|
Joaquin Phoenix Who'd have thought that little Leaf Phoenix would have grown up to be a mad emperor and a mini-mobster collecting dirty money in the nude... In The Yards, the new would-be Godfather from James Gray (Little Odessa) about institutional corruption in the Manhattan transit yards, Mark Wahlberg spends virtually the entire film whispering like Clint Eastwood does when he doesn't plan to say something a second time. Consequently, co-star Joaquin Phoenix is forced to actually break a sweat, giving the film what little energy it can muster. This marks the first time we've seen him playing something other than that brooding, interiorised ball we expect from his hormonal puppy in To Die For, his simpering power-mad emperor in Gladiator, or even the upcoming Quills, in which he plays a priest charged with rehabilitating the Marquis De Sade while denying his basic instincts towards Kate Winslet. No mean feat, that last one. PC: Is it true that The Yards, your first choice was the role that Mark Wahlberg ended up playing? JP: Well, I was actually involved this thing for two years before we got the script, the Leo character – Wahlberg's beleaguered Everyman – just didn't interest me as much, I found him easy; I knew exactly what he would do. Whereas I thought the Willie character was amazing. Although it's a façade, it seems like he's sitting on top of the world. But then James decided he liked my face for Leo. PC: He liked your face? JP: Yeah, he liked my face. I think he saw it as Rocco from Rocco And His Brothers. I think that's the face he wanted for Leo. And then he went to Mark, whom he saw as Simone, for Willie. This was about a year after I'd already assumed I was doing Leo and had been getting into my character. Then he called me up one day and said, "I met with Mark Wahlberg, and he feels really close to Leo. But obviously it's your part, so it's your decision." I read the script again, and I thought, "Well, yeah." This is something I knew I could do. PC: But come on, it's the second lead. Do you think there was pressure from above to bow down before the star of Boogie Nights? JP: Actually, Miramax wanted me for the lead. Which is understandable, because at the time I'd only been in To Die For, Inventing The Abbotts and Return To Paradise. So to say that I could play this real charismatic, complex character, I can understand their reluctance. But I went over and went over with some of the execs and told them what I wanted to do, and they got it. PC: Did you feel anything in common with this street – tough and junior Mafia type – basically somebody would have grown up to be Henry Hill in GoodFellas. JP: No. In fact the entire time I was certain the guys I was working with were going to beat me up for being a fraud and being raised in a Valley. I really thought I was going to be a joke. We'd get together with these guys, every one of them, are like [adopts Guido accent], "Hey, howya doin?" And I'm thinking, "They're going to kill me. What the fuck am I going to do?" PC: But this really is a change of pace for you, isn't it? A firebrand crew chief – it's not that interiorised, brooding character you've become known for subsequently, in Gladiator and now in Quills. JP: You saw Quills? PC: Yeah, I saw Quills. You like it? JP: I haven't seen it yet. PC: You should see it. You'd like it. JP: Thanks. I'll try to. PC: On perhaps a more pressing note: how was it appearing buck naked outdoors in Manhattan in the winter? (During a cash handover, to ensure that no one wears a wire, Phoenix and the borough official he's bribing strip down to God's own leisure suit at their isolated rendezvous on Roosevelt Island) JP: The great thing about it was that there were tour boats passing by on the half hour. I've actually done quite a few nude scenes before, but they're usually sexual scenes where they close off the studio. This was just like, "Hi, how ya doing?" Helicopters buzzing overhead. Plus you're on an island and there's all trucks everywhere, so of course anyone who sees you asks, "Hey, what's going on here?" That was a bit odd. PC: Yeah, I saw it on the Internet. JP: Great. PC: Do you have any thoughts on a possible Oscar nomination for your work in Gladiator? JP: Why, do you know somebody? PC: I'm a journalist, man. JP: OK then. I don't think about things like that. It's a wonderful thing; I think it's great to have the people you work with respond to what you do, but it's not why you do it. I love making movies. I love the process. But of course, I'm honored there's even talk. PC: There was a point, as a young man, when you were still known as Leaf Phoenix, where you had obviously had enough. You actually gave up acting for a while. Is it a more serious calling for you now? JP: Well, to be fair, where do you go after Space Camp? Once you've been launched into space accidentally, I mean, where can you really go from there? |