Interview: Eva Green
‘I’m usually cast in these femme-fatale roles, very cool, very sexy,’ says Eva Green. ‘So I’m looking for films which will help me go beyond that. I hope people will be able to see beyond the beautiful facade that I’ve tended to have in my previous work. I want to take roles beyond “perfect features” and everything that comes with that. I want to express myself.’
Having grown up in both England and France, Green, whose recent roles include Casino Royale and The Golden Compass, prefers to live in London although she frequently catches the Eurostar back to Paris to spend time with her parents in their 17th-arrondissement flat and to hang out with friends. Though her mother now fully supports her chosen profession, that wasn’t always the case.
‘My parents were very reluctant for me to work with Bertolucci on Dreamers because of what happened to Maria Schneider after Last Tango in Paris.’ [Maria Schneider suffered a nervous breakdown after the role]
‘But what happened to Maria wasn’t the fault of Bertolucci even though she still hates him. She wasn’t ready to do that film and I was scared of that myself.
‘Bertolucci is always testing you as an actor, and manipulating you, too. But you’re also very free and feel this magic energy while working with him.’
Of her fabulous physique, Green says that she grew very ambivalent about her own beauty: ‘I didn’t want to be pretty. I would dress in black a lot and I’m still fond of a more gothic look.’
‘I used to be very lazy and I’m not the most physical person in the world,’ she admits. ‘But when I was preparing for Casino Royale I had to look very fit and so I started getting into the rhythm of training… Now I run 20 minutes every morning and I’m totally addicted to that. I also do lots of abdominal exercises and I’ve also taken up Bikram yoga, which trains your entire body.’
Read the full interview in our November 2007 issue.
email fabric.editorial@redwoodgroup.net to order your copy
Interview: Jake Gyllenhaal
‘Everyone is the “next big thing”, man’ says Jake Gyllenhaal. ‘I don’t know one actor who is not the next big thing or one person who isn’t the “it” person. I like to have fun, but I don’t see the point of turning my life into a public spectacle.’
Of his chosen craft, the 27-year-old Brokeback Mountain actor says: ‘You find yourself floating in this strange space that comes with making a movie. It’s real and not real. And I’m sure that explains why a lot of actors lead twisted lives. I try very hard to enjoy everything I can about this kind of life… but there’s a whole other world out there. I still question whether acting is something I intend to do for a long time or not!
‘I think of a role as a suit that I’m trying on and I have to make it fit me. I just wish to represent myself. If you give me a suit that’s too large, I’m not going to gain weight; I’m going to tailor it to fit me. That’s a metaphor for how I act and I feel it’s therapeutic for your life. Even if I’m playing a particularly intense or affecting character, like I did in Jarhead or Brokeback Mountain, I can always see my way back to my own self.’
Gyllenhaal, a practising Buddhist, insists on prioritising life’s moments as opposed to ultimate goals or accomplishments. He prefers to take a more carefree approach to a profession that commands multi-million dollar salaries rather than following the path of many big stars who market themselves as commodities. ‘I like being in the position to work on interesting projects and meet a lot of very artistically ambitious people. You often discover that it’s the actual process of working with other actors on the set which is the most rewarding part of this business…’
Read the full interview in our October issue.
email fabric.editorial@redwoodgroup.net to order your copy
LMNTII restaurant
At LMNTII Head Chef Slavko Bogdanovic (who previously worked with Tom Ilic at Hampstead’s now defunct New End) has devised a new à la carte menu of bold-flavoured, Mediterranean dishes such as smoked haddock raviolo with leeks and parsley sauce and parmesan and thyme cheesecake with red onion jam and salad. Dessert fans will love Slavko’s caramelised banana with rum and banana bread and white chocolate mousse with raspberry coulis and coconut shortbread. There’s an impressive cocktail list to boot, and a quirky interior full of ornate glass chandeliers, stuffed animals, antiques and more. And with average spend around £25 a head, it’s a great place if you are in credit crunch panic.
46 Percival Street EC1
020 7253 2524
