A Real Close Encounter - CONVERSATIONS with Ricky Lo

I rubbed elbows with the Glenn Close, literally. My right elbow against her left elbow. I thought it (her left elbow) felt soft and tender and smooth; they were oh-so-real that I could feel it through the long sleeve of my sweater. It was a real Close encounter.

I remember the exact date (how could I ever forget!?!). It happened at exactly between 3:45 and 4:30 in the afternoon of Nov. 13, 2000, a Monday, at a function room of the Regency Hotel in New York. The occasion? Yes, the press junket for the Disney flick 102 Dalmatians (watch out, those spotted little creatures are coming very soon!), released locally by Buena Vista International.

It was at the round-table interview portion, with 12 of us entertainment journalists from around the world eager to fire all sorts of questions (but not the too-personal type) at the great lady whom I gasped at in such films as The Big Chill (as Kevin Kline’s warmly wise physician wife), Jagged Edge (as the romantically entangled lawyer), Fatal Attraction (as the vengeful and rejected lover of Michael Douglas, wasn’t she so hateful especially in that scene where she skinned Michael’s little daughter’s pet cat?), Dangerous Liaisons (as a monster of sexual manipulation), Reversal of Fortune (as the pathetic and frivolous but sympathetic society matron Sunny von Bulow) and now, reprising her role as the fur-loving Cruella De Vil in 102 Dalmatians which also stars the great French actor Gerard Depardieu as the swishy fashion designer Jean Pierre Le Pelt (Cruella’s partner in crime, wrecking havoc on an unsuspecting canine world), and newcomers Joan Gruffudd (yes, he’s a "he") as the good-natured and trusting manager of a dog shelter and Alice Evans as the dog-loving probation officer of Cruella (out of prison on good behavior).

I was seated right next to Glenn and, in the course of the interview, our elbows would rub and the whole experience felt like, to borrow Vilma Santos’ favorite adjective, "Heaven!" to a star-struck, dumbfounded fan like yours truly.

On screen, Glenn looks formidable, so huge and so bigger-than-life that she overwhelms movie audiences with her mere presence. Surprisingly, in person, Glenn is self-effacing, very shy and soft-spoken but dignified and respectable just the same, speaking in subdued tone in a detached but still warm and friendly manner, given to giggles and laughing in-between sentences. She’s petite, believe it or not, and she couldn’t be taller than 5’4" (when we stood side by side, I thought my 5’3" frame sufficiently measured up).

Here are excerpts from that elbow-rubbing Conversation:

Do you like dogs?

"I love dogs! I grew up with dogs. I have four dogs."

What are their names?

"One is called Jigger, the other is called Belle, the third is called Jakey and the fourth is called Petty."

What breed?

"Two are dachshunds, one is a Scottish terrier and the fourth is a papillon."

What’s the difference between working with human actors and working with animal actors?

"How different?" (Breaking into laughter) "Human actors have two legs while animal actors have four legs." (Seriously now) "I had a great time. The dogs were very nice and very cuddlesome. Poor Joan (Gruffudd) and Alice (Evans), they had to spend days and days with the parrot screaming all the time. I was surprised they didn’t go deaf. That parrot was screaming in Joan’s ears all the time! He was incredibly patient through all that. I just had the brilliant Harry, the Dalmatian that plays Dottie, in a couple of scenes with Freckles who is an amazing dog. Freckles played Pongo in 101 Dalmatians and now he’s playing Dipstick in 102 Dalmatians."

Very obviously, you did enjoy working with the fine-feathered creatures.

"Oh, and there’s Fluffy, the tiny dog given to Cruella by Alonso on her release from jail. The script called for a hairless Chihuahua which doesn’t exist as a breed. However, the hairless Chinese Crested dog does. I’d heard of them and I thought they were the weirdest creatures in the world. But Harry is incredibly impressive. I really love him. He’s one of the unexpected heroes of the film and as an actor, he always hit the mark, usually doing what he had to do brilliantly in the first take."

What was the funniest part of doing the movie?

"For me, it was working with Gerard; it was a great joy! Whenever we had scenes together, it was just so much fun. We just had a great time - you know, we laughed and laughed, and simply carried on. Nothing was too much, you know. And he’s outrageous; he’s just outrageous!"

It’s your first time to work together, isn’t it?

"Oh, yes, it is. As you know, Gerard is one of the great actors alive. As a woman, I have melted in his gaze in his movies for years. He has such power just in what he projects out of his eyes and it’s a wonderful experience just to be in the receiving end of that. In that sense, playing Cruella was great."

And what was the hardest part of doing the movie?

"I think it’s the physical demands."

Especially the ending when you’re subjected to those indignities, with the dogs ganging up on you. Isn’t it a bit reminiscent of how your character met her end in Fatal Attraction?

"The two endings are quite different, and I wouldn’t go into details. The ending in 102 Dalmatians is hilarious, outrageously funny and the ending in Fatal Attraction is something else."

Were you hurt during the shooting of the ending?

"Hurt? No, I wasn’t hurt. Sore, yes; tired; yes. I had a lot of massages after that shooting. Yes, yes. Sore and tired but not hurt."

How long did it take you to shoot the ending?

"Oh, weeks! Several weeks! But it came out very well and very nice, didn’t it?"

