On the other side of the phone, Charlotte Rampling's voice sounds much kinder than that of the alcoholic, rebellious and sick grandmother who gives life to Juniper, Australian Matthew Saville's feature film that hit the box office yesterday . An intense character that the 77-year-old British actress is embroidering in a family drama that passed through the Seminci, in which Rampling was honored with the Spike of Honor in a career of more than half a century in which he has collaborated with directors such as Luchino Visconti, Liliana Cavani, Woody Allen, François Ozon or Lars von Trier.
How was the experience at the Valladolid festival?
It's been great, because it's a lovely festival and in a way, 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 starting out in cinema, making new, avant-garde films. I felt a very beautiful energy. I liked.
What pushed you to participate in Juniper?
I thought this story was very compelling, about how we can repair human emotions in families. Sometimes we can't do this throughout our lives, but as we come to the end of our existence, there may be ways to change things within our families. And I think that is very important. It seemed to me a very beautiful, melodramatic and very calm way of telling the story of these emotions.
How did you approach the character of Ruth, a woman forced into a relationship with a self-destructive grandson she doesn't know?
I always choose characters whose lives I would have liked to have lived. Even if it's quite difficult, quite dangerous... maybe more interesting and everything than you think life itself is. I would never have had the courage to be a war reporter, but I really admire people who do this kind of work and risk their lives for it. I find these people very, very interesting. And they are the type of people that in another life I would like to have been. That's why cinema for me is like living other lives. Also, it was a very personal story for Matthew.
He always thought of you to embody Ruth. In fact, he traveled all the way to Paris to offer her the character…
The film was based on the spirit of his grandmother, who was a very powerful, strong woman. She wasn't a war reporter, but she was a very energetic woman, a very modern woman for her time, and I was instantly hooked when she told me about her. It wasn't easy for Matthew to get into the body and soul of an elderly woman. I wanted to make her younger, because her grandmother was over 80 years old at the time. When I read the first version of the script I wasn't quite convinced how I understood Ruth, she seemed almost a caricature, and I gave Matthew my experience as an actress to make her more believable on screen. And I wanted to make that woman who still dreams of living one last great adventure more fun. I could understand their 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. He's the kind of awkward character that I like to play, because he's very attractive.
The film deals with the last days of this woman. Do you usually think about death?
I don't think anyone can say they don't think about death. We've known this since we were very young and it's something we can't change. we will die It is the only thing that is certain. That's why maybe we should invest more time trying to learn to live. Which I think is what I have done in this business through films, narratives and psychological experiences at quite deep levels.
You never thought of being an actress, but you've been working in the industry for over 50 years. What did you learn from it?
(Long pause) The fact of experiencing many ways of living, of simply entering other people's lives. Be ready to go through your pain, your suffering. In reality, it is about learning to overcome fear and suffering. And when you do that, you go out and realize that you can survive.
Did you ever think about quitting acting?
No, because I am not someone who is constantly working and wants to do other things like rest and change his 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.
He worked a few years ago with Julio Medem in the film Caótica Ana. Would you like to perform in Spain again?
Well, you never know what can happen. Maybe some other Spanish director thinks of me for a film and I sign up. But the truth is, I never built my career or chose the roles I played. I'm not one of those people who approach a director and say: "I want to work with you". I hope that someone will come and invite me to dance and then, if I like that tango, I say yes.
What do you think of the Hollywood actors' strike?
It is necessary and we hope it will help change things. It has to be done because otherwise actors and writers can't survive, because it's too complicated with technology now. Things must be changed, examined and protected. The rich always try to squeeze the poor and that's not good.
