Hey everyone. Capone in Chicago here. Say what you want about his politics, but Tim Robbins is quite simply one of his generation's finest actor, as well as a stellar director of such films as BOB ROBERTS, DEAD MAN WALKING, and CRADLE WILL ROCK.
As an actor, Robbins started out in smaller roles in NO SMALL AFFAIR, THE SURE THING, and TOP GUN, and quickly moved up to bigger roles in HOWARD THE DUCK, BULL DURHAM, TWISTER, THE PLAYER, CADILLAC MAN, and THE HUDSUCKER PROXY. Probably the crowning achievements in Robbins' filmography are THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, CODE 46, THE SECRET LIFE OF WORDS, WAR OF THE WORLDS, and his troubling, Oscar-winning turn in Clint Eastwood's MYSTIC RIVER. His latest film is in Neil Burger's THE LUCKY ONES, which opened last weekend.
Robbins was one of the more conversational people I've talked to recently. Here's my all-too-brief interview with Tim Robbins. Enjoy!
Capone: A couple of weeks ago, [director] Neil Burger was in town, and we had a very long chat. I remember at one point, he turned to me--because he was fretting about what it was going to take to get people into the theater to see THE LUCKY ONES. That seems to be the problem with any film that deals, even peripherally, with this subject matter--and he said, “What do you think it’s going to take to get people in there?” What do you think about that?
TR: Well, I can tell you from my experience…I had received a lot of scripts about Iraq, some good stories that were steeped in anxiety and pain. I wasn’t necessarily interested in that as a story to tell at that point, but when I received this script, I was struck by the humanity in it and the humor in it. It told a story about three people returning, but it was more resonant for me, based on my experience talking to veterans than the other ones had been. I guess that has something to do with the idea that these people are human beings, and they have their problems. But they also have their will to survive, and their camaraderie that is inherent in every soldier of helping their brothers and sisters in the armed forces in circumstances that are difficult, and it kind of eliminated that as well. And, the fact that word ‘Iraq’ was not mentioned once was also kind of interesting to me, because it was always present. It was always the elephant in the room, but it was beneath everything. I always find that good writing doesn’t state the obvious. It has the subtext of it prevalent, but it really is more about compassion and survival and love.
Capone: The perception might be that you in particular would not take a film on this subject without it being overly politicized. But, you’re saying that it was actually the subtlety that appealed to you.
TR: I know what you're saying, but that’s a frustrating thing to hear, because throughout my career, I’ve made choices that have been about the story and about the humanity in the script--and not about the politics. However talk radio wants to marginalize me, there’s nothing I can do about that. That’s frustrating, but I think I’ve always made my decisions based on whether it’s a good story or not. I’ve not shied away from playing parts that might not be who I am. That’s the point, isn’t it? [laughs]
Capone: But Neil must, at some point, have had a conversation with you. He must have wanted to know where you were coming from on this particular issue--not that he couldn’t figure it out for himself—but what you were thinking in terms of playing this particular character.
TR: My only concern was that we deal with this in an adult way. Reading the script, you see that there’s a lot of humor in it. And, I wanted to make sure that the humor was earned, not cheap. From the start, I realized that Neil was on the same page.
Capone: Okay. Now, I saw you and your band play on that “Vote for Change” tour four years ago, so I remember that sometimes subtlety isn’t necessarily the order of the day for some of the things that you do. And, I saw EMBEDDED. I remember that you kind of like to do it both ways, I guess, when you’re trying to get your message across.
TR: Well, that was time for EMBEDDED in 2003, 2004, when the press was still a lap dog. I thought it was time to remind the press that they had a deeper obligation to the truth. That was what that play was about. And, we approached it from a satirical point of view, and we tried to find the humor in it and the satire. I have no problem calling attention to certain things that are in that play.
But, I wouldn’t do EMBEDDED now. It’s not the right time for it. It’s a time for healing now, it’s a time for us to open ourselves to what it is, what the experience has been for hundreds of thousand of Americans. Quite frankly, it seems we want to ignore that, look the other way, and pay veterans lip service, whether it’s thanking them whenever we run into them or putting a magnet on our car. There are much more fundamental things that can be done to help. Perhaps, one of the first steps of that is to open a window or door onto what the experience is, and maybe we can all find our way to a more practical way to help and a more practical way to support the troops.
Capone: Those scenes in the film where someone comes up and says ‘Thank you’ are really interesting scenes, because I’ve heard soldiers say that they don’t necessarily like hearing that. They’d rather have someone say ‘Welcome home.’ But saying ‘Thank you’ feels to them like something rather empty. I don’t know if you’ve registered that.
TR: Yes, that’s exactly what I’ve heard from veterans. Again, when I read that in the script, I was like, Oh, this guy gets it, he’s obviously talked to some veterans. Yeah, this is a common thing, I’ve heard.
Capone: Off the subject of this film, I’m curious when people recognize you or come up to you on the street, what are the films that they mention? What are the films that people remember you for as an actor?
TR: I get it with a few things. I get it for BULL DURHAM. I get it for SHAWSHANK [REDEMPTION], obviously, MYSTIC RIVER, THE PLAYER. In Canada, I get a lot of BOB ROBERTS.
Capone: Really? But no one dares go as far back as HOWARD THE DUCK, or something like that?
TR: [laughs] No, no.
