Formatting interviews and putting them up for you all to read is a huge pain of the ass… thank god I’m not actually showing up, sitting through a lot of gossip columnist questions to get to a few great nuggets about Ghost Rider, coming home and spending hours transcribing the interview from a tape as well. Instead they just send us these pre-packaged transcripts from press junkets we haven’t been able to attend… probably because the guy who runs CB, Josh I think is his name, is mired in the wasteland of Dallas. Though perhaps that’s a good thing if it gives me an excuse to dodge interviews with Ashton Kutcher.
Anyway, below is the latest interview we did not conduct, this time with Nicolas Cage on his to be released this weekend movie National Treasure, a movie I was surprised to actually enjoy. It’s a hyped up history teaching tutor and Cage’s uncanny ability for nerdspeak is the thing which makes it work. Here’s what he had to say to a gaggle of questioning press types:
Q: Are you still able to find all of the challenges you were hoping to find, especially in your early career and in the roles you play now?
Cage: Yeah, I’ve always maintained that I see myself as a student and there is always something to learn and be challenged by and hopefully to grow from. So, absolutely.
Q: Out of all of the action movies that you get off of, what was it about this one?
Cage: Well I think that the very thing that made me trepedacious was the same thing that intrigued me which is the idea of a man going in and stealing the Declaration of Independence, I thought well this doesn’t seem very plausible. And a how can this actually be pulled off? I met with Jon Turteltaub. And he said, “But well, that’s interesting, he’s audacious, he’s bold” and Jerry Bruckheimer brings in a great group of technical advisors who do the research and try to figure out exactly how to make it within the context of the film seem as believable as possible. And I got to do it in a tuxedo, so that was interesting for me as well (laughs).
Q: Do you see yourself as bold as this guy?
Cage: Without going into too much detail I have had my obsessions and he certainly is a character who is obsessed about this treasure - the marvelous templar treasure and has devoted his entire life and has groomed himself to figure out exactly what he needs to do to find it in the face of great ridicule. I think that I have been obsessed over the years with were I can go with acting or how I can challenge myself with that, if that answers your question.
Q: You’re turning 40, will that change you in any way?
Cage: I always add a year to myself so I am prepared for the next birthday. So when I was 39 I was already 40 and now I’m 41. But a...it makes me...I’m feeling, I don’t want to say happy because that is a fragile word. but I am definitely content. I am hopeful about the future, although I do spend most of my time thinking about the present. (Laughs)
Q: How do you resolve the reality issues? Like, gee it must be easy to break into a national monument or museum.
Cage: I think you have to give yourself over to the context of the movie and go along for the ride. Which is what I did. I saw it for the first time the other night with the audience and I was very happy with the way it seem to work logically within the woeful suspension of disbelief. I enjoyed it. It has a certain spirit which is reminiscent with Indiana Jones, but it parts company with Indiana Jones with that there is nothing supernatural about National Treasure. There is enough there that we can wonder about. We can think about it in terms of, does this treasure really exist? And indeed several highly intelligent people who believe it exists have risked their life looking for this very treasure.
Q: How’s married life? Is it better to not being married to an actress?
Cage: I’ll just say that I am very content at this time in my life.
Q: Feeling anti American?
Cage: I don’t want to take any political grand stand here, but I do feel that some of the moments that are touched upon and this isn’t by any means a historical movie, but an adventure film in that spirit. It’s nice to remember what the founding fathers did, I mean they were genius’s and its amazing that they were alive at the same time and knew one another and debated and shook hands and created philosophies and rules by which we still live today. I still think that there is things we can learn from still and go back to that and review that and maybe that could be helpful.
Q: Have you tried on your Ghostwriter costume yet?
Cage: I haven’t, I am very curious about that, however, I am still in talks about that particular movie. It’s not a definite at this point. Comic books for me as a young man, for me were one of the ways I learned how to read. There were other ways too, but I was always fascinated by the mythology of them. I used to read Greek myths and I discovered a kindred spirit in the minds of Stan Lee and also DC comics and I always felt that they would be successful in film even before they became successful I knew that the big three would be, Batman, Superman and Spiderman. I guess the reason why I respond to them is that they have the fantasy of the child’s mind and their wonderful alternative world to sort of loose you in. I think if this doesn’t work then that is pretty much it. I’ve never made a comic book film and ill just enjoy them as my childhood memories I don’t read them anymore its really something that came from my past.
Q: You have been attached to the project for so long, what is still going through your mind?
Cage: Again it’s really just the vision of the movie of how it will be portrayed. It really just talks about script and things like that. It’s true that I was involved with Ghostwriter over three years ago and was trying to develop it with another film director. These things are very sensitive and you have to hit it with a bull’s eye or it may not work. Its best for everyone to be cautious and to make sure it’s got the right auspices.
Q: You spoke about the child’s mind earlier. What made you believe in yourself as an actor or becoming famous? Was it something someone told you?
Cage: Well at a very early age 6 or 7, I would watch TV and see Charles Bronson or I would see Clint Eastwood and Sean Connery and be fascinated by the magic of filmmaking. I would walk to school and actually have crane shots in my mind. Where the crane would be pulling up and looking down at me. It was something that was very pure and organic in me that wanted to be a film actor. I loved more than comic books, movies. I loved watching the TV and getting lost in movies. Anything that stimulated my imagination. My imagination in those early years is what inspired me and protected me.
Q: How did your family support this belief you had in acting?
Cage: I kept it pretty close to the vest. I don’t think any body knew. I liked little things like dressing up for Halloween or role-playing. It may have give hints, but I don’t. Anyone would have thought that I would become a film actor
Q: Do you find yourself as a successful actor?
Cage: That is an interesting question that I sometimes get asked. I don’t look at myself as a successful person, I always look at myself as trying to find the next place to go or discover or improve upon. I have a difficult time looking at the glass half full; instead I tend to look at it half empty.
Q: Are you going to play Skeletor?
Cage: I don’t know anything about that. I do think Jon Woo is a terrific filmmaker. We have a good repore together I think over the years we have cultivated a short hand. We discover what each of us brings to the table. He’s a producer that likes when his actors come up with ideas. He goes through a selection process to feel what will work to keep the train moving. Jerry has a vision. He is a movie fan and loves going to the movies. What’s unique about Jerry is that he does look in interesting places for his actors. He looks for someone unexpected. Like in Con Air, he picked independent film actors. He also has nostalgia for veteran actors. He has terrific taste for talent.
Q: What was it like shooting in South Africa?
Cage: South Africa is a fascinating location because it can model for so many other locals. Lord of War is a world stage, you have Manhattan, Ukraine, Liberia, there are so many locals that you can use South Africa for. It becomes very convenient and is much less expensive. I believe even DreamWorks is building a studio there. It is becoming increasing rare to shoot a movie here at home. It's simple economics. If it’s cheaper to shoot there then the studio will do that.
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