By Phillip Nakov
A small group of select press was invited to sit down for lunch today at the Vitamin Beach Club here in Cannes. MovieSet was lucky enough to snag a seat and then got to chat with the stars of one of the most explosive and soon to be awarded movies of the year.
The movie, set in Harlem in 1987, tells the story of Claireece ‘Precious” Jones, a sixteen-year-old African-American girl born into a life no one would want. It’s a powerful and moving movie that will impact you like no other movie has in ages.
Joining us today at the press conference was Lenny Kravitz, Mariah Carey, Paula Patton, Gabourey Sidibe (Precious), director Lee Daniels and screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher. They all looked amazing and posed for some photos prior to sitting down. (See below) As each of them was announced, the attending press applauded but really quite wildly for both Gabourey and the writer Geoffrey Fletcher. Early word on the street points to a possible golden future for the young lady come awards season.
To get things started, our moderator, asked the first question to explain the whole genesis of the project. Lee Daniels, the film’s director, started off talking about the rights to do it, the novel and what he had to do to get it made.
Lee Daniels – “I read this book many years ago and it stayed me. There are very few books that stay with me. Roots stayed with me. The Color Purple stayed with me. And this is sort of that urban edgy sort of thing that was a modern-day version of those books. And I slept with it. I was oh my god, this is harrowing but at the end of the day, there was light at the end of the tunnel. I felt that it had to be brought to screen. I was looking for money for the film. I optioned the rights. She would not give me the rights, Sapphire. There were many famous people and many studios presidents who she’d been courting. She wanted to be safe. She is an auteur. She is one of the most profound writers and poets that I know. She was very particular about who had her baby so she kept passing on it for me and then she said okay. Then came the financing for it. I knew this would not be financed by a studio. So I am knocking on doors and I ran into Jeffrey Fletcher . I came to him as one of many people for financing. In passing I came to find out he was a writer and we had a connection. We made a connection in that room. I looked at his work and was blown away. I wanted him to direct my movie. But he said he also wrote too and he wrote this script and it took my breath away. I told him I think I want to direct this movie and I got the money and here we are.”
At this point our attention shifts to Mariah.
Mariah, your performance was stunning. The casting was a really interesting choice. Lee, how did you know you could do this?
Lee Daniels: “Hellen Mirren was originally going to play the role because she had just worked with me. Mariah and I are very good friends. I felt it was very last minute and it just sort of happened. I was surprised to know that she was as in love with the book as I was. She never asked me to be in the movie. She was like, oh, it would be nice… (Laughter from Mariah…) Hint, hint… I never even thought that she would be right… but then I thought that if I was making such a bold movie, how bold would it be to cast Mariah? Why not go all the way there? I asked her if she could dye her hair, put on a wig, take off the makeup and darken under the eyes… I believed then she would begin to give me her soul. And she did. People would ask me what was it like? A complete honor to work with her. I love her. She is my very good friend and it was an honor.”
Mariah then speaks up, “And that’s exactly how I feel. I knew Lee was doing the movie ‘Push.’ (The original title of “Precious” was ‘Push’ based on the novel by Saphire. I had read ‘Push’ like years ago when a friend of mine gave me the book and it changed my life, literally. I don’t know how many of you have actually read Sapphire’s book but it’s intense and it is life-changing. For me and my friends who had read the book, we were so excited knowing Lee and know that material. When we actually talked about it, we said it was a last minute thing and I said let me just kind of peel layers away of who the world thinks I am and who even I personally think I really am as a performer, as anything.”
It should be noted that Mariah completely transforms her look for this movie making herself almost unrecognizable and as far away from the glamour gal she has become known to be. When this movie opens to US audiences, “Glitter” will immediately become wiped from everyone’s memories. If ever there was a rebirth or a role of redemption, this is it. This role has already altered Mariah’s cred in the film community and she has been getting roles following Sundance where ‘Precious‘ premiered, just based on her performance.
Mariah continued to explain what she wanted to do with this role “… really truly become this woman who has the large responsibility … kind of which, in a way, she is the audience. She is that shocked person who hears about what goes on and has to kind of bare her soul because she is hearing something so horrific that she has never heard before. And I think a lot of people feel that way when they see the movie. So, how could I think of to do it? Because I know that there is a creative side of me that needs to do work like this and I trust Lee so much… I am just grateful that we are part of this event and we’re here.”
