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Te End Of The Affair
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Q: You've worked with Neil twice before on Michael Collins and The Butcher Boy. Is it a pleasant experience?
Neil used to terrify me. He doesn't terrify me now. He'd say things like 'You gonna do that?' The way he says that, it's loaded with the inference of 'You are an abominable actor and I hate you.' But it's not true. You get used to his manner. I understand him better. Unless you're digging what he's into, you can miss the point so massively. But he's a lovely fella, I love him to bits. I enjoy acting in his films far more than I usually do. You act better because it's a proper environment: you're getting an opportunity to work with some people who are really good at what they do.
Q: What was the appeal of the story for you?
I know people say 'it's something we've all been through', but in some respects it is. Whether you choose the perspective of the two lovers, or the husband. I'm not saying everyone's had the same kind of relationships, or felt the same degree of intense jealousy. When you fall in love, it's horrible. It's like an illness, an infection of some sort. As much as it makes you happy, it makes you depressed. Even the opening: 'This is a diary of hate' I can completely relate to. He's exploring things which we've all had in our heads.
Q: Where does Parkis fit in?
He doesn't fit in. He provides certain things like comic relief. But he does have his own little journey which mirrors theirs, the more he follows them. Particularly with the boy being healed. He has gone through a similar dilemma: of not being able to understand the notion of a miracle.
Q: Who was your accent inspired by?
I was just looking for a voice and I didn't know where to go with it. I worked on a Michael Caine and on a Bob Hoskins. I was after a 1950s [sound]. It's false in a way, but fits the style of the film better than a contemporary London dialect. It would jar.
Q: What is your opinion about the film receiving an 18 certificate?
It's bizarre, really. The sex scenes - their reason for the objection - are very sexy. Most sex scenes in films, when women take their tops off and show their breasts, are not very titillating in any way. These scenes are very erotic, and because they were erotic they stayed in the minds of the censors far more than just endless tits and people getting their heads chopped off. To give it an 18 is a sad reflection, but then that's what censors are: a sad reflection of negative aspects of our society.
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As Unknown