David O. Russell has collected quite a reputation during his film career. Rumors of his bizarre behavior are common. He and George Clooney engaged in a fistfight on the set of "Three Kings," and he has reduced actress Lily Tomlin to tears. A recent New York Times article paints a picture of a deeply disturbed man who delights in the plight of his actors for the sake of the project while making great films as a result.
During my interview with Russell, it became clear that the film's star, Jason Schwartzman, had been sent to accompany the director on his publicity tour mainly to keep him under control, as had Mary, who identified herself as an assistant.
As the meandering text of the interview proves, their fears of an off-topic director are well founded. Bizarre or not, Russell is one of the most important young directors in Hollywood. Who knows? Perhaps his strange behavior is all an act, a means to the end of producing interesting movies. Either way, he has succeeded thus far.
Mary, public relations woman<$>: David [O. Russell], let's get to the interview.
David O. Russell<$>: Can you leave the room, Mary? I feel inhibited with you here.
Mary<$>: No, let's get going. We don't have much time here.
Tufts Daily<$>: The movie is sort of existential. Is that something you've wanted to do for a while, or is that a recent idea?
DOR<$>: I've wanted to do this for about 12 years. It got reborn for Jason [Schwartzman]. I saw him in "Rushmore," and wanted to make a movie with him.
Jason Schwartzman<$>: Sounds creepy to hear that.
DOR<$>: Yeah. Let's throw an ashtray out the window.
Mary<$>: David, please.
TD<$>: I noticed that Mark Wahlberg seemed to be espousing your views in this movie. Why is that?
DOR<$>: I definitely put a lot of myself in the movie. And I took the spiritual ideas I studied at Columbia University with Robert Thurman, Uma Thurman's father, and put those in the movie. He's the model for Dustin Hoffman's character. Let's conduct the rest of the interview in a Chicago accent.
TD<$>: You had some people in this movie that you'd worked with before.
DOR<$>: Mark Wahlberg and I are good friends. That friendship in the movie is ours, the one between Schwartzman and Wahlberg. I went to Yale, he went to jail. Actually, I went to Amherst. I went to Amherst, he went to bratwurst.
TD<$>: Were you scared to make this movie?
DOR<$>: I knew it would be a Geronimo.
JS<$>: Every second was like throwing up a Hail Mary, but with the greatest football team in the world - a team of Michael Jordans. I felt like we were all on the same page always.
TD<$>: Have you felt like that often happens when you guys make movies?
DOR<$>: No, this was the A-team.
JS<$>: (starts singing theme song to "The A Team")
DOR<$>: Do you want to talk about the metaphysical ideas? Would college kids go for that? I mean, it's not sex, but...
TD<$>: Sure. Why not?
JS<$>: I was pondering existentialism last night while I was monkey chugging in a frat. No, seriously, I think this film is a comedy. David created a situation where the comedy is like a train, and all the big ideas are stowaways on the train. So the audience is watching and they're laughing, and it's hysterical and people are falling and saying funny things, but underneath that is a deeper meaning, and a message. If you go to a nice restaurant and you order an entr?©e-let's say chicken-it tastes like chicken, but you don't realize it. In it there is rosemary, and salt, and sugar...
DOR<$>: Maybe some cayenne peppers. Maybe some rat droppings.
JS<$>: But you just taste the chicken.
