Saturday, December 29, 2012

An Evening with Bill Murray about HYDE PARK ON HUDSON

As longtime TotED readers know, I rarely review current movies here, but when I heard about Focus Features’ fact-based comedy-drama Hyde Park on Hudson (HPoH), I didn't want to wait for the rest of the world to decide whether or not this film was a future classic!  On Sunday, October 14th , 2012, I was lucky enough to attend a sneak preview in my hometown, New York City, at Manhattan’s Florence Gould Hall.  The stars, Bill Murray as President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and Laura Linney as Daisy Suckley, surely need no introduction, being Oscar nominees themselves: Murray for Lost in Translation (2003), and Laura Linney for The Savages (2007), Kinsey (2004), and You Can Count on Me (2000), among their other memorable films.



In HPoH, distant cousin Daisy comes to Hyde Park in upstate New York (played by England) as a companion/assistant to Franklin. Her duties include helping to keep the extent of the 32nd President’s polio on the downlow; nobody wanted FDR to be shown as frail or helpless, especially with war looming on the horizon.  Daisy tends to her aunt, too, which delighted me, because Auntie is played by Team Bartilucci favorite Eleanor Bron (Help!, Alfie; Two For The Road; Bedazzled — the original 1960s films, not the remakes from the early 2000s)! 

Eleanor Bron as Daisy's Aunt
Daisy and Franklin have lots of interests in common, and soon literally become kissing cousins and confidants. The film’s narrative unfolds in an endearingly low-key style, almost as if these iconic historical figures could be members of your own family, albeit better dressed. I particularly liked the scenes with the Royal Couple, King George VI (played poignantly and ultimately endearingly by Samuel West) and Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman from Hot Fuzz; The Iron Lady).  Both George and Elizabeth are terrified of somehow screwing up this momentous occasion.  In particular, I found myself both amused and sympathetic toward the Royal Couple during the running gag about the King and the Queen not quite knowing whether to be insulted or just plain terrified when they’re faced with (gasp!) hot dogs, fearing an international incident if they do or say the wrong things.  George and Franklin even have a bit of a father-and-son aspect to their talks together. I’ll confess I’ve never seen the Oscar-winning The King’s Speech, but now that I’ve seen and enjoyed HPoH, I’d like to see both films back-to-back!  In any case, while some reviews were mixed, I found HPoH  to be witty, droll, and just plain endearing!

But you all really want to talk about Bill Murray, don’t you? Sure, we all do!  The New York Times’ Dave Itzkoff conducted the Q&A and Murray was a breezy, good-natured delight with both the interviewer and the questions from the enthusiastic audience.  Quoting from Itzkoff’s intro: “WHAT do we still want from Bill Murray?  His unpremeditated film career—in which he has parlayed performances as the happy-go-lucky heroes of 1980s-era slapstick into the existentially uncertain leading men of thoughtful comedies like Groundhog Day, Rushmore, and Lost in Translation—would seem to be sufficient. Yet we demand more from this 62-year-old actor, on whose rugged face a playful smirk and a contemplative gaze look equally at home, and he appears happy to give it to us in his life beyond the screen. Tracking his movements in the wild, as he crashes karaoke parties and kickball games, has become an online pastime; Mr. Murray himself has become the folkloric equivalent of a leprechaun or fairy godparent, popping up at unpredictable yet opportune moments.”

Murray’s amiable unpredictability has always been part of his charm.  For example, as Itzkoff got to see first-hand while visiting NYC on the film’s behalf: “… Mr. Murray gave a journalist a front-row seat to see his carefree philosophy in action. Actually, closer: After Mr. Murray’s interview with another interrogator ran overtime, I was invited to accompany him to an evening appearance at Florence Gould Hall — and onto the stage of its theater, where a private chat turned into a public spectacle for a few hundred members of the Screen Actors Guild. (Imagine accompanying Mr. Murray on a version of the famous tracking shot from “Goodfellas,” through the back rooms and bowels of an unfamiliar building until the moment you expect to part ways and take your seat in the audience, only to realize then that you’re part of the act.)  Murray apologized: “I’m sorry I went too long. I just feel badly when someone doesn’t have enough. Everyone wants to talk longer. Even I want to talk longer sometimes. And then I dig myself into holes I gotta get out of.”

Regarding feedback on his performance, Murray said, “I’m curious to see what people think of it, just ’cause it is not like an ordinary movie. I don’t know if it’s great or not. We’ll see what you get.”  Indeed, he was genuinely surprised to be offered this iconic role at all:  “I thought, ‘Can this guy be serious?’  I wouldn’t have cast myself. But this guy did, and about halfway through I went, ‘Wow, he really was right.’  Not to compare myself, but certain personality things were similar, like the way he tried to leaven things and move attention around a room, get everyone their little slice of the sun.”

