Exclusive Interview: John Cusack on "2012"

John Cusack is the kind of artless actress who can take upon any genre, rarely repeating himself. Two decades after resolutely substantiating himself in the Cameron Crowe classical "Say Anything", Cusack, whose early drive-in theatre included such seminal classics as "The Sure Thing" as good as "Sixteen Candles", continues to pull himself in uncharted territory.

He stars in the Roland Emmerich disaster epic "2012" as the divorced father of two who becomes closer to his ex-wife as good as kids as the Earth becomes broken as good as as they head for the futuristic Noahs Ark. Its utterly the shift of pace for the quietly spoken actress who discussed the film with Paul Fischer in this disdainful interview in highway house room in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Question: When we read the book similar to this where it has Los Angeles destroyed, or whatever the description is is it formidable for we to suppose what the film similar to this is like? And how do we decider the script, which is so contingent upon visible clues?

Cusack: You only decider it as the screenplay as good as as the square of writing, we know? And if its created well, it conjures up images. It gets your aptitude going, as good as we think, "Well, we do not know how theyre starting to do that, though we kind of consider we know what hes articulate about here. The seashore of CaliforniasI do not know exactly what its starting to demeanour like." How do we fill which frame? we guess we demeanour during the map, as good as we mean, where will they go? You dont utterly know, though we have the clarity of it. But afterwards the film possibly only sweeps we along, as good as we get concerned with the characters, as good as we begin to follow it as good as we wish to see what happens next, or! we dont . So, it only possibly works as the square of writing, or it doesn't.

Question: Is there the excellent line in the book similar to this with dealing with characterization as good as special effects? we mean, do we demeanour unequivocally carefully to have certain which there is sufficient impression abyss as good as an arc for we to be means to work with?

Cusack: we consider the single of the reasons which Roland longed for me to do it, or which he wants certain kinds of actors to do it, is since they bring their perspective about which to the movie. So, we know, we dont feel similar to we have to quarrel for it. You feel similar to thats arrange of since they brought we in, was to try to help do that. And the book was unequivocally good. we mean, it was all upon the page. we mean, there were things we worked on, though we consider thats since they bring Oliver Platt in, as good as Chiwetel as good as me as good as Amanda. And its may be not the kind of movement film actors who do the certain kind of thing. Were used to we do the opposite thing, though thats since they hired us, as good as so assumingly thats what they wanted. They longed for people to approach it from which way. Just from how to have the characters work, not, how do we have the movement work?

Question: Did we feel which we indispensable to do any earthy credentials for this prior to embarking upon this?

Cusack: Just, like, the heightened normal things which we do for anything thats got the lot of earthy stuff. Like, Ive finished movement cinema before, since Ive finished all sorts of opposite movies, though this was the marathon. Youve got to do it for 100 days, so, we mean, youve got to go to the gym after work each night. Youve got to stretch. Otherwise your body wouldn't hold up. Youve got to eat well. You only have to.

Question: There have been the lot of moments where its pure greeting where theres the lot of reac! tive wor k involved. Do we find the reactive inlet of this arrange of film some-more formidable than the participatory?

Cusack: Yeah. we mean, thats the hardest thing. When we consider theres the tidal wave entrance during you, to react, obviously. Its similar to Wait, how do we do this? Or, am we only creation faces here?

Question: But doesn't it remind you, in the small ways, of since we became an actor? In which its all partial of this notion of make-believe?

Cusack: Yeah. we mean, in the small sense, theres no disproportion between which as good as any alternative scene. Like we walk into the kitchen as good as we get the phone call, removing the small hideous news as good as we have to arrange of pull it out of nowhere. So, it does feel familiar. Like its not which large the stretch to do which stuff.

Question: Do we goal which people dont take 2012 seriously, as good as dont provide this as the small kind of counsel about the destiny upon an environmental level?

