The Paperboy delivers a chance for actors to shine
CANNES, France — Critical reaction to The Paperboy, a new film from Precious director Lee Daniels, was muted when it had its screening for the press at Cannes on Thursday morning. There were some cheers, some jeers, and a stampede for the exit — though whether that was to get away from the movie or get to the press conference wasn’t clear.
There’s no doubt, however, that the film marks some of the best work from stars Nicole Kidman, Matthew Mcconaughey, Zac Efron and John Cusack in some time. And the actors seemed to realize it.
“I was thrilled,” said Cusack, on being cast as Hillary Van Wetter, a rough piece of work who’s on death row in Florida for the murder of a local sheriff. “I felt like I’d been let out of some cage. When I met with Lee ... he talked to me about a film I’d made with Stephen Frears a long time ago called The Grifters. He was looking into me saying, ‘ I know you’ve got more to give than you’ve been giving lately.’ And that’s music to an actor’s ears.”
The Paperboy is based on a 1995 novel by Peter Dexter, who worked on the adaptation with Daniels after Pedro Almodovar abandoned an earlier script. Set in rural Florida in the summer of 1969, it features Mcconaughey and David Oyelowo as journalists trying to prove Van Wetter’s innocence. Efron plays Mcconaughey’s younger brother, while Kidman is Charlotte Bless, a southern sexpot who’s fallen in love with Cusack’s jailed character.
“I had to step into a place to play the character where I didn’t step out of it too much,” said Kidman. “It’s my job to give over to something, not to censor it. I’m there to portray a truth.”
In an early conversation with Daniels, he kidded that she was going to have to do her own hair and makeup. In response, she did herself up with a fake tan, a platinum wig and other accessories. “I took a photo and I texted it to Lee, kind of all different provocative positions. What he sent back, which I cannot say because it’s so ...” She paused. “It was like, ‘ thumbs up.’ ”
Efron, who falls hard for Kidman’s character, seems to have carried some of that adulation off the set. “I was ecstatic the day I found out she was playing the part,” the 24- year- old said of his co- star, who’s 20 years older. “I’ve been in love with her a long time, since Moulin Rouge!” He added: “I was scared to death of John.”
Mcconaughey, who called the director “Lee- onardo,” said he enjoyed Daniel’s style. “As soon as you nail it he goes, ‘ okay now do something I’ve never seen.’ I saw the film. There’s a whole lot of those takes in it.”
Daniels said that The Paperboy required “stars that sell internationally, but actors who want to jump into another place. That combination ... is very rare. They gave me their souls with a ‘ yes sir.’ ”
Mcconaughey added the independent nature of the film made for an exciting shoot.