lifestyle SUNDAY, MAY 17, 2015 68th Cannes Film Festival US actor Matthew McConaughey poses during a photocall for the film ‘The Sea of Trees’ at the 68th Cannes Film (From left) British actress Naomi Watts, US actor Matthew McConaughey and US director Gus Van Sant. Festival in Cannes, southeastern France. —AFP photos McConaughey open to Marvel or DC role, talks Cannes drama ‘Sea of Trees’ ost A-list movie stars employ a driver, with Marvel and the changing realities of the of Virginia Woolf?” That was valuable as far as I’ve been making are mid-budget or low-bud- myself is it something I’d want to return to. but Matthew McConaughey prefers movie business. an example of their relationship. I spent time get dramas. There are no superheroes. There Would I be excited to go back and put the Mto be in the front seat. “I love to drive You talked about this project last year. You with some different marriage counselors who are no franchises. Those were early to get shoes on the character again? Going and myself,” he says. McConaughey is on his way to said that you and Gus Van Sant had always deal with these co-dependent relationships. made in the late ‘80s, early ‘90s. Robert doing the press tour with that group of people work on a freeway in Louisiana, where he’s wanted to work together. I like a lot of his work That kind of thing. Zemeckis and I met a few months ago, and he again? I always ask myself those questions shooting the Civil War film “The Free State of and we just came together on this one. It’s was like, “You could never make ‘Contact’ again again. It starts with the story and character. Jones” and chatting with a reporter on his cell hands down an exceptional script. It moved Is it difficult to get a mid-budget today, because no studio will budget it.” phone. (“I’m breaking the law,” he jokes, before me. Rarely do I stand up and have to walk drama financed now? Why didn’t you star in “Magic adding, “I have a hands-free headset.”) around and yell at a script on the page as I A year ago, they asked, “Will you come over, Would you ever consider Mike 2?” Was it scheduling? Production wraps in three weeks, but read it. I cried at this script. I was mad at it. I you and Gus, and present ‘Sea of Trees’ [to buy- being in a superhero movie? No. Part of it was scheduling. I did the first McConaughey is taking the weekend off to jet was screaming. That doesn’t happen very ers]? Your passion will really help foreign sales.” I’ve read some Marvel and DC scripts and one. Dallas was Dallas. He’s a lightning rod. I to the Cannes Film Festival for the Saturday often. And it did. What would have happened if Gus I’ve talked about working with them on some didn’t see how he would or should return. I premiere of “Sea of Trees.” and I couldn’t go over there last year? Would scripts, none of which I’ll share with with you never could crack that nut. And so I wanted to The drama, directed by Gus Van Sant, teams What’s Gus like? we still sell a lot of foreign sales? Maybe. As what they are-or were. Yeah, I’ve circled some make it work, but it just didn’t work out. McConaughey with Ken Watanabe and Naomi He’s a sweet-souled voyeur. He doesn’t say many territories. I don’t know. It’s not carte of those. Nothing has been right for me yet. Watts. The screenplay focuses on a man a lot. But he knows; he’s watching everything. blanche, let’s write the check. You have to But I’m sure open to it. Where do you keep your Oscar? (McConaughey) who journeys into Japan’s On this shoot, he’d pick a shot by rolling the work the street, hop on a plane. Even at this It’s at our house on a rafter. It was on the Suicide Forest to end his life, only to encounter dice on a scene. And the dice would give him juncture, after the film is made, there’s value in What would convince you? island bar in the living room. It may still be surprises along the way. “Sea of Trees” was random coordinates of latitude and longitude. us going over to Cannes. These kinds of films It’s very simple for me. I look at the script. Is there. A year ago, I was talking to my son shot in Massachusetts and Japan on a $25 mil- He’d find two spots, set up cameras from those need those extra legs. the opportunity exciting? Is the money that about the tsunami. He was saying, “What if lion budget, and Lionsgate/Roadside two spots and shoot the scene just to see it comes with it exciting? Sure. Is it the possibili- one came here?” I told him, if it came here, Attractions picked up US distribution this from a random perspective. Sometimes the Why doesn’t Hollywood make these ty of going, “Hey you can get on a train and it we’d need to get out of here, and we’d take week. (Critics booed the film at a screening on cameras would end up way in a wire up in a kinds of movies anymore? can be a franchise and you could do 3, 4, 5, the dogs and things like that. And he said, Friday night.) McConaughey was in the South tree. Lets go through it. You have the huge tent- and have a great time as some kind of super- “We’d got to take your Oscar, right?” I of France last year pitching the project to pole action: Marvel, DC Comics, “Avengers,” hero or anti-hero.” But I would also look at laughed and said, “You grab that for me, international buyers, and he acknowledges How did you prepare? “Iron Man,” etc After that, what do you got? At something like that and say, “Hey, in success buddy.”— Reuters that it takes some hustling to get financing for A lot of it was trying to define that relation- the bottom of that, you’ve got a “Dallas Buyers that means you are on the train for a while.” mid-range budget films. McConaughey spoke ship with the Naomi character and my charac- Club,” where you don’t even have $5 million to Contractually, you’re going to return to the to Variety about “Sea of Trees,” his secret talks ter. So a point of reference was “Who’s Afraid do it. You’ve got to do it in 27 days. The films character over and over. It’s something I asked New video-game movies are going upscale here was a time when a new video “It’s difficult to build an audience from game adaptation was enough to scratch unless you’re a big studio who can Tmake film critics gag, but the big spend $80 million on production and money involved is starting to attract a another $80 million on promotion,” new level of talent. Video game movies Noeltner told AFP. “Ratchet and Clank” have an ignoble history in Hollywood, dat- came with “a ready-made and really solid ing back to the dark days of the early fan base”, he said, having sold 27 million 1990s when clangers like “Super Mario copies of the game across seven releases. Bros.” starring Bob Hoskins and “Street Fighter” with Jean-Claude Van Damme A history of mediocrity were stinking up the screen. But the lure It is all a far cry from the first video of tapping into the world’s estimated 1.8 game adaptations, which included nadirs billion gamers has kept drawing film-mak- of film-making like “Double Dragon” and ers back for more, and the new projects the “Mortal Kombat” films. They have an seem determined to up the quality and average score of 14 percent on the web- site Rotten Tomatoes, which gathers scores from critics. Things started to look up a little in the new century, as bigger stars drew larger box office takings. Angelina Jolie as “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider” and Milla Jovovich’s repeated appearances in the “Resident Evil” series generated plenty of money, even if the critics remained unconvinced. The most successful adaptation in the genre remains 2010’s “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Actress Fan Bing Bing poses for photographers as she arrives for the screening of the film Mad Max: Fury Road at Cannes Film Festival. — AP which grossed $335 million worldwide. But that was still not enough to justify its $200 million outlay in the studio’s eyes, and Disney abandoned hopes of turning it Fan Bing Bing enjoys taking fashion risks into a franchise. an Bing Bing is unapologetic about her Chinese elements Michael Fassbender It was also critically panned, even if its bold fashion choices. Never one to plays it “The Chinese elements are something that 36 percent “rotten” rating on Rotten Fsafe, the 33-year-old Chinese actress always you need to feel with your heart because not all Eyeing end to match the success of superhero franchises. Tomatoes is actually the highest ever turns heads on the red carpet with dramatic, things Chinese are suitable to apply to a dress.