In England
Carice van Houten is by no means a household name. She doesnt attract the paparazzi or hordes of autograph hunters. Frankly she could quite easily get away with wandering into a Starbucks, drinking her coffee and leaving without a fuss. In her native Holland, however, she is a princess. Everyone knows me there, says Carice. Im in a very lucky position because I get to choose what I like, choose what I do. Im the star. Shes been a star in her home country since playing the eponymous character in the wildly successful Dutch TV programme '
Suzy Q'. Her status as a global star was cemented with Paul Verhoevens 2006 thriller
Black Book where she played a Dutch resistance member who infiltrates the Gestapo in Second World War Nazi-occupied Holland. It was a part that got her a lot of attention and praise, and should have earned her an Oscar nomination. She fondly recalls her time on that movie and working with Verhoeven.
He lifted me up above everyone and made me feel loved and special. I like it when a director does that and allows me to express myself. He would give me some direction then just say, just do what feels right. We never clashed.
Sitting in a busy room in The Hospital Club in Soho, and fighting off a cold, Carice discussed her upcoming movie release
Love Life, where she plays a cancer victim, struggling to deal with the illness and her husbands constant infidelities. It was not a part that initially appealed to the petit, porcelain skinned beauty, whose emerald eyes easily intimidate.
It was a film, based on a very famous book, based on truth, written by the real life husband in the film, who is still alive, about his wife who got breast cancer and died. I didnt want to do a film about cancer.
Indeed, on the surface this is what the book, titled Woman Goes to the Doctor and the film, Love Life is about. But as Carice realised, after yielding to overwhelming public demand that she play the stricken female lead in the film adaptation of the book, and then reading the script, there was much more to this project: its not just a story about cancer, its a story about a lot more; its a love story. Her next trepidation was whether she wanted to work with first time director
Reinot Oerlemans.
Working with a first time director can be very tough. But I accepted based on the passion he had for the project and the way he was going to shoot it very visual. It was not an easy shoot; we did fight a lot, but good fights, which lead to good things".
Love Life is a visually dazzling gem of a film, which shows Amsterdam in a modern, and very beautiful way. Its easily one of the most cinematic films to come out of the country and Europe for some years. But story and character are never sacrificed for this, nor are they overshadowed, as is the case in so many movies. At the very heart of the movie is Carices performance. She goes from a fun-loving, sexually-free woman, to a tough workaholic, to a frail, week and vulnerable woman, angry at herself, her husband and life in general. Its an extremely versatile performance, but also a harrowingly truthful one. Having experienced the horrors of cancer firsthand with my Grandmother and then my Mother, I can honestly say that Carices portrayal is the most authentic I have seen on screen. Surprisingly, the degree of research she did was minimal.
I spoke to a few people, and did a little studying, but I dont really believe in method acting, although sometimes I think maybe I am more of a method actor than I think. I just believe acting is acting, you have to do what you feel is real, rather than what someone else does.
And what of the whole
Body of Lies affair and Ridley Scott? How did she feel about filming scenes, only to discover through the grapevine at the last minute that they had been left on the cutting room floor? I was shocked to discover so late. First I was in, then I was out, but, yknow, he shoots a lot and the storyline really didnt have a great deal to do with the plot. And it couldnt go. And it did. But I was there, I got the experience. As for the future, shes just recently finished filming
Black Butterflies with the great
Rutger Hauer. She had nothing but praise for her fellow countryman, likening him to Anthony Hopkins, he has an incredible face and is full of charisma. Hes something special. Then its more heavy, horror with
Clive Owen in
Intruders. But she would really like to do something light, a comedy, a romantic comedy. But it has to be challenging, as she says, comedy can be challenging. Theres nothing harder than making someone laugh. This is very true, but Carice admirably succeeded making me laugh and ending the interview with I want to play a nerd or a nutter! Love Life begins a limited cinematic release from today. I urge you to see it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45eeMa_kWSY