At the Toronto Film Festival, there was a mixed reception for "In the Cut" and its intense sex scenes. I had a chance to speak with Mark Ruffalo after the movie's festival appearance and question him about the film's mixed response:
How are you dealing with the response to the film?
I haven't really given it much thought. You know, it’s something that there’s nothing I can do about it at this point in the game. I know for me, I know how I feel about that film and that's all I can really pay attention to at this point.
How do you feel about the film?
I'm really proud of it. I think it’s a really adult, really beautiful cinematic piece of work. I think the characters are really complex. I think it’s really honest and it doesn’t objectify women. It’s a really harrowing piece of storytelling. At the time, it was one of the premiere experiences of my acting career - working on that picture.
Why?
Because of my relationship to Jane [Campion], the way she works, her absolute honoring of the actors' process. I haven’t worked with a director who really had such a handle on what an actor needs to go places they’ve never been before. It was the type of thing that pushes your boundaries, pushing what you think you’re capable of. There’s always the next level - this bottomless human potential that Jane’s really aware of. I think you see performances in that movie that you've never seen from these particular actors.
How does she help you grow as an actor?
The way she sets up background work. She put me in touch with countless detectives and was constantly urging me to go out and find my 'Malloy,' to find the Malloy out in the streets, the real conglomeration of different real people. [And] just sitting down and talking about the part. It was the [closest work to] recalling the theatre I’ve done over the years. It was the most in-depth study of these people and trying to be as honest as possible to these people within the structures of that genre. It’s really satisfying. I think that, like all of Jane’s movies, it calls for a certain kind of maturity from the audience. It isn’t simple and it's really modern and honest, unflinchingly so.
Don’t you think the fact that it did generate all this buzz and that people are talking about it - either positively or negatively - is a good thing?
Yes, yes. It’s amazing how heated people get about it. It’s nice to be a part of something that isn’t just fodder, sort of like 'entertainment.' I think it does bring up strong opinions in people, and I think that's kind of exciting. It doesn't happen often.
After doing all these dramas, are we going to get to see a lighter side of you again, maybe in "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind?" Is that lighter fare?
Yes, that's very light.
How would you describe your role?
That's a kind of goofy throwback about a guy who wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s completely so head-over-heels in love with Kirsten Dunst’s character and it's completely unrequited. He’s very funny and sort of sad - but in a humorous sort of way.
