The Crowd Pleasers: Jeremy Irons And Annette Bening Conjure Up A Tale Of Sexy, Glittering Revenge In Being Julia
by Dennis Hensley, Gotham
November 18, 2004
“The audience rose to it like swans in the wind.” Jeremy Irons is describing, with characteristic flair, the crowd reaction to his new film, director Itsvan Szabo’s wickedly smart backstage dramedy Being Julia, just days after its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. “It was the first time I’d seen it with an audience, and they loved it,” says the British–born actor who won an Oscar for playing Claus von Bülow in 1990’s Reversal of Fortune and has since appeared in films like The Man in the Iron Mask, Stealing Beauty, and Lolita. “And, of course, they absolutely loved Annette."
Though a slew of veteran scene-stealers turn up in Being Julia, including Irons, Miriam Margolyes, and Bruce Greenwood, the film belongs—heart, mind, and soul—to Annette Bening, who spellbinds as Julia Lambert, a successful but spoiled actor in 1938 London. Bored with her home life and afraid she may be past her prime, Julia embarks on a passionate affair with a starstruck American man half her age (newcomer Shaun Evans). “I love Julia’s foolishness,” says Bening, whose unbridled giddiness in the film’s love scenes is delightful to watch. “She’s sort of having another adolescence, but who of us hasn’t done something that was foolish in a way, but it was what we had to do in order to get on to the next chapter in our lives?”
Bening realized the role of Julia was a “feast” before she’d even finished reading the script. After signing on, she set about persuading Irons, who she knew a bit socially, to take the less showy part of Julia’s husband/manager. “We sent the script over,” recalls Bening, whose past films include American Beauty, Open Range, The Grifters, and Love Affair, which she starred in with husband Warren Beatty. “Then I called Jeremy’s agent and said, ‘Please, please, I’m begging, here.’”
“She did beg,” Irons says with a laugh. “It was very flattering. I wasn’t sure I wanted to do it because it’s not a very stretching role for me, but she persuaded me. I’m very glad I did it because it gave me a chance to play a lighter, more comedic character than I have played in a while, which was nice.”
And now audiences are rising to it like swans in the wind. “I’m so glad,” gushes Bening. “I have nothing against big action pictures—that’s part of America, that’s part of life—but so many people that I know are interested in making more sophisticated adult fare, good movies for grown-ups to see, so it’s encouraging when people respond to it.”
GOTHAM: When you’re making a film, do you have a sense of whether or not the film is going to work? ANNETTE BENING: No, you don’t know. You might do a scene and think, That’s a good scene. But does it all fit together to become something elevated? That, you never know. JEREMY IRONS: The only thing you can know for sure when making it is whether or not you are having fun.
G: Annette, you looked like you were having a great time playing this larger-than-life character. AB: You know, it’s my job to look like I’m having fun and it’s fantastic every moment, but shooting movies is grueling and intense by nature. But this movie was tough and demanding in the way that you want things to be. JI: Annette would come in every day charged up with the right emotions for that day’s scenes, work really hard all day, and then go home to look after her four children. I don’t know when she slept, when she ate, or when she did anything, but she was immensely professional and had a great appetite for it all. I was delighted by her gutsiness.
G: In the film, Julia worries that she’s past her prime as an actor and fears that she’s no longer going to be cast in juicy leading roles. As an actor working in Hollywood, do those themes resonate with you? AB: I’m lucky in that I’m working on things that I love, so I’m not in that moment as yet. But yes, absolutely. How could you live in Hollywood and not think about those things? It’s an economic reality, and I don’t have any illusions about that. I am getting older. I’m 46 and, yes, I can see things are changing, but I’m not one of those people who wishes I were younger. I like changing and growing. So far, I don’t feel bitter, but I know it’s going to take talent to keep finding interesting things to do and fighting the good fight to get those things made.
G: Being Julia is already generating Oscar buzz. You’ve both been through awards seasons before. In general, is that experience exciting? Stressful? A lot of fun? A lot of work? AB: It’s all of those. The last time I went through it, with American Beauty, I was so pregnant. That’s all I think about when I look back, the logistics of that. In a way, it was great to be pregnant at that time, but in another way, all I wanted to do was sit at home with my feet up. On Oscar night, my husband was getting an award and I just remember sitting in the audience with so much adrenaline pumping through my system. The baby was moving a lot. JI: When I got my Oscar, I did Saturday Night Live the night before, then flew to Los Angeles, did the Oscars, and two days later I flew home. Back then, you didn’t have to do the footwork you have to do now. Today, I think maybe these campaigns have gotten a bit out of hand. Still, to win is lovely—like having your birthday.
G: One of the themes explored in Being Julia is the way people play roles, both onstage and off. Apart from when you’re actually working, when in your life do you most feel like you are “acting?” JI: During press junkets. [Laughs] You try to be honest, but it is a pretty painful process doing 20 interviews a day. AB: One of the things that I like about getting older and not being a brand-new grown-up is that I have a stronger sense of, This is me and I can’t really pretend to be anything else. I’m sure I still have moments [when I’m acting]—it’s just insecurity, feeling that whatever you actually are doesn’t measure up to the moment. I guess that’s where friendship comes from; when you really connect with someone and you get to be who you really are.