Cusack: Well, if it adds to the clarity which we have to shift or were in trouble, we consider thats probably good. we do not consider it has any politics to the film. we mean, we could argue which all is politics, though we consider this is many some-more only escapist, though also the recover valve for anxieties as good as fears. And it serves the duty which tragedy does, or during slightest myths do, which is they give we the tragedy, as good as they let we experience vicariously by fantasy, as good as afterwards we recollect the feeling after tragedy, when we cut by all the bullshit. We dump all of the illusions, as good as we fake theres no some-more groups between races or people or sexes or genders, or anything. And everybody possibly gets in the same vessel as good as survives, or theyre all doomed. And everybody wants to hold which thats how people react, when faced with their extinction. That people will be good. Do the! right t hing. So, we consider these cinema give us the clarity of which feeling which people wish to feel, when the misfortune is satisfied as good as we listen to all the stories of intrepidity which come out of war, the acts of society as good as intrepidity which spring from tragedies. These cinema only give we the vehicle to experience that, the clarity of which feeling.

Question: But we didn't go out of your approach to try to do any investigate upon the 2012 mythology, did you?

Cusack: Yeah, we checked it all out. Its all there. You know, its all right its everywhere. So, its great.

Question: You pronounced something unequivocally engaging earlier, which arrange of struck me, something about we being beholden to be hired for any job. And we found which curious. we mean, youve been during this for the long time. Youre unequivocally successful. Do we feel which clarity of gratitude, which people have been still meddlesome in hiring you? we mean, where does which come from? It seems similar to its an actors insecurity, the perpetual actors insecurity.

Cusack: Maybe. But Im only aware, also, which Im the propitious person. There have been the lot of talented people which arent operative right right away as actors, as good as there have been the lot of people who arent unequivocally operative only in the universe right right away as good as theres the lot of pang around the world. So Im the pretty propitious person, being means to be creation art, as good as being paid to do it. So we only try to recollect that. And it is true. You know, we blemish for roles. as good as sometimes we wish to get purposes as good as they go to alternative people, as good as its unequivocally good to get the phone call saying, We wish we to do this movie. Youre the chairman we wish for it, we know? We arrange of had we in mind, as good as will we come do it? Its unequivocally flattering. Its unequivocally nice. Doesnt always happen, we! know? S ometimes youve got to scratch, or youre the fourth or fifth choice. You know, Hollywood can be the nasty business.

Question: You dont seem to take Hollywood seriously, do you?

Cusack: No, we dont take it seriously, though we have to be in it.

Question: You have to work hard during it.

Cusack: You have to, similar to thats where they have the movies. So, we have to participate in it.

Question: Do we enjoy which process, or do we find it the suffering in the ass?

Cusack: we find it the suffering in the ass, yeah. Sure.

Question: Is your criteria for picking something, now, opposite to what it was may be 10 years ago?

Cusack: we consider so, yeah. we mean, Im pretty many some-more transparent about what to pick, as good as why, since we know if we wish to do the drive-in theatre which we wish to do, we have to be in box bureau successes, to leverage those. So theres no alternative approach it works, since youre dealing with banks. They demeanour during your foreign box bureau potential, as good as your US box office, as good as afterwards they collect the number, as good as afterwards thats the series which theyll lend against, which we can get for your money. And afterwards we have to quarrel for distributors, as good as we know, its the same deal. And so if youre in cinema which have been successful, afterwards we get to have some-more cinema which we wish to make, which wouldn't have gotten made.

Question: And obviously thats partial of the reason since we select certain cinema over alternative movies.

Cusack: we consider we try to do the many appropriate things we can, which also suggest the above cause. You know, which is, we have to keep in renouned drive-in theatre to have art movies, afterwards they both have to feed each other, since we can't only do the single! though the other. So, afterwards if we can be in the film similar to this, which we consider is good, thats also starting to be the small of the biggest of the year thats since Im observant Im beholden for the phone call. Im not dumb, as good as Rolands the single of the many successful directors in the world, as good as Sonys the single of the many stable film companys as good as this is starting to be their large movie. And theyre saying, Come do this, as good as theyll tailor the partial for you. They wrote it for you. Thats pretty nice.

Question: And of march "Shanghai" is the opposite film again

Cusack: Thats an additional undiluted mix of the good movie, which also nothings as large as this, though it was the large-scale movie, thats as good as youre starting to get, for adult drama.

Question: Who do we play in that?

Cusack: we play the spy.

