Caffeinated Clint
She’s one of the world’s most beautiful women – and Josh Brolin’s the lucky sod that gets to cuddle up to her every night! – but in her new film "Must Love Dogs", she again proves herself as quite the comedienne.
So how are we supposed to believe that poor Diane Lane can’t find a date?
That’s what I tried to tell them and they didn’t listen to me. Just stand in disbelief for two hours in the dark… hopefully I would play a character different from myself. I wouldn’t have the nerve to do what she did, which is to reach out and allow myself to be forded into it. I wouldn’t be so nice to my sisters. No, don’t think so. But it was an intervention, so that’s the whole point of an intervention it’s not your will but the will of everyone around you.
So what do you think this film will do for the stigma of internet dating?
Well I think it’ll limber it up a bit. It sounded like a great idea, if you’re very fond of a comedy. It’s a great idea to at least eliminate some of the potential mishaps or minimize them. You don’t want to find out after a massive investment falling head over heels on a superficial level but there’s some beliefs or things that it can keep you from dating. And I think this is going to encourage people to take a step forward.
When you first read the script did you see any similarities between this and your “Under the Tucson Sun” character?
The divorcée. I think that was probably it. But it reminds me… I remember with, “A Walk on the Moon” and “Unfaithful”, they were both cheating wives but they were extremely different experiences, different lives, different story but similar in the sense that there’s comedy and a relief of the suffering that goes on.
What was it like for you being in every single scene?
Lets just put it this way, I napped every lunch and Gary didn’t. So I was like wait a minute. You burn a lot of energy being #1 on the call-sheet. It’s not for sophomores. I wouldn’t have wanted to have that much responsibility before I had it because you need your strength and you need stamina. You need to pace yourself and there’s a lot of apologizing to your family because you’re exhausted.
John Cusack’s done an awful lot of romantic comedies. What does Cusack bring to the genre?
A lot of rewrites. He contributed a lot to his character and his characters dialogue. A freedom, a levity, a sense of confidence about what works for him which is a huge gift. It was a great gift for out movie, because Gary trusted him as comedian and he just has this wonderful sense of timing and he’s just confident on camera in that way. I just remember talking with him and he’s like, “Common’ Lane you just take that line and I’ll take this,” and I’m like, “No. It’s not scripted and that means I’m not that confident.” I just start blushing all profusely and sweaty and I don’t know. Even Saturday Night Live, I’d be those people always looking at their words. I’d be really reading it a lot, not being over here and being funny.
How do you choose what projects you want to do?
Well, I think selfishly I am affected by what I’ve done last. So, I want it to be something different than what I’ve done recently. That’s the main dictation for me selfishly. It really has to do with who I’m working with. But the first question I ask is where, honestly. Where is it shooting? If it’s Bulgaria, I can’t go.
What is your role in the George Reeves movie?
Her name is Toni Mannix and that’s such a great name. I can’t believe it wasn’t fictitious. I was like, “There’s a real woman named Toni Mannix?” She was the paramour of George and she’s the wife of the General Manager of MGM but you know in the 50s they found a way to make arrangements and George and her were a couple for nearly a decade.
How is Ben Affleck as George Reeves?
He’s great. I mean, Ben, it was interesting because it was right in that moment prior to him and Jennifer [Garner] getting married and he’s just so charming and so in love and so happy. I was just really happy for him, because it’s a great role. He had a really good time. I know he had a really good time delving into this character. And the truth is stranger than fiction. So we’re making a quasi non-fiction movie. We’re telling the various possible scenarios there. The guy had 3 autopsies performed on him so they never really, that’s why it behooves a movie to be made about his story.
Is the mystery revealed?
I think it’s left up to the audience to form, which I think is much more interesting. Even us as actors were like, “You really think she arranged for him to be killed?” And it’s like come on.
What are some of the Reeveisms that Affleck picked up?
Well, faster than a speeding bullet. He’d always say that. And I’d be like, “That wasn’t his character. That was the announcer talking.” But he loved the sound of it. And he’d say it all the time and crack us all up. We had a great time.
What about “Fierce People”?
Yep, “Fierce People” is coming out in October and “Killshot” hasn’t filmed yet. We’re still casting but I love the story. It’s an Elmore Leonard novel.
– ROBERT SANCHEZ
