This story is from January 14, 2008

'I have a real taste for action movies'

Agencies / Jan 14, 2008, 00:00 IST

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Dame Helen Mirren explains the joys of not learning her lines and why she’s now a big fan of action films.

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Helen Mirren (AP Photo)It’s clearly something of a coup for producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Jon Turteltaub to have got Oscar winner Dame Helen Mirren for National Treasure: Book of Secrets.
A film in which, according to its director Jon Turteltaub, “because she’s been neck deep in cold water, rolled around in mud and hung from cables.”
Mirren’s distinguished list of credits includes television’s Prime Suspect, numerous acclaimed performances on the London stage and a Golden Globe, SAG and Emmy Award-winning performance in a TV series, Elizabeth I.
Here, the charming, funny and surprisingly down-to-earth actress explains the joys of not learning her lines and why she’s now a big fan of action films.

Did it seem like an agonising choice, picking your first film post-Oscar?
I was doing Inkheart, which is a big fantasy film, throughout the whole Oscar process and I think that was great because it was the antithesis of the whole seriousness of the Oscars. Not that I didn’t take the film seriously, but it was a fun film to do. So when it came to National Treasure, I didn’t worry about making the absolute right choice because I didn’t feel any pressure. My work doesn’t depend on my film career and I have always moved quite easily between film and television and theatre.

What did you like about National Treasure?
I loved the way it sparked an interest in history in such a stimulating way. It was fantasy of course, but very well researched. And I think this film does the same thing of walking on the edge between fantasy and reality and takes a fascinating moment in history and using it as a bridge to a great big, very entertaining film.
How did you feel about being asked to play Nic Cage’s mother? Can you see any physical resemblance?
No, not at all! Nor psychologically actually. I’m not a motherly person. I can’t really see myself as anyone’s mother.
Actors often complain about feeling subordinate to the effects or sets on big productions like this one. Do you understand that?
Well, I think the size of the production is a factor. You know, just the scale of the construction, whether the set is ready or not, what the set looks like -- you have to tailor your performance and your lines to the environment.
But then that's our job as actors: to bring the environment alive in some way, whether it's a sitting room or an ancient temple. You can't just be a wooden puppet moving around on a huge set, because in the end it's the human story that the audience is going to respond to.
The received wisdom is that actresses find it hard to get good roles after they hit 40 yet your career has never been better. Does that surprise you?
There are fewer of us around to start with! And, on the contrary, I think if you hang on in there and have the luck and the opportunities to get you out of being the pretty young thing and have your roles grow up with you, then you can go on for a long time. Personally, I think it’s the same with men: people can have a problem getting to that stage, making that transition. One of the reasons I admire Leo DiCaprio so much, apart from the fact that he is one of the great film actors, is that he has forced the world into looking at him as a grown up, which probably wasn’t easy after Titanic.
Any plans for your next film?
I want a couple months off. Of course, part of me still hopes something fabulous comes along and other part of me hopes it doesn’t.
How about another action film?
Yes, wouldn’t that be good. I have a real taste for action movies now. Maybe it’s all I’ll do from now on... TNN

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