"I love that album because it’s in two parts. The first part is mostly him recording everything himself and doing like a print thing where he’s exploring the studio. He’s a great producer – he did Bat Out Of Hell and loads of other stuff as well – he knows studios and studio techniques and trickery. He’s a multi-instrumentalist, and I always enjoy listening to people who are like that because they often approach their second and third instruments totally differently to an accomplished drummer or bass player. But the second part is with his band, who are also great. It ticks both boxes really! I think of these as classic rock songs even though English people never know who I’m talking about. So I feel like I’m part of some little exclusive club, even though everyone in America knows everything about Todd Rundgren [laughs]."