On the other end of the phone, Charlotte Rampling's voice sounds much kinder than that of the alcoholic, rebellious and sick grandmother she plays in Juniper, Australian Matthew Saville's debut film that hit theaters yesterday. An intense character that the 77-year-old British actress embodies in a family drama that passed through the Seminci, where Rampling was honored with the Spike of Honor for a career spanning more than half a century in which she has collaborated with directors of the stature of Luchino Visconti, Liliana Cavani, Woody Allen, François Ozon or Lars von Trier.
How was your experience at the Valladolid festival?
It was great, because it's a lovely festival and in some ways, let's say, it was about the people, not the business. The people of Valladolid were able to come and participate and there were many young people getting started in cinema, making new, avant-garde films. I felt a very beautiful energy. I loved it.
What pushed you to get involved with Juniper?
I thought this story was very compelling about how we can repair human emotions in families. Sometimes we can't do it throughout our lives, but as we come to the end of our existence, maybe there are ways that we can change things, to change things within our families. And I think this is very important. I thought it was a very beautiful, melodramatic and very calm way to tell the story of these emotions.
How was filming in New Zealand?
I have family there and it was extraordinary. I have a son who is half New Zealand, because my first husband was from New Zealand, and we share many moments because it is not always easy to see each other. The thing about New Zealanders is that they are very pure people. They live very far from the world and have a very different type of life than those of us who live in overpopulated places. So it was a wonderful experience in every way because I was alone with the New Zealanders. I was the only European.
How did you approach the character of Ruth, an alcoholic and arrogant former war reporter who is forced to associate with a self-destructive grandson she has never met?
I always choose characters whose lives I would have liked to have led. Even if it is quite difficult, quite dangerous, quite... many times more... perhaps more interesting than you think life itself is. I would never have had the courage to be a war reporter, but I greatly admire people who do this type of work and risk their lives. I find these people very, very interesting. And they are the kind of people that in another life I would like to have been. That's why cinema for me is like living other lives. Plus, it was a very personal story for Matthew.
He always thought of you to play Ruth. In fact, he traveled to Paris to offer her character...
The film was based on the spirit of his grandmother, who was a very powerful, strong woman. She was not a war reporter, but she was a very energetic woman, a very modern woman for her time, and she grabbed me right away when she told me about her. It was not easy for Matthew to get into the body and soul of a woman who is approaching 80. I wanted to make her younger because her grandmother at that time was over 80 years old. When I read the first version of the script, I was not entirely convinced by how he understood that woman, she seemed almost a caricature, and I offered Matthew my experience as an actress to make her more credible when representing her on screen. And I wanted to make that woman who still dreams of living one last great romance more fun. I could understand her suffering, the bitterness of feeling like you haven't lived the life you could have lived and you blame others for it and you blame yourself... and there's a lot of shame. She's the kind of awkward character I like to play because he's so attractive.
What was it like working with George Ferrier, the actor who plays your grandson in the fiction?
Marvelous. He is a young actor and I was excited to be able to have such a beautiful role at such an early age in his life. We met first by writing letters and then, when I arrived, I found a very mature young man, very wise in the decisions he makes and it was fantastic to be with someone who was just starting out and who had things so clear.
The film addresses the last days of his character. Do you usually think about death?
I don't think anyone can say they don't think about it. We have known this since we are very, very young and that is something we cannot change. We are going to die. There is nothing we can do about it. It's the only thing that's safe. So maybe we should spend more time trying to learn how to live. Which I think is what I've done in this business through movies, storytelling, and psychological experiences at pretty deep levels.
You never thought about being an actress but you have been in the industry for more than half a century. What have you learned from her all this time?
(Long pause) Experiencing many different ways of life, of simply entering other people's lives. Be prepared to go through your pain, your suffering. In reality, it is about learning to overcome fear and suffering. And when you do that, you come out and realize that you can actually survive. You can survive well so that you can approach death well.
Have you ever thought about giving up acting?
No, because I don't work all the time. I'm not someone who is constantly working and really wants to do other things, rest and change my life. I have a lot of free time, so it doesn't make sense for me to want to retire. And if I wanted to, what would I do? I just don't have anything that challenges me more than acting.
You worked a few years ago with Julio Medem in Caótica Ana. Would you like to act in Spain again?
Well, you never know what can happen. Maybe some other Spanish director thinks of me for a film and I'll sign up. But, the truth is that I have never built my career or chosen the roles I have played. I'm not one of those who approach a director and say, 'I want to work with you.' I wait for someone to come and ask me to dance and then, if I like that tango, I say yes.
Is there a character you're looking forward to playing?
No, I'm waiting to see. If someone offers me something, then I don't write or think about the characters I want to play. It's me, I live my own life until someone offers me something that stimulates my curiosity and my desire to film again.
How has it been working under Denis Villeneuve in a blockbuster like Dune and its sequel?
It's very different from the cinema I usually make. But it's also very, very interesting. It's just a very different way of constructing a movie. But when you're shooting it it's the same. Although with science fiction, you know, you have huge sets, costumes and technical things that will slow you down and make everything a little more laborious. I like to try and do different things. But my favorites are more like the Juniper movie, where there is a team and a small budget. It's like a group of people who go out and tell stories in a pretty simple way and I love that.
What do you think of the Hollywood actors' strike?
It is necessary and we hope it helps change things. It's going to be very hard. But it's something that has to be done because otherwise actors and writers can't survive because it's too complicated now with technology. We have to change things, examine them and protect ourselves. We cannot simply be copied by artificial intelligence or we cannot simply not get anything from the movies shown on the platforms. The rich always try to squeeze the poor and that is not right.
