Speakeasy caught up with Oscar-nominated director David O. Russelllast week at a lunch at Manhattan's 21 Club in celebration of his role helming "The Fighter." Given the difficulty the film's producer, Mark Wahlberg, had in getting the movie to the screen, the subject of film financing came up. "Sometimes it's a drag," Russell said about the money-raising aspect of filmmaking. The director offered his near-misswith "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" as a recent example.

"I thought at $40 to $50 million was a bargain price...