Shifting to the other talented singer at the table, the next question was directed at Lenny Kravitz who showed up wearing cool reflective shades and a calm demeanor. He explained that he is on tour in France at the moment and was here in Cannes only for the day to promote the film. Lenny, your character. How did it come to be?
Lenny speaks calmly as he explains, “I met Lee for the first time at a… Julian Schnabel introduced us at Mr. Chow one night. He’d been trying to reach me… but he could never get through to me. We met, we discussed doing a film together. I didn’t have time at the time, I was on tour. I was thinking about doing another movie at the time. He was like, I’d like you to come in and do this character, his name is John. It’s a small world. I got two days to come in and see how it felt to work together. It was a very interesting. It was very quick. What they wanted to do was to make me disappear. So he started in with you can’t walk like that, you can’t move like that, your hand can’t do that. You can’t talk like that, and liletterly in an hour, completely changed my whole vibe. As for somebody who does his own thing, I make my own music, I write my own music, I play all my instruments. I’m known as a control freak, as people like to put it. I just like to do what I do. It was really great to do something first of all that I don’t abnormally do, which is acting. Completely give up all control which is what I always have for this character I am grateful to have done it. I am glad to be playing a role which is the only real male character in the movie, that is supporting this young woman in the movie. Who’s there for her, but who admits his own problems. I am glad it’s my first role.”
Smiling and looking especially glamorous, Paula Patton was seated between Lenny and Mariah and she looked radiant and happy. She was always smiling and seemed to be having a terrific time. She replied on the same question about her role.
“I became introduced to the film when my husband and I were at a dinner party with Lee and somehow they started talking and discovered that I he is married to me and he was trying to get me the script and my husband read it and said you have to read it. So I read it and it made me cry. But I was afraid. I was afraid of playing this teacher role. I had seen it before in the movies and I just didn’t know. I wanted to play a different spin on it. But I knew I had to do it because my mom had been a teacher for 28 years in the LA Unified school district and I felt it was in honor of her. So, that’s what first started it. You know when you start out you never know if you are going to get a job. You go to class. You hope that you might get lucky. To be a part of something so artistic to be challenged the way he did and to know that at the end of every day Lee wasn’t going to leave till he got your best performance. And there is so much trust in that. You want to work with director time and time again.
At this point everyone’s attention turned to the youngest actress at the table who hadn’t said anything yet and had been sitting quietly watching and listening to the discussions. To get her going our moderator we started by asking her where she come from? To which Mariah chimes in, “from the heavens.” The room laughs and Gabourey smiles shyly.
So tell us how did you got the role and how you got here?
Gabourey speaks in a light cheerful tone, full of wonder and hesitation at first. You can’t help but fall in love with her timid voice and smile.
“Well, I am from New York. I am actually from Harlem. Which is where Precious is from.” She laughs. “I wasn’t going to be an actress. I was a college student. I was a psych student. I had done a lot of plays in Leeman College in the Bronx. I never really thought of it as a career. I thought it was really hard and quite frankly I am really lazy. I never considered it as an actual career. I did it for fun. I knew the book. I am actually a pretty big fan of the book. My mother was approached to play Mary, this was years before I auditioned. And it broke her heart. She made me do this. So I did it for my mother. It’s a tremendous role to take on. She told me I should audition for Precious and I told her ‘you think I can do everything, mom.’ So it went out of my head for two to three years. Then a friend of mine told me they were casting for it. Since there weren’t that many people that had the physical requirements that Mr. Daniels was looking for, so I went in. It was literally the first week of classes and I really didn’t want to go… but I went and I got it two days later. Now I am a movie star.” (At this point we all break into applause. Surprisingly, the usually jaded press corps was showing spirit and support for our young new star.)
So tell us, are you enjoying the glamour and sunshine of Cannes?
“Oh, this is all the sunshine I need. I am having the most fun ever. More fun than I could imagine. This is completely glamorous. This is nothing like I thought my life would be. ”
We certainly appreciated all the efforts of the filmmakers, Lionsgate and Premiere PR for making this lunch and press conference possible. It was an intimate setting and a everyone really gave it their all.
The movie ‘Precious‘ continues to wow audiences everywhere it plays. This moving and powerful picture arrives in theaters in the US November 6, 2009.
Be sure to check out the trailer and photos from the movie at the movie’s sitelet.
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