A string of new movies round out this summer’s roster of diverse films with something for everyone
Have you ever felt crazy and stupid while in love? At some point, love’s unpredictability has caused many to do the unthinkable. This is the backdrop of the funny and sometimes sobering comedy, “Crazy Stupid Love,” with Steve Carell (Despicable Me, Little Miss Sunshine, NBC-TV’s The Office) and Emma Stone (The Help, Easy A) in theaters now from Warner Bros. Pictures.
Asked has been the craziest thing he’d ever done for love, Carell replied, “I dressed up as the Easter bunny and hopped and around in front of my girlfriend’s apartment. It was not really sexy; it was more stupid than crazy I think.”
Also in theaters is “Another Earth,” a somewhat whimsical account of a parallel planet inhabited by a shadow identity. As the space shuttle program recently ended, this timely tale beckons the question, ‘what if there is a mirror image of me on another planet”? From the creative imaginations of Mike Cahill and Brit Marling, “Another Earth” is a FOX Searchlight film.
Asked what is most realistic about this story though it is a work of fiction, Cahill replied, “The emotions I think are realistic. As director, I wanted to create a world --even though its absurd-- with another earth up in the sky. I wanted it to feel very real and to do that, I was so fortunate to work with such talented actors who bleed and breathed authenticity. I guess the answer to what is most real about the film is the performances, the emotional exchange with the characters going from darkness to light; that feels the most real to me.
Marling added, “I agree with what Mike said. Also, I think one of the things we tried to be real about was, what happens in the wake of a tragedy where your life is going one direction, you have all these plans and ambitions and it seems clear that everything you’ve dreamed of you’ll achieve. Then, in an instant, its erased. How do you begin to rebuild a life where the last 17 years have been in one direction and suddenly you can never be the person that you thought you were going to be. How do you rebuild from the ashes of that?”
The holocaust extended beyond Germany; in France, thousands were left dead during the 1940’s. “Sarah’s Key” is the story of an American journalist living in Paris, Julia Jarmond (portrayed by Kristen Scott Thomas), whose research for an article about the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup in 1942 in France. The French police take Sarah, a ten-year old girl, with her parents, as they go door-to-door in the middle of the night arresting Jewish families. The film is based on Tatiana de Rosnay's New York Times bestseller.
Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard – their secret hiding place – and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released. Nearly 70 years later, Julia stumbles on the terrible secret that the home Sarah's family was forced to leave is about to become her own.
Asked about the ageless dilemma of man’s inhumanity toward man, de Rosnay stated, “I think my main goal was trying to express the horror that I felt as a mother, as a human being, as a French citizen when I discovered rather late in life that this tragedy happened five minutes away from where I live. I learned about it very late in life because it was an event that was so silenced by the French. I’d say that when I sat down and decided to write this book, my priority was trying to explain to my readers that we can’t forget about this, that we need to remember, but, I did not want to give them a history lesson or some sort of instructions to go back and look at this. It was more of using my emotions and my pain to try and reach out and say, ‘OK, this happened, this is how it happened and let’s make sure that it doesn’t happen again.’”
The long awaited motion picture feature, “The Help” is well worth the hype. Based on the critically acclaimed novel by Kathryn Stockett, “The Help” chronicles the exceptional bond between several women brought together through a strained relationship in Mississippi during the height of the Civil Rights movement. Academy nominee Viola Davis (Doubt, Law Abiding Citizen, Antwone Fisher) is the centerpiece of the story supported by an extraordinary performance from Octavia Spencer (S.W.A.T., Coach Carter, Seven Pounds) with standout roles from Emma Stone, Allison Janney, Aunjanue Ellis and Ms. Cicely Tyson among others.
Read much more from the casts of “Crazy Stupid Love,” Another Earth,” “Sarah’s Key” and “The Help,” all here at www.Talk2SV.com.
Talk2SV’s Q&A with Steve Carell
of Crazy Stupid Love
Steve Carell
Talk2SV: Describe your character, Cal, a guy who is about to lose his 25-year marriage, turning his life upside down. Due in large part because he’s stopped caring about his looks and has stopped putting forth the effort to keep the marriage exciting.
Carell: I wasn’t necessarily trying to make “Cal” likeable or unlikable; to me, he seemed like someone who had fallen into a major rut and needed to have the rug pulled out from under him --to wake him up. By the way, that was one of the potential titles of this film, “Wake Up, Cal.”
Talk2SV: I like the fit of your suit you’re wearing, perhaps a lesson learned from the film?