Question: So, is it set during the Japanese take-over?

Cusack: Its set in Shanghai upon right prior to World War Two. Its great. Its the unequivocally cold film.

Question: You shot upon location in China, obviously.

Cusack: We didn't. The Chinese revoked the permits.

Question: Oh, really?

Cusack: So the film got delayed for the couple of months, as good as the wide shoots took the small bit of the beating. But they regrouped, as good as they shot it in Bangkok as good as London, as good as afterwards we consider they shot the couple things in China. And theyre watchful for the Chinese to authorize the film to open in China, as good as afterwards good come out in the States after that.

Question: Is it the spy thriller?

Cusack: Its the bit of an epic romance thriller, we guess.

Question: Whos your heading lady in it?

Cusack: Gong Li, th! e single of the great, heavyweight actresses as good as shes the single of the good actresses alive. To me.

Question: Thats cool, which we were means to do that.

Cusack: Yeah. And Chow Yun-Fat, Ken Watanabe. An extraordinary all-star general cast, as good as Chinese cast. So, which was an additional film where that, to me, youre not starting to get the better possibility than those sorts of things, in the film business. So. You do commercial movies, afterwards we can do the small art-house eccentric movies. You know, be means to do the art sorts of movies. And afterwards if we can still be successful sufficient to get the unequivocally many appropriate adult dramas which theyre starting to have for the decent budget we know, to me, thats since we contend Im lucky.

Question: we can't hold youve been we do this for something similar to 20-odd years. we mean, we proposed out in the small iconic drive-in theatre of the 80s.

Cusack: More than 20.

Question: So when we do the film similar to Hot Tub Time Machine, which is set in the 8p0s, did we reflect upon your own practice during which decade?

Cusack: Well, partial of the joke was, it is we mean, we won't hurt the movie. The cinema not the satire movie, though it definitely goes back as good as creates fun of which period, as good as myself, as good as the small of the iconography of the 80s, for sure. The suggest was the title, we thought, was so insane, we thought, Thats the stupidest, greatest pretension Ive ever heard. we mean, its the undiluted kind of title.

Question: Who directed?

Cusack: Steve Pink, who we wrote Gross Pointe Blank -and High Fidelity with. So, he was my partner for years, as good as afterwards he went off as good as proposed directing.

Question: Was it good operative with him again?

Cusack: Oh, wonderf! ul, uneq uivocally good. And we done 5 drive-in theatre together as producers as good as writers, as good as so he came back, as good as they came to me as good as said, Well, we can do this movie. Its called "Hot Tub Time Machine". Its with Rob Corddry, Clark Duke, Craig Robinson, all three of those guys, we unequivocally love. And there was about 50 percent, 60 percent of the script, unequivocally funny premise. But they said, The understanding is, we have to shoot in the ski board so, we have to begin in 7 weeks. And we have to finish essay it as we go. So we said, That is in violent idea. we said, Well, the only approach we could do it is if we had somebody similar to if we do it with Steve. We have which shorthand. But we can't begin the relationship with the small new man which we dont know. So, we would have to its eitherso we said, Well, yeah, Ill do it with Steve, we know, if we wish to have Steve direct it, good do it. And they said, Yes. And so were like, Oh. We can do that. And afterwards we suspicion me as good as my partner, Grace, pronounced so, my company produced it, as good as we only jimmied it up, with MGMs support. But we had to begin shooting, since the small of it takes place in the ski board for the long time, so prior to the snow melted in the spring, we had to begin sharpened the exteriors. It was the single of those funny kind of ass-backwards things, where we were in the real pour out to get it made.

Question: How many improv is there?

Cusack: A lot. A lot. Its got Chevy Chase in it, Crispin Glover.

Question: Does it unequivocally uncover off the kind of comedic side of we which we dont often get the possibility to

Cusack: Yeah. Yeah. This is pretty many balls-out bizarre comedy. So Im even propitious which way, since we get to do opposite sorts of genres.

Question: Do we know what youre starting to be we do next?

Cusack: we only finish r! emoving this film out, which is similar to the job, until Nov 20th. So, Im arrange of upon the highway articulate about this movie.

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