Have you seen Bill Murray, baby, standing in the shadows?
Asked how he prepared for the role, Murray cited his days at the celebrated Second City comedy troupe in Chicago.  There, he’d worked with the great writer, actor, and improv master Del Close, who’d explained to him: “You wear your characters like a trench coat. It’s still you in there, but there’s like a trench coat.” Murray added, “So I figured this was like a winter trench coat, because there was just a little bit more character that comes to the party. So I did a lot more reading, a lot more studying. People ask, “Did this really happen?”  Well, if you read the diaries, it’s very clear that it happened.  The writing changes. You read this later stuff, when we’re at war, and he’s not telling his wife, he’s not telling the cabinet—they don’t know where he is. But he’s sending messages by courier to her every day. This girl was the vault. I love that expression: ‘She’s the vault.’ He could tell her anything, and it wasn’t leaving her head.”

Murray wasn’t out to sully the real-life people involved, though.  “The thing I was concerned about was: The story that we’re going to tell, is it going to be a tearing-down of an icon?  I don’t know if I want to be part of that kind of action, where you trash someone.  What was the John Travolta movie, Primary Colors?  I didn’t want to do something where you were really just napalming someone.”


Itzkoff notes the joy Murray brings out of people when they encounter him, to which Murray smiles and says, “Some are more joyous than others. I’m of the habit that if there are people waiting outside the hotel, you don’t sign those autographs there. Because that means when you come back in the middle of the night, they’re still there. It’s usually a one-time thing. That’s it; that’s your one time. You try your hardest, but you can’t always be perfect.”

As he responds to this question, Murray brings Itzkoff with him onto an elevator, guiding him through a backstage area and onto the stage, where the expectant audience applauds rapturously. Even though these plans were surely explained to me ahead of time, the effect is one of dreamlike disorientation, followed by a deep breath and a tacit decision to follow Murray’s lead.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1mHtkpkxiA

Itzkoff says:  “We were just talking about the joy you bring out of people. Do you believe it now?”

Is this like the Oprah show?” Murray playfully replies.  “Does everyone have a gift under their seat?  You guys are pretty jazzed up.”

Murray reminisces about the first time he’d went to Wrigley Field in Chicago as a boy. “I was a big Cubs fan, and I watched all the games on TV, but when I grew up, TV was in black and white. So when I was 7 years old, I was taken to my first Cubs games, and my brother Brian said, ‘Wait, Billy,’ and he put his hands over my eyes, and he walked me up the stairs.  And then he took his hands away.”  Choking up, Murray continues, “And there was Wrigley Field, in green. There was this beautiful grass and this beautiful ivy. I’d only seen it in black and white. It was like I was a blind man made to see. It was something.”

There seems to be so much serendipity in Murray’s life that Itzkoff couldn’t help but ask whether he’s actively cultivating these moments, or just hoping that they come to him.  “Well, you have to hope that they happen to you. That’s Pandora’s box, right? She opens up the box, and all the nightmares fly out.  And slams the lid shut, like, “Oops,” and opens it one more time, and hope pops out of the box. That’s the only thing we really, surely have, is hope.  You hope that you can be alive, that things will happen to you that you’ll actually witness, that you’ll participate in, rather than life just rolling over you.  Life rolls along, and holy cats, you wake up and it’s Thursday, and what happened to Monday?  Whatever the best part of my life has been, has been as a result of that remembering.

Everyone has days where you wake up and think: “Nothing good has come to me in a little while. I’d better prime the pump’?   Well, who hasn’t woken up thinking, “God, nothing good has come to me in a while,’ right?  When I feel like I’m stuck, I do something—not like I’m Mother Teresa or anything, but there’s someone who’s forgotten-about in your life, all the time.  Someone that could use an ‘Attaboy’ or a ‘How you doin’ out there?’  It’s that sort of scene, that remembering that we die alone.  We’re born alone. We do need each other. It’s lonely to really effectively live your life, and anyone you can get help from or give help to, that’s part of your obligation.”

Even today, Murray is pleasantly surprised that the roles that he’d done years ago, if not decades ago, still endure.  “When you did the job, you thought you were just trying to amuse your friends who are all on the job. I’m just trying to make the sound guy laugh, the script supervisor.  Take a movie like Caddyshack,  I can walk on a golf course, and some guy will be screaming entire scenes at me and expecting me to do it word for word with him. It’s like: ‘Fella, I did that once.  I improvised that scene.  I don’t remember how it goes.’  But I’m charmed by it. I’m not like, ‘Hey, knock it off.’ It’s kind of cool.”
Eleanor Bron from A Little Princess,
because it's a better pic of her :-)

Murray continues to be pleasantly surprised that the lessons he learned back in Second City would pay off later in life.  “It pays off in your life when you’re in an elevator and people are uncomfortable.  You can just say, ‘That’s a beautiful scarf.’  It’s just thinking about making someone else feel comfortable.  You don’t worry about yourself, because we’re vibrating together. If I can make yours just a little bit groovier, it’ll affect me. It comes back, somehow.”

