A valedictorian in love

On the heels of Ben Stiller and Adam Sandler, Paul Rust will soon win over moviegoers as the nerdy and love-struck Dennis Cooverman opposite Hayden Panettiere in the teen comedy I Love You Beth Cooper.

I Love You Beth Cooper starts out with a very pivotal and riveting scene with Dennis (Rust) delivering his valedictory address that ended up in utter chaos. It seems that Dennis has been harboring a secret for six years, a chronic case of l’amour fou for Beth (Panettiere), a popular girl in school. Ensuing such truthful and shocking confession is Beth’s enraged boyfriend Kevin (Shawn Roberts) seething with utter fury and indignation, informing Dennis that he better stay away from Beth or he will be sorry. 

Rust shares what it’s like doing the movie.

Have you ever idolized a girl from afar?

My problem wasn’t so much that I loved somebody from afar, it was that I loved someone and then made it very obvious in the same way that Dennis does. It just didn’t take me six years to profess my love, It only took three minutes. I told her and then regretted it instantly.

What was it like working with Hayden?

Hayden’s awesome; she’s really the consummate professional. She has been doing this I think for her whole life and it shows. Hayden comes in prepared, brings a lot of interesting choices to the scenes, supportive and she’s really great to work with. 

There was a lot of physical comedy. I was jumping off roofs and getting champagne corks shot in my eye and it was pretty great. For me, physical comedy is the same as any type of comedy in that the more honest you try to make it, the funnier it is. So when he’s hitting me, I think it’s funnier the more real it looks. 

What do the characters learn in the movie?

On an emotional level, Dennis learns that being scared and being fearful of new experiences can keep you from having a more satisfying life. He has always been scared and he grows up because of this one night. Then as far as Beth’s character is concerned, Dennis gets her to see herself as a more worthy person than she was giving herself credit for. The characters influence each other that way.

Do you identify with Dennis at all? Were you ever nerdy?

Well it’s weird because I was valedictorian of my class, like Dennis Cooverman is, which I think is a typically nerdy thing. I don’t think there are many cool people who are valedictorians. 

Were you popular with girls as well?

No, I had one girlfriend in high school and she broke my heart. And then in my senior (final) year during my valedictory address, I used it as an opportunity to put her down in a veiled way, in the same way Dennis uses his speech. I’d gone to so many valedictorian speeches to hear students say: ”Cherish what you just experienced because high school years were the best years of your life.” And I said, “That is B.S. That’s not true.” I was sarcastic and I listed all the awful things about high school. Six months later, my friend had a tape of the speech and sent it off to a radio station. I was incredibly embarrassed and regretted everything I said.

Did you ever imagine you’d end up as a leading man?

Never. I had no expectations of having a lead role in a movie. When I moved out to Los Angeles, my hope was just to get to do my comedy, to be the funny guy in an ensemble. This is new and it’s weird because it wasn’t anything I had planned. But it is great.

I Love You Beth Cooper will be shown next month.