It was scripted. That was in the script. I thought it was interesting because in Japan, I guess, the women are traditionally more subservient. He comes across this Australian loudmouth who is really forthright and kind of in her power and practical and robust, and just loud. So it was a different type of experience for both of them, and she was literally wearing pants.
Why do you think your character becomes intimately involved with this man who is basically a stranger?
I think it’s harsh out there. I think it’s basically that they could have died. They bonded over the fact that they had to survive together. You hear of odd things like people who are in a relationship and they lose their boyfriend and end up marrying the boyfriend’s brother. I think when you go through something as intense as that seems to have been for them, and for people who are relatively closed to suddenly have a little creak opening the door, it just flung wide open, I think.
Are you comfortable with nude scenes?
Yes. I came in that way, I’m going out that way. It doesn’t matter if I take it off in-between. I wouldn’t do it gratuitously. It’s very pertinent to the story and it’s a turning point to these people who never open up to anything. I think that’s the ultimate way of opening up to another human being. I didn’t have a problem with it.
Are you surprised at the film’s critical acclaim? “Japanese Story” has been picking up lots of awards.
There have been three ceremonies of late, and yeah, we seem to be winning everything. I just find it really inspirational that people are willing to stand by and appreciate and support a small film because of its content. There’s no big wham-bam action. It’s a very subtle piece, which has got a lot of emotional impact. I think ultimately the thing that people respond to is feeling. The way we express ourselves, the way we think and feel. I think this film is all about heart. It is surprising.
There are some surprising twists and what must have been difficult scenes to film in this movie.
There are certain scenes in the film which you really can’t prepare for. I know we had rehearsal; I know we were out there and we knew what we were doing. But there’s only so much you can analyze it, then you just have to be there. You have to be open and available and just do it. I found myself just removing myself. If I got in my own way thinking about it too much, I probably would have really ruined it.
How carefully do you prepare the different looks you seem to have in each film? At what stage do you think about how the character is going to look?
I guess if it’s written well, I kind of have an image immediately. Then there’s always collaboration when you get together with the people who actually create the look – the hair and make-up people and the wardrobe designer.
Since we’re talking about looks, what can we expect of “Connie and Carla?”
Nia Vardalos and I play Connie and Carla. We’re these very naïve - and positive because of that naivety - girls. We’ve grown up in Chicago. We’re musical theater enthusiasts and we perform every musical theater cheesy number you’ve ever heard at the local airport. People who have layovers – poor suckers. We witness a murder in the car park, and we flee. We end up in LA and we can’t get a job, and we’re depressed. We’re living above a bar and we decide to have a drink one night. It’s a gay bar and we see drag queens for the first time. We realize that we can still perform and live out our dreams undercover, and they won’t recognize us if we’re drag queens. So women dressed as men dressed as women, there’s a lot of singing, lot of dancing, lot of tiaras (laughing). That’s coming out in April. It was great fun to make.
It must have been an interesting challenge to be a woman acting as a man, acting as a woman.
Lucky I was a man pretending to be a woman so I could still leave some femininity in me – or exaggerate it even more than my own femininity.
And you’re also doing a movie with Matthew Broderick?
Yes. That’s coming out in February and it’s called “The Last Shot.” “The Last Shot” is written and directed by Jeff Nathanson. It’s based on a true story. Alec Baldwin plays an FBI agent who goes undercover as a producer. He gets Matthew Broderick involved as this hack writer/director. They go about trying to make this film but Alec’s character is actually trying to nab this gangster who’s involved with the Teamsters, who are the guys who drive the trucks on filmmaking. I play this narcissistic, totally self-absorbed, sexually outrageous, confrontational, bombastic blonde starlet. Basically it’s her comeback because she’s just had a bit of time in rehab.
That sounds like a blast.
(Laughing) Yeah. It was fun. It’s really funny and clever. It has such a great style to it. It reminds me of like an early Coen Brothers film or Woody Allen, or even a Wes Anderson film.