Carell: I’m getting so much of that now, comments such as, ‘you don’t look like a schlub.’ (laughter)
Talk2SV: As far as career choices go, there are a number of comedic actors who balance roles between dramas and comedies. Namely, Robin Williams, Jim Carey, Tom Hanks, Jamie Foxx among others. It appears that you are doing the same given your roles in this film and Little Miss Sunshine. Are you carefully constructing your career choices?
Carell: It’s all a master plan (laughter). No, there isn’t really any master plan; it’s not like this strategy I have. I sort of go with scripts that appeal to me and that seem like they might have something to say, might be funny, might be moving, might be enjoyable. So, it’s a matter of that rather than anything else. It would feel pretentious for me to say, ‘oh, now I want to move toward more dramatic work and show that I can do that.’ I kind of think that’s the wrong reason to go [for different roles].
Talk2SV: Given you produced this film and formerly, your responsibility with NBC-TV’s The Office, do you feel that you are in the driver’s seat where your career is concerned?
Carell: I do and I don’t know how long I’ll be there but I’m thankful for it. It feels somewhat strange to have that luxury and now producing as well. To see a script and say, ‘oh, I’d love to produce and be in that.’ I have to strike while the iron is hot because I don’t know how long they’ll let me do that. But, yeah, the thing I liked about this film is that it was very human. And, for the first thing that our production company (Carousel Productions) is doing, that was important to me. It’s (this movie) not cynical and it’s not unkind all while being funny at the same time. I don’t think something necessarily needs to be mean or cynical to represent edgy. I think edgy can mean a lot of different things and that’s part of the reason we got directors John (Requa) and Glenn (Ficarra) on board because I think their sensibility is a little edgier than some and I just like their take.
Talk2SV: Bad choices were made by both the husband and wife …
Carell: Yeah, people make bad choices but there is also a gray area in life. People aren’t right or wrong. A relationship isn’t one person’s fault or another person’s fault and that’s something that I really stressed in the re-writes; both people are culpable. I mean, I think in most relationships where there are problems, there is fault on both sides. In order for it (the relationship) to work there has to be some common ground that’s shared. It’s not just one person making amends. So, I thought that on the surface, it seemed like the wife made the bad choice but he clearly was responsible for the relationship not working as well.
Talk2SV: You took somewhat of a risk in the way the story unfolds, saving a key explanation as to why the marriage dissolves, in part, because they wed at age 17. Was that by design?
Carell: Well, yeah, I mean, it was done by design. As the movie unfolds, it’s sort of what I like about it too. I think the script is economical in that way; it doesn’t tell you everything that you necessarily need to know upfront. I also think that’s what helps with some of the twists and turns too. People start to believe the movie is going to be one thing and then it turns into something else. I think when you first start watching it, you think it’s a movie about a wing man and a guy who is going to get out in the dating pool, sort of a wacky thing about this fish out of water learning how to date in modern dating society. That is the entrance into the movie but I don’t think it’s really what represents the movie. It does twist at that point and then it does another twist later on, and a couple more and that’s what I liked about it.
As I was reading the script, I thought, within the first couple of pages, Cal jumps out of the car once she gives him this bit of information. I’d never seen that before and I think that was so indicative of the character; it told me so much about the guy-- where he was (in his life) and his unwillingness to connect with other people. Similar to the character in the 40-Year-Old Virgin, this guy just doesn’t connect with anyone, but doesn’t realize that he doesn’t connect. So, that just resonated with me.
Talk2SV: As you’ve closed the door (hopefully for now), I want to thank you for many hours of laughter on The Office. I’ve been a fan for years.
Carell: Oh, thank you.
Talk2SV: What do you think of James Spader (TV’s Boston Legal) added to The Office cast?
Carell: I think it’s a great move. I’m a big fan of his and I think he’s going to be great on the show. I think it’s a good thing because it will be an infusion of fresh energy and I’m looking forward to it.
Talk2SV’s Q&A with Emma Stone
of Crazy Stupid Love
Emma Stone
Talk2SV: In your young 22 years, do you have any unusual stories about being in love?
Stone: I think falling in love ‘alone’ can be crazy; I have done that.
Talk2SV: The kiss between you and Ryan Gosling’s character was engaging and memorable. Describe. How was the actual experience?
Stone: It was great, I mean, you can’t about that?
Talk2SV: Did you have to do it many times?
Stone: We did quite a few takes because we had to get it right you know.
Talk2SV: You have been described as having an “older soul.” Today, you are among the hottest stars in Hollywood. What keeps you balanced and seemingly, a person who is not overcome or consumed by your roaring success?
Stone: I think you can look back through history and look at everybody that was in this position --whatever this position is-- and they inevitably are not any more. Every single person who has ever been in this circumstance and no longer are is just kind of the way life goes. I think you have to hold it lightly and realize that it will change. It will ebb and flow and what’s important is that the people in your life --your family and your friends-- love you completely and entirely. They are always making fun of you and making you feel a little bit of an idiot, keeping you so that one day when this (level of success)inevitably fades or changes or goes a different way, your relationships are the exact same. So, you haven’t really lost the really, really important stuff.
Talk2SV: What do you want audiences to take away from Crazy Stupid Love?
Stone: Well I hope they laugh and I hope they enjoy themselves for a couple of hours because I think that’s one of the best things movies can do. I hope they find it as interesting as I did because there’s so many gray areas to love and so many circumstances where you could look at it as judging a book by its cover. One could look at Jacob (R. Gosling) as a real lothario but isn’t really underneath it all.
You could look at Emily (J. Moore) who cheats on her husband but for some reason you are rooting for them to get back together. You look at all these circumstances that, on paper, look like you could figure them out right away then you see the intricacies of these relationships and you realize that everything is individual. That you can’t really make rules in love because it’s such a crazy thing; it’s such a crazy stupid thing.
According to industry reports from Jeff Sneider of Variety.com, Stone has saddled up for new film that will reunite her with Crazy Stupid Love costar Ryan Gosling
Warner Bros. Pictures has cast Stone in "The Gangster Squad," directed by Ruben Fleischer ("Zombieland"). Stone would play Jean, a sharp-tongued siren caught in a love triangle with Gosling's character and Penn, who portrays mobster Mickey Cohen.
Stone has had a busy summer. In addition to Crazy Stupid Love Stone also stars this summer in Tate Taylor's "The Help," opening Aug. 10, and "The Amazing Spider-Man," opening July 3, 2012.
Talk2SV’s Q&A with Julianne Moore
of Crazy Stupid Love
Julianne Moore
Talk2SV: What were your thoughts when you first read the script for Crazy Stupid Love?
Moore: Well, honestly, when I first read the script, from the very first page I laughed out loud and the script continued to be unexpected, funny and inventive. It was really well constructed.
Talk2SV: From the opening scene at the restaurant with your character in heels and her husband in athletic shoes portends an interesting dynamic about to happen. Typically, in these types of films when the couple splits its because the wife has let herself go and the husband wants a younger lover. It was refreshing to see the roles reversed. What are your thoughts? Sandra Varner: Well if I may, that opening scene at the dinner table where we she’s in heels and he’s in tennis shoes, I just think that is so striking because usually in these movies it’s always the lady portrayed as the one who lets it go and the guy is looking for somebody hot.
Moore: We talked about that a lot with the directors and with the costume designer. My character was someone who had kept up with fashion and who was invested in her life, invested in the time she was living in and she was modern. She was current and hadn’t become complacent. Thus, she’s the one who feels that her husband has and that they have somehow stopped communicating. Whatever is going on, they are not in the same place, which obviously is what leads to these kinds of conflicts.
Talk2SV: You worked alongside several amazing guys in this film: Steve Carell, of course, Kevin Bacon and Ryan Gosling. Talk about the chemistry on the set.
Moore: Yeah, I think it was important in this movie for everybody to be a well-drawn human being and that none of us were going to be devices. Kevin Bacon is not a device; he’s a person so that idea that you have an office colleague who has been paying a lot of attention to you who is a really nice guy. You have a date with him but it doesn’t mean that one guy is good and the other one is bad. The challenge was tonally and it owes so much to the script and to the directors who kept everything going.
Talk2SV: Yes, the cast is dynamic. Did anyone surprise you?
Moore: I think the surprise was that everybody was, it sounds so corny but, it really is, but everybody was so nice. It was so pleasant on the set because we all really enjoyed each other’s company; we laughed a lot. I thought Ryan was going to be very serious and he was not serious at all, so, that was a surprise. It was a really easy group [to work with].
Talk2SV: So would you say that your character is undergoing a mid-life crisis?
Moore: I think they both are. I mean, all a mid-life crisis is the point in your life when you realize that you’ve got more of your life behind you than you have in front of you. You think to yourself, ‘well, what do I want to do with the rest of my life, what changes do I want to make and am I happy?’ I think my character just thinks that this isn’t the life she wanted for herself. She wants something else from the relationship, maybe not someone else but, something else. I think for her husband, it shakes him up and makes him reexamine things too.
Talk2SV’s Q&A with Ryan Gosling
of Crazy Stupid Love
Ryan Gosling
Talk2SV: You are known more for dramatic acting however, in this film, much has been said about your comedic side. Do you think you are funny?
R. Gosling: Yes, I’m just trying to convince you of that (laughter).
Talk2SV: There are a number of scenes in this film with your physically toned body on display. Were any stunt doubles used?
R. Gosling: (Describing the Dirty Dancing scene with Emma Stone) Yeah, I kept trying to lift her up but her whole body would like turn into a bag full of rats. I was trying to wrangle it and she kept saying “you’re going to drop me.” Then she dared me to prove it and that’s when we brought a stunt lady in even though I did it ten times in front of her (Stone), never dropping this young lady (stunt woman). When it was over Emma was like, “well, now, that you’ve done it ten times, you’ve got to be tired …”
Talk2SV: Was there any hesitation on your part to do this role?
R. Gosling: I’ve never done a comedy before; I’ve never done a film like this before so, that was scary.
Talk2SV: Is that why you did it?
R. Gosling: No, I did it because I love Steve Carell, I just love him and I think he’s the best. When I first moved to Los Angeles I did a pilot; I was 17. I had a small part, so did Steve and he was so funny that I would go to the set just to watch him work. One time, he was so funny, the boom guy had to throw down his mic and had a laugh attack in the corner. I’d just never seen anyone that was so good it was a problem. So, I just became a huge fan. I started watching The Daily Show, then watched all his movies. I even loved him in that movie, Over the Hedge, where he plays a squirrel that loves energy drinks. When I heard there was a film with a part that I could have, I just wanted it and would have done anything, really. I got lucky that it was such a good role with a great director and a great cast.
Talk2SV: Did he remember working with you?
R. Gosling: No. When I went in for the meeting with him (to discuss Crazy Stupid Love), I thought I had it in the bag because we had worked together, but he didn’t remember.
Talk2SV: What was quite memorable about you in this film is your character’s wardrobe, stunning. When I’ve seen you in times past, much like today, you’re dressed very casually (wearing t-shirt and jeans). Did you have much involvement or say so in the clothes that were chosen for you in this film?
R. Gosling: I worked with Dana Pink. She designed the costumes for the film and she really helped me put that look together.
Talk2SV: Did you keep anything from the set?
R. Gosling: No, they wouldn’t let me.
Talk2SV: Really?
R. Gosling: Yeah, can you believe it? All those nice suits tailored just for me are sitting in a warehouse somewhere; I don’t see what good that does anybody (smiling). I would be wearing them right now.
Talk2SV: Your career is going well. At this point, when you watch any of your work for the first time, do you feel more comfortable seeing it in a private screening room or do you like seeing it the first time during a premiere with fans?
R. Gosling: Well it’s never good and there’s no way to do it. You just have to do it. You have to see it once and then never see it again. Last time, when I watched Half Nelson for the first time, I was at my friend Jamie’s house, who produced it, and I cried by his pool. I told him how sorry I was that I let him down. Then the same thing happened when I saw Blue Valentine. I can’t watch these movies alone. I tried watching them in a screening room and it doesn’t really help; it’s always hard to watch yourself, I guess.
Talk2SV: When you saw the final cut of this film, were there any particular scenes that pleased you?
R. Gosling: Well, it was nice that they let us have a lot of freedom. The apartment scene between Emma and I was largely improvised. I was really happy that they kept most of it. Emma does this amazing Lauren Bacall impersonation and I was glad they kept that.
Talk2SV: What characteristics or personality traits do you share with your character Jacob? Can you relate to him at all?
R. Gosling: Not really. I don’t know if anyone can. I mean, he’s just a kind of Bugs Bunny. I relate more to Steve’s (Carell) character.
Talk2SV: In what way?
R. Gosling: I mean, it would have been easier to relate to. Jacob was hard to play but I guess that was part of the challenge.
Talk2SV: How are you with the ladies in real life; are you as good as your character Jacob or are you more of the shy, introverted type? Because you are Ryan Gosling, it seems that you would have no problem attracting the ladies.
R. Gosling: I don’t know what to say. They come up to me and when they realize I’m not Ryan Reynolds, they go away (smiles).