Capone: Okay. Just a few weeks ago, I saw Eddie Vedder play a show here in Chicago, and he told a story before he played “Dead Man” [a song Vedder wrote for Robbins' film DEAD MAN WALKING that was ultimately not used because Bruce Springsteen wrote a song--which was nominated for an Oscar--with a similar title for the soundtrack] about how meeting Sean Peen through you set him on this path to playing solo shows and recording the INTO THE WILD soundtrack.
TR: Yeah, I’ve heard him tell the story. It’s pretty funny. [laughs]
Capone: The sequence you’re in in WAR OF THE WORLDS was one of the most discussed and debated sequences of that particular year. People were trying to decide what that sequence meant, and whether it fit in, and whether it kind of epitomized what the movie was about. What your character was meant to represent. What was your take on what was going on in that scene?
TR: Oh, I had no idea. What are they saying?
Capone: I guess they’re debating what your character is meant to represent. Some people think it’s the best scene in the movie, just because it seems so different than the rest of the film. Everything kind of slows down in that scene. Was there any subtext going on there?
TR: Oh no, I can’t hardly remember. [laughs] But, I’m glad people are still talking about it.
Capone: They are. It still comes up sometimes. Are you a lover of science fiction? A lot of great subversive writing has come out in science fiction, between WAR OF THE WORLDS and CODE 46. I think you’re in CITY OF EMBER, too, right?
TR: Yes.
Capone: Are you a lover or reader of science fiction?
TR: Not particularly. I appreciate the genre, and I’m a huge Kurt Vonnegut fan, but I’m not obsessed with it, no.
Capone: I have to say I saw THE SECRET LIFE OF WORDS--I don’t think it ever came out here in Chicago, but I saw it in a festival--and it was maybe one of the purest love stories that I have ever seen. And, I’m constantly recommending it to people.
TR: I know, I’m very proud of that film. I really like that film a lot. It’s a shame more people haven’t seen it.
Capone: I finally got a chance to watch NOISE, which also never really opened here. I feel like that sort of character, that individual who by just some simple act of defiance becomes a sort of folk hero, is something you have visited from time to time over the years. Is that an appealing personality to you?
TR: Yeah, yeah, I mean, it’s the everyman. It’s just about habits. It’s a story that I’ve always been attracted to.
I’m glad you’re watching movies, though. It’s nice to hear that you’re not one of the masses that avoid the difficult--well, I wouldn’t even call them ‘difficult’--I would just call them ‘unsupported’.
Capone: If I’ve missed any, it’s because they didn’t open here. It’s not because I’ve avoided them.
TR: Yeah, well, that’s something that I find really frustrating, you know. Usually those movies are made by people who have a real sense of what the art of film is, and have a desire to tell stories in a different way--true independence, you know? And, then you see what’s sold as independent film reaching markets, and it’s very frustrating.
One of the things that has been happening is that a lot of films are made for less money, and so there’s less of an investment. And so, therefore, oftentimes the people that own these films cut their losses and don’t make the commitment to really release them. And, that’s a betrayal of the spirit of which all of the creative people came forward. I guarantee you there’s not a lot of money being earned, so part of the deal you think is, ‘Okay, I’ll do this for less money, but if it’s good, I want people to see it’. So, they turn out good, and people think, ‘Well, we can just go to DVD and not lose money, and we don’t want to take the chance’. It’s a very kind of lack-of-courage aesthetic that is quite disillusioning for people like me.
Capone: It does feel like troubling times for people who make smaller films, that’s for sure.
TR: Oh, yeah, it’s real tough. It seems like the big studios got out of the business of making serious films. Even when they make them, they don’t know how to really commit.
Capone: Right.
TR: Last year, THERE WILL BE BLOOD was for me just a tremendous American movie, and they just didn’t know how to get it out there. Whereas, if you go back 15 years, 20 years, you know, or if you go into the 70s when major studios were making THE GODFATHER or making ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN, it got around to their release and they had the full weight of the studio and the money and the support system behind it. And, they made sure the American public saw these movies. They wore those movies with a badge of pride. ‘It’s part of what we do. We make our big blockbusters, but we also make art. And, here it is.’ And, now, you get a situation where they've gotten out of the business of that. And, we all suffer, because the American public doesn’t see the great films that are out there.
Capone: Yeah. You have a film that you directed that’s going to be on Showtime? Is that right?
TR: No, I’ve written a pilot for a series ["Possible Side Effects"], but whether it’s going to be on Showtime or not remains to be seen. We’re going to shoot the pilot in December.
Capone: And, are you directing the pilot?
TR: Yes.
Capone: Okay. And, in CITY OF EMBER, who do you play?
TR: I have a pretty small part, a supporting role. I play the father of one of the leads.
Capone: I’ll leave you with this. I’ll test your memory here…We’ve actually met once before, many, many years ago, before I was ever doing anything like this. In 1990, in New York, I used to live in the Village right near the Bottom Line club, which I know isn’t there any more. And, I ran into you, and Susan [Sarandon], and John Cusack outside that club after a Wendy & Lisa concert. Do you remember that concert?
TR: [A genuine tone of shock enters his voice] Omigod..that was a long time ago. [laughs] Well, I hope we were polite.
Capone: You were unbelievably polite, even though I broke the rules about meeting famous people on the streets of New York, but I was new to the city at the time.
TR: [laughs]
Capone: Well, thanks for taking the time to talk to us.
TR: Alright, thank you. This was cool. Take care.
-- Capone
capone@aintitcoolmail.com
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