G: Being Julia was shot primarily in Budapest, Hungary. Did you have much time to explore the city? JI: Not a lot. I had one day when I went to an antiques shop and bought a painting, which is a shame because I love Budapest. AB: It has such an incredible, complicated, and sad history. I had a great driver, Attila, who ran me around and helped me take care of the kids. I was surprised how huge pool culture is there. Water polo in Hungary is like what basketball is here. There are pools everywhere, so there was a lot for the kids to do.
G: Annette, one of your earliest breaks was in the Broadway play Coastal Disturbances. What was the experience of living and working in New York like for you? AB: It was, in every way, the experience that I really, really wanted. I had just moved to New York and getting this part was such a gift. It’s really hard to come up with a good performance eight times a week for months and months and months, but it’s an experience every actor should have. JI: The great thing about playing in New York is that the theater there is more of an inclusive thing. Everybody knows about the shows that are in town. You get into a cab, and the driver says, “Hello Mr. Irons. How’s the show going?” whereas in London it is unlikely a taxi driver would say that. Plus, I love the energy of New York; you feel that anything is possible. I usually have a motorbike so I am able to stop wherever I want to. It’s a great way of getting around the city.
G: What’s the worst thing that has ever gone wrong for you onstage? AB: I don’t have a lot of those kinds of stories. I do remember when I was playing Juliet, I found myself repeating things I had already said. JI: I remember I was working with Stephanie Beecham on some Shakespeare comedy. Something I do to sort of liven things up is to try and get the other actors to laugh. Stephanie was totally poker-faced until I did something finally—I don’t know what it was—and she collapsed into a jelly and became hysterical. The play stopped for nearly five minutes—tears streaming down her face—but we got over that and carried on.
G: Were you pleased with her losing her composure or did you feel guilty afterward? JI: I was surprised by how far it went, but I was pleased only because I’m a bad boy. [Laughs]
G: Were you theatrical growing up? Did you put on shows in your basement? AB: I was kind of a ham, and I did impressions of my mom, but I don’t think it was that unusual. I didn’t even see a play until I was in junior high. JI: I probably did two plays throughout my teens. Before I was an actor, I was a social worker, and, at night I’d travel with my guitar and do what we call “busking.” I’d earn money playing in bars, covering songs by Bob Dylan, Donovan, and Peter, Paul and Mary.
G: Speaking of music, Jeremy, did you once direct a video for Carly Simon? JI: I did. I was friendly with her and I was arrogant enough to tell that her previous videos weren’t good enough for her. So she came in the next day with the demo for her next single, “Tired of Being Blonde,” and said, “Here.” I went away that night and wrote a mini screenplay, and then the record company gave us the money to shoot it. It was tremendous fun.
G: Speaking of hidden talents, what’s something that you’re good at that might surprise people? AB: Sewing. I can make blazers and denim jackets and stuff. JI: I make a very good scrambled egg.
G: What makes the Jeremy Irons scrambled egg so special? JI: The fact that I do it extremely slowly. [Laughs]
G: Jeremy, did playing the villainous Scar in The Lion King affect the way children interact with you? JI: Yes. Parents come up and say to me, “Come and meet little Jimmy.” The kid comes toward you with a smile, then they say, “Jimmy, this is the man who played Scar in The Lion King,” and when little Jimmy hears that he sort of shrinks away. It’s quite funny.
G: When you talk to younger actors, what aspects of the business do you discuss the most? JI: The business is changing so much, so I’m never sure how much my advice is worth. But certainly, if I’m asked, I talk about the art of it all and how to manage careers. AB: I focus on education. I grew up not seeing many plays or movies, so I got so much out of my education. Studying dramatic literature—Shakespeare, Shaw, Ibsen, Checkov—was sort of key to flushing out whatever intellectual, psychological, emotional, spiritual stuff that was brewing inside of me as a young person. When I started doing movies I knew nothing about moviemaking. I had some embarrassing moments when somebody said something to me and I didn’t know what they meant, but by and large it mattered very little. The internal stuff is so much more important. If you know how to do that, the other stuff—how to hit a mark and find your light—doesn’t take that long to learn.
G: Annette, you turned up on The Sopranos recently playing yourself in Tony Soprano’s dream. How did that come about? AB: David Chase sent me the script. I had never met him. I read it and I thought, Now that’s weird and interesting, so I said, “Why not?” I thought the whole episode was really interesting. I was shocked at how many people called me after the show aired.
G: Speaking of surprise appearances, I’ve always thought the woman in the Columbia logo that shows before movies looks a lot like you. AB: It’s me. Well, it isn’t exactly me, but I think they kind of used me as a model. Somebody who worked on it sent it to me in advance. It’s very flattering.
G: What’s next for you? AB: A film called Mrs. Harris with Ben Kingsley. It’s about the woman, Jean Harris, who shot her boyfriend [Dr. Herman Tarnower, author of The Scarsdale Diet] in 1980 and went to prison. It’s a sad story, but such an interesting project to work on.
G: Jeremy, you just completed The Merchant of Venice in Italy with Al Pacino. What’s it like shooting The Merchant of Venice in Venice? JI: It’s very useful. [Laughs]
G: What do you love most about your job? JI: Working with a group of people who are all telling the same story and getting to know them, getting to trust them. AB: That is such a huge part of it, the human contact. I think we’re all in this process of trying to know ourselves, whatever job we have. I love the opportunity to do that through all of these characters and all these different writers and then, by extension, all the people that I work with. It’s profoundly gratifying.