In 102 Dalmatians you’re both mean and funny. The kids have a lot of fun "hating" you.

"I learned from 101 Dalmatians that the meaner I was, the funnier I was. Children are scared of Cruella, but she also allows them to laugh. She’s like the evil characters in all the great fairy tales, who introduce children to the darker side of life. Children know that darkness exists and they’re frightened of it. They want to look into the darkness and know that they will be rescued. In order for them to understand what is good and light, you have to introduce a very evil element, traditionally it’s frequently a female or a witch or a wicked stepmother. I think Cruella is very much in the traditional fairy-tale witch."

Your make-up as Cruella fits the character perfectly well…

(Laughs) "…It’s like putting on a kabuki make-up. The face is like a mask and the hair is like a helmet. It’s like putting on a kabuki costume; it’s really suiting. The process helps the transition every morning, you know. There’s a time when I look at myself in the mirror and she’s (Cruella) not there. I blink and look again and she’s there."

And your costumes are, well, something else, totally out of this world but unquestionably, outrageously and delightfully funny. (One of Cruella’s most stunning costumes is the one she wears to the dogs’ dinner party, a blinding red dress.)

"It’s one of the greatest costumes I’ll ever wear, truly an awesome creation. (Costume designer) Anthony (Powell) has everything extremely carefully thought out. He has the most creative mind. I have a brilliant wig stylist in Martial (Corneville) and an equally brilliant make-up artist in Jean-Luc (Russier)." (Said Powell in an interview, "In many ways, this film was remarkably challenging because it had twice as many costume changes for Glenn Close. Because Glenn spends half the film not being Cruella but Ella who is politically correct and does not wear fur, I had to be very clever and inventive. Each of Ella’s costumes had to have a story and a joke.")

What was your initial reaction the first time the role was offered to you, when you went over the script the first time?

"I grew up with cartoons. As an actress, I’m always up for anything. I mean, I’ve always wanted to be in a Batman movie. I love that one! I love to be in that kind of a movie, that’s why I was so excited shooting Mars Attack. I simply love playing funny characters."

I’m sure you were comfortable working with director Kevin Lima (who’s having his live-action debut in 102 Dalmatians, having built a reputation as an animation director. Among his works was the worldwide blockbuster Tarzan in which Glenn was the voice of Kala).

"I felt I could trust him. He was incredibly articulate and knew how to communicate his vision. When Kevin’s name came up for 102 Dalmatians, I didn’t hesitate in my support. He’s a very talented man and was incredible in the way he rose to the challenge of directing a movie of this magnitude. From day one, everyone on the production sensed his talent and totally supported him. He’s done a wonderful job."

What’s the real Glenn Close like?

"I value my home very much. You know, it’s ironic that I’m in such a very public profession because I’m a highly-private and reclusive person, you know. I’m always toying with the idea of just selling everything and just returning into the outbacks of Australia." (Laughs some more) "Well, I’m really happiest with fewer people around, you know."

You do have comfortable space around you, respected by the public and your peers. It’s a good thing you have the luxury of being able to choose your roles and the kind of movies you make.

"It’s great because having a say in the projects I want to do makes my choices easier. In the course of my career, I’ve learned that, first of all, you have to have something wonderful on the page, something that you do not mess with. Secondly, I feel that the process is everything; you have to have joy in work. You have to have a team of people that would be worth your life, your time which is your life. The role should be something worth disrupting my life and my daughter’s life and leaving my home for. And that makes kind of easy because I don’t want to spend time with people less than that."

How old is your daughter?

"Oh, she’s 12 and I call her Honey."

To go back to your being a private person…Can you give us an idea what Glenn Close is like away from the limelight?

(Thinks awhile) "Happy!" (Breaks into giggles) "I spend all my time with my daughter watching our animals. We get up in the morning at 6 o’clock. I take the dogs out and then I wake up my daughter. When you’re 12, you need more mirror time. We’re back at home at around 8 o’clock so I can take her to school. And then I’m back home and kind of just wander around, linger around. I’m a producer and my home office is an absolute mess because I’ve been away so much. You know how it is. Then, I pick up my daughter from school and we have an early dinner together. If she has a soccer game, I try to be there and watch her. After dinner, I help her with her homework. If there’s time left, we watch television for half an hour and then we go to bed. The next day, we’re up again at 6 o’clock."

Did you say you want to spend more time in Australia?

"Oh, I love Australia!"

Why Australia?

"I’ve been there twice. I spent one whole summer there filming South Pacific (for a US television) in the northern Australia. We went even farther up into the bush and to sleep up there by the waterfall with just the stars above us - and all those animals around us, crocodiles and others. It’s nice to discover that such a place still exists on this planet, a place where you can have, you know, silence. Silence is getting more and more rare."

Are you a deeply spiritual person?

"I suppose so, although I don’t go to an organized church…" (Thinks long and hard) "…well, I guess so; I guess I am a deeply spiritual person." (Laughs aloud).

What will make you leave home next?

"Well, another good role, whether in a movie or in theater."

Don’t you miss theater?

"Oh, I do, I do! I miss theater - all the time."

After 102 Dalmatians, what’s your next movie?

"After the movie’s premiere in London, I’ll have a break so I can concentrate on a movie I’m developing with a Hungarian director for my own production company. I’ll discuss that movie lengthily once everything is finalized."