Tuesday, February 25, 1997
FILM:
Famous screen actress learns to cope with invasive media, living
with a celebrityBy Ricky Herzog
Daily Bruin Contributor
She started out as a hostess taking reservations at a
restaurant. Now she is engaged to one of the most famous actors in
the world, and has co-starred in several films that were critical
and box office hits.
And this summer she had her first starring role in the Jane
Austen classic, "Emma," for which she garnered immense critical
praise.
Along with taking in all this success, Paltrow is currently
promoting her role as Clementine, a casino cocktail waitress and
part time prostitute in the upcoming "Hard Eight." The ensemble
drama, also starring Samuel L. Jackson ("A Time to Kill") and John
C. Reilly ("Dolores Claiborne"), tells the dark tale of four
characters whose lives intertwine in the seedy casinos of Reno. The
part is a bit of a departure from her previous roles, but Paltrow
was intrigued by the brilliantly complex character that director
and screenwriter Paul Thomas-Anderson created.
"I really jumped at the chance to play this girl," Paltrow
recalls. "The character is very three dimensional and complicated.
She has problems, and she’s not intellectual or cerebral in any
way. She just reacts and does things without thinking, because she
is completely disconnected from her emotional makeup and fabric. To
find all of that complexity in a role is rare."
Dealing with a character so full of depth and contradictions is
an immense task for any actress. Paltrow has her own methods of
bringing about an emotional realism to these roles; she draws upon
artistic inspiration from a variety of different sources and
areas.
"I’m inspired by good work by other artists," Paltrow says.
"Whether it’s Audrey Hepburn’s performance in ‘Roman Holiday,’ or a
piece of beautiful music — anything that’s good and real and true
is inspiring to me."
Admiring great performers is not the only thing that inspires
Paltrow. She also draws upon realistic experiences to achieve her
aims in acting. She achieved this realism in one of the scenes in
"Hard Eight" by going with co-star Reilly to an actual wedding
chapel without the film crew to enact their on-screen wedding. The
chapel’s videotaper filmed them, believing it was a real
wedding.
"It was the most surreal experience because we were at a real
wedding chapel in Reno and it was so cheap and so depressing,"
Paltrow recalls. "The owner and the guy performing the ceremony
were totally confused. They thought it was a real wedding. In the
movie when you see the wedding video, you see me laughing, which is
totally real. I was hysterical; I thought I was going to lose
control."
But real-life fiance Brad Pitt does not have to worry Â
Paltrow and Reilly are not currently married because they never
actually signed the marriage license. But one source of real worry
is Paltrow’s real-life struggle in dealing with the press, who have
far overstepped their bounds into her personal life.
"The press have become inappropriate," Paltrow says. "I feel
very invaded. People have pushed too far. They have climbed one too
many fences and scanned one too many phone calls. I’m just tired of
it; I never realized how far people will go to get information
about me. So in order to protect myself and my life, I talk less
about what is private and precious to me."
Besides being disgruntled by the invasive press, Paltrow does
not understand why people would want to know about her private life
in the first place. She simply sees her life as ordinary, and finds
it a trivial subject for media coverage.
"I just feel like people are stupid for caring about such
trivial things," Paltrow says. "I think it’s flattering if people
put you on the cover of ‘People’ magazine because your performance
was terrific. But I think it’s really trivial to put somebody on
the cover of ‘People’ because they’re in love or engaged.
"And it doesn’t say good things about our society and what our
interests are. There are far more interesting things to be
discussing than how (Brad and I) got engaged or why I cut my hair.
If people are that bored then why don’t they volunteer at a
homeless shelter or something?"
While Paltrow rejects the superficiality of Hollywood, she feels
a genuine concern for the current state of the world. She is deeply
affected by many of the disturbing events and items that show up in
the news nowadays.
"Unfortunately I’ve been in a state lately where I get so insane
when I watch the news and read the paper," Paltrow says. "I get so
upset about the terrible things in the world, especially children
who don’t have enough money to eat or who don’t have homes. Lately
I’ve stopped watching the news because I just can’t stand it
anymore. There’s so many awful things going on. So I am reading a
lot now, and trying to tune out the world a little bit."
Qualities such as this emotional concern for others are one of
the aspects of Paltrow’s personality that lead her friends and
colleagues to describe her as a grounded and genuinely caring
person. She carries with her none of the brash ego displayed by
some stars in Hollywood.
"Gwyneth is so down-to-earth," Reilly says. "She’s incredibly
fun to be with. In between takes on the set we would turn on the
radio and rock out to the music. She’s also really witty and she
loves to joke back and forth. I was really lucky to work with her.
The whole world is in love with her, and for good reason."
Her lively personality have made her not only a fun co-star, but
a huge star in the public eye. But director Paul Thomas-Anderson is
not surprised that her star status has risen so high.
"It’s not like her popularity is a mystery or a shock," Anderson
says. "It’s just a natural progression for a person as fascinating
as she is. I met her four years ago, and I’d be a liar if I didn’t
say that the minute I met her I realized she was a truly remarkable
person who was going to mean something to the whole world."
FILM: "Hard Eight" will be released this Friday, February
27.
Rysher Entertainment and Green Parrot
Gwyneth Paltrow stars in the new film, "Hard Eight," which opens
February 28.