Hyde Park on Hudson is currently in limited release, and will be in wide release in January 2013!

Until then, check out these fun tidbits about the film, courtesy of Focus Features! Here's the link:

http://focusfeatures.com/hyde_park_on_hudson

17 comments:

  1. Bill Murray is entering that select group of performers (e.g. Sean Connery, Marlene Dietrich, Burt Lancaster) who becomes more watchable and interesting as he grows older. The sort of roles he's been getting in recent years is clear evidence of this. Even better, he doesn't seem to be falling into the diva trap so many of his peers (as well as those with extremely far less talent) have done so.

    And I guess I'll eventually be able to see HYDE PARK ON HUDSON someday (sage advice to would-be film critics: if you're not living in NYC or Los Angeles then you might as well just pack it in. The really good movies aren't going to play Charleston SC no way no how). Not only am I looking forward to seeing Murray's take on FDR, but I jump at any chance to see Eleanor Bron at work.

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    1. Michael, I sympathize about having to wait in order to see HYDE PARK ON HUDSON, while those lucky dogs in New York and Los Angeles get to have all the fun now! I'm most grateful for the wonderful folks at Focus Features inviting me to the sneak preview, otherwise I'd still be waiting to see it, too! While Eleanor Bron only has a small amount of screen time in HPoH, she's always a fine actress and screen presence, and always worth watching. When you do catch up with HPoH, I'll look forward to seeing your opinion! Thanks for your comments, Michael, as always, and here's hoping 2013 is a great year for you and yours!

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  2. Hey, gang, on a related note, since I so recently reviewed HYDE PARK ON HUDSON, it seemed like the perfect time to watch the 2010 Oscar-winner THE KING'S SPEECH! I found it both moving and droll, with a great cast including not only Oscar-winner Colin Firth and Oscar nominees Helena Bonham Carter and Geoffrey Rush, but many swell supporting actors such as Claire Bloom, Guy Pearce, Timothy Spall, Derek Jacobi, Jennifer Ehle, and so much more! It's a boon to all of us shy, insecure types (there, my secret is out :-)) who built up courage with the help of caring people. I recommend THE KING'S SPEECH as a great double-bill with HPoH!

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  3. That sounds like a wonderful evening, Dorian. So many people would chew off their sleeve for a chance to pick Murray's brain and he seems very willing to respond. Glad to hear that your 2012 movie-watching is ending on a high note. Here's to the joys to come in 2013!

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    1. Rachel, thanks for your kind words about my HPoH post! It's always great when you're lucky enough to have an audience with a star you like and admire, and it turns out they really are kind, decent people. I was also lucky enough to talk with one of my idols, Adrien Brody, at the New York Comic Con a couple of years back, and he was a real sweetie, and very kind to my daughter and me even in the face of a very hectic line. Like Bill Murray, I don't take these bits of good luck for granted! :-)
      I hope you and yours have a wonderful New Year, Rachel!

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  4. Thank you for this thoughtful review and the interview with Bill Murray. I want to see this film, but will wait for it to come out on DVD.

    I agree with commenter Michael W. when he says Murray becomes a more interesting actor as he gets older. One of my fave movies is "Groundhog Day," although he has done so many fascinating movies in the past decade.

    And - Yay! Glad you saw, and liked, "The King's Speech". I adore that movie. Such a great cast!

    All the best to you and your family in 2013, Dorian. Looking forward to more of your wonderful blog posts. :)

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    1. Thanks for your enthusiastic comments about my HPoH post, Ruth! It's amazing how Murray has grown as an actor, while still being a warm, decent guy. I'm very glad I was able to watch and enjoy THE KING'S SPEECH, too. I'm looking forward to more Silver Screenings from you in 2013, too! Happy New Year to you and yours, my friend!

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  5. very nice piece! I agree, Groundhog Day is a modern classic, and Murray is always a highly interesting presence. Just curious, and for fun, to whom would you most compare Murray, from ye olden movie times? Happy New Year, may it be great!

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    1. Hey, Kristina, thanks for dropping by with your swell comments about Bill Murray and HPoH! I don't think I've ever seen a Bill Murray performance I didn't like, but I will say that STRIPES and CADDYSHACK got my attention first because he managed to be impudent yet likable at the same time. LOST IN TRANSLATION especially impressed me because he showed more range while still being funny and endearing, in a low-key way. And of course, I'm really impressed with Murray's performance in HPoH; if playing FDR doesn't display range, I don't know what does!
      Be safