| |
| |
 |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
SINGAPORE : When John Krasinski (from American TV's "The Office") got a call about a movie with Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin, he immediately said yes. "And I hadn't even found out that Steve Martin was going to be in it, too!" he laughed. "With a cast like that I would have been happy to play the waiter that shows up for a minute - or any role."
Yes, as Krasinski knew quite clearly, a cast doesn't get any finer than the pow-wow combination of the incomparable Meryl Streep, comedic genius Steve Martin and the unsinkable Alec Baldwin - united in comedy for Nancy Meyer's latest film "It's Complicated".
But will a rom-com about love, divorce and the romantic entanglements of people old enough to have children the age of actors who usually star in these rom-coms actually work?
How will it draw an audience that seems more interested in blue alien action-adventures, vampire angst, and comic book superheroes? One word: Chemistry.
The mix of Her Royal Streepness, a silver-haired funnyman banjoist and a never-say-die "30 Rock"-er results in a fabulous amount of chemistry not even a 10-foot-tall blue ET can beat.
And as they share their affection and respect for one another other in this interview love-fest, it's very apparent where the on-screen chemistry comes from.
Like they say, the proof is in the pudding. Or, in this case, the interview.
What was it about "It's Complicated" that made you want to be in it?
Meryl Streep: For me it was the script - it made me laugh and felt so complete. You could see how the entire story played out in your mind. It's extraordinary because some scripts you read have big imaginative holes in them and you don't really know how they are going to turn out, but this one was plotted very tightly.
Steve Martin: When you have a very good and tight script, you feel that the film is already done, even though you haven't started shooting yet.
Alec Baldwin: I liked Nancy Meyers' script and I wanted to work with her. And then when I found out that Meryl Streep was going to be in it, I was very excited. It was an opportunity I just couldn't pass up.
Steve: (Working with Meryl Streep) I equate to playing tennis with someone who's better than you are and it always seems to make you better.
Well, she is Meryl Streep. What was it like working with the boys, Meryl?
Meryl: I loved working with Alec because he is just so funny. And he is one of the best mimics that ever lived. I mean, he could make a living out of impersonating people.
Alec would keep us laughing as Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Christopher Walken and even Steve Martin! The truth is that he is a big magnet that pulls you into his sphere. Alec is amazing. He's irresistible.
Steve is a really wonderful actor who has gorgeous comic taste. I worried that the balance of Steve's character would be offended by how much, uh, time Alec is able to commandeer from the movie. (Laughs)
But ultimately I think he's more than a match. I'm the luckiest girl to have worked with these two fellas, because they're both so wildly, inventively funny.
So we take it you all got along.
Steve: It's just great when you feel you can kid with someone on set and they can do the same thing back at you. That doesn't always happen, but it did during this shoot ... Alec is fantastic in the movie, and we got along really well and had a good time. I believe he should be nominated for Best Actor. I adore the guy,
Alec: (Laughs) Steve is Steve. Steve is one of the greatest comic actors in the world. He has made films that are so smart, crazy and even indelible. "Pennies From Heaven", for instance, is one of the most beautiful musical comedies shot in the last 50 years. I also loved him in "Shopgirl".
All this mutual love should serve you both well when you co-host the upcoming Oscars together. Are you excited?
Steve: Very much, and even more because he (Alec) is excited too. I think we have a very good rapport. It's funny, because working it out for us has been like a new relationship.
Alec: The Oscars has two audiences: The television audience at home and the people in the room - whose life could change that day. And we want to please them both. I predict there will be excitement, tension and women in fabulous gowns!
Tell us how you see your characters?
Meryl: Jane is the mother of three kids and a woman who is used to being alone. I like the combination of the contradiction of someone who is in control and has solution-orientated herself in her life, but at the same time is insane, passionate and willing to go off the cliff with both these men.
Alec: Some men remarry a second time searching for the woman they thought they wanted, but forgetting they had gotten older. And I think Jake acts with that kind of information.
Steve: I understand my character Adam because I have sort of been there and listened - like him - to those self-help tapes. Adam approaches things logically and is aware of red flags. I feel it is a serious comic role or a comic serious role.
With all your respective experience, how confident are you in your craft now?
Alec: I like to do both (TV and film) because I find that movie audiences date you but television audiences marry you. And it's great when you are sometimes given the opportunity to take your career in a different direction.
Meryl: I still ask myself the same questions before a scene: Is this the way I should say this? Does it make sense coming out of my mouth? Does it kick off some invention in me or does it stop dead on my tracks? They are the same problems you always have in trying to make a character feel authentic, because even if the situation is wildly comical it still has to be rooted in something real.
Steve: If I'm writing something, I try not to know what the ending is because if I don't the reader won't either. And I think the same thing applies to acting, because you need to make that line come out and surprise yourself and the audience.
Is it important to not take oneself too seriously in life?
Meryl: I believe that if you have reached a certain age and you are not laughing at yourself, it probably means that you haven't recognised all the things that are funny.
"It's Complicated" opens in cinemas January 14.
- TODAY/rs
|
