I can't trash Bowie as he's far too much of a god to me, but I do feel bad for Todd to have had him trash the film in multiple interviews like this. Wow, must that have stung like a bastard. I wish David had just not responded to these questions, but I suppose he had a right to.

I find it particularly catty to bring up Stipe's 5 page pleading letter in a mocking way. I would genuinely love to read that letter, myself. I'm sorry David apparently felt it was pathetic and laughable. Ouch.

I too certainly assumed the Ziggy movie he was supposedly putting together was just a ruse to have an excuse not to okay the song rights.

At the same time, I have to say I remain a bit dumbfounded and perplexed that Todd and Stipe et al actually thought Bowie would approve the song rights. This is a film that very clearly makes the bad guy - a corporate right wing sellout supporter of a Reagan-like president - a quite obviously stand in for Let's Dance era Bowie, himself. Did they think he wouldn't pick up on that? Was he really about to allow his own songs to be used in a film which featured a scene ie "it's okay, unless you look at the world", that then focused squarely on and lingered over the image of Tommy Stone? The message being, Tommy and his ilk are one of the things wrong with the world?