Sometimes Crashers Turn Out OK

Roughly a zillion years ago, before Harvey and Bob Weinstein were Harvey and Bob Weinstein, they had to sneak into the Palais at the Cannes Film Festival because they were clueless when it came to scoring tickets.

“We were watching this incredible movie, and we were sort of on the steps, and all of a sudden a gendarme decided to remove us,” Weinstein told the crowd Thursday at Miramax’s premiere of “Playing by Heart.” “And without missing a beat, the man on the aisle said, ‘Leave them alone.’ ”

That man turned out to be the extremely persuasive Sean Connery, the new best friend of the boys from Brooklyn. And lo, the years did pass, and the Weinsteins built their indie empire, and then the day did come when the cast was being assembled for the ensemble film “Playing by Heart.” And so did Connery come to be cast with Gena Rowlands in writer-director Willard Carroll’s romantic comedy, as seen through the eyes of several couples.

Not that there was much dough in it.

But, hey, this look at love was a labor of love for the cast, each member of which gave it up for a modest $50,000. Reuniting at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills were Connery and Rowlands, Carroll, Gillian Anderson, Madeleine Stowe, Angelina Jolie, Jay Mohr, Dennis Quaid, Anthony Edwards and Ryan Phillippe.

Chris Doyle was in a tizzy Sunday evening, but we thought the cinematographer for the new “Psycho” was kidding when he corrected Tom Patchett. Patchett, the owner of Santa Monica’s Track 16 Gallery, was introducing Doyle and actor Viggo Mortensen--the two men behind the current two-man show there--as guys who had worked on “Psycho” together.

“We were psycho together,” Doyle said.

Down, boy.

Doyle scoffed at the audience who’d come to hear the two artist hybrids read from their new Smart Art Press books, and he lamented the West Coast’s laughable lack of irony. Perhaps thinking we weren’t yet in his thrall, he added, “Don’t insult me by calling me an artist.”

Hey, no problem. Art maven and panelist Dennis Hopper rose to the defense of all us icky art lovers, and Mortensen spoke for the SRO crowd when he said, “How many people want to strangle this guy right now?”

And that was from a guy who was in “Psycho” and “A Perfect Murder.” Scary.

Irene Lacher’s Out & About column runs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays on Page 2.