| The Mysterious Man November 2002 Before the interview my colleague gives me an advice: "Don�t you ever start talking about Rivers death ! He�ll get aggressive and leave the room right away!" In the characters he plays you can see that the pain is still deep inside him and emotional limits are generally not unknown in his nature. Phoenix seems to be determined by sorrow and rage which remind people of young Marlon Brando - a kind of Anti-Star. As the 28 years old actor enters the Interview suite in tattered jeans and Biker Boots his Anti-haircut is more conspicuous - wild as if he had a bird nest on his head. Q: Sorry but what happened to your hair ? JP: What�s going on up there ? ( Joaquin gets up, goes to the next mirror and screams ) This looks a sight ! How embarrassing ! Well, I don�t look after my hair in my free time because during the shootings people fumble in them for weeks... But it doesn�t matter to me...I feel fabulous inside and that�s what counts. ( Joaquin grins mischievously, tries to arrange his hairstyle but makes it even worse..) Q: Your appearance doesn�t seem to be like you. After all you used to be a model for Prada! JP: To be honest I didn�t know what I was doing. I just wanted to show another side of me. A little trick for my career because at that time I only got juvenile outsider roles. In the moment my suit and gel hair pictures were published I was really offered more matured characters. Q: Well, since "Gladiator" you don�t need those tricks anymore. Have you already gotten used to this fame? JP: What glory? When people speak to me on the street at all, they believe me to be Vincent Gallo, Tobey Maguire or Wes Bentley from "American Beauty". And of course it�s my pleasure to sign autographs in the names of my colleagues (laughing). Q: Would you rather like more fame? JP: I�d like it as much as a heart attack. Really, this affectation about glory and stuff is bullshit, a myth. I personally don�t know any serious actor who puts value on popularity. For me the most important thing is to do the best work I�m able to. That means if I�m coming home from a movie and don�t break down because of exhaustion something went wrong... Q: Directors say you hit your head against the walls or lock yourself up for hours to prepare for a scene... JP: Lock up ? Who says that ( grinning ) ? At best I hide to concentrate. But it�s true. Sometimes I�m possessed and a little hard to handle. Q: You�ve been standing in front of the camera since your childhood. Do you remember why you wanted to become an actor? JP: Because I was such a miserable painter and writer. Q: Okay..now the serious answer... JP: My brother River worked in a TV Show and two roles for kids had to be replaced in short - term.So my sister and me helped out. I had my first real job in the age of 19 playing in "To die for" with Nicole Kidman. Q: You changed your name from Joaquin to Leaf and later back. So your parents were not against it letting you make those kind of decisions ? JP: No, they always encouraged us to free thoughts and creativity. It would probably have been a problem for them if I had chosen a common name like Peter or Paul. Q: Your parents were Hippies. Do you believe you were raised happier than kids who were educated by middle - class ? JP: One Moment ! Why do you call them Hippies ? Have my parents been lazy just hanging around and smoking joints all day? Hell, no ! But were they looking for a lifestyle to enable freedom and artistic expression while raising 5 kids at the same time without much money ? Yes! This were and are my parents ! And I don�t like them to be put in this cliche box ! Q: Can a young man rebel against his parents who already refuse social standard? JP: My personal rebellion ended up woefully going on a journey for a while and just trying to lose my virginity. But in general I do support rebellion. Q: Rebellion against what ? JP: Like Marlon Brando said: against everything that is offered. Our system needs a little turmoil. Q: Which values are still important to you ? JP: Sense for family and philanthropy...that I might talk to homeless on the street instead of walking by and never want to lose people I once became fond of... Q: Is your ex-girlfriend Liv Tyler considered ? JP: Sure.We had 3 good, wild years and now we see each other regularly being good friends Q: Do you have a relationship at the moment ? JP: No. Or yes ? I can�t remember ( grinning again )! Let�s say, being an actor I�m so schizophrenic that in case of emergency I always have someone by my side to be intimate with. Q: An Oscar nominee, Compliments everywhere...you surely have a lot of Groupies around you.. JP: I nearly get sick getting too much praise. A little is welcome. But I get suspicious if there�s too much of it. I swear, I�m incomprehensibly unsure [of myself]! Q: So you would like to be more self - confident ? JP: A part of me is screaming "YES!" but deep inside I suggest that the risk of failure encourages and stimulates me. There you can see how schizophrenic I really am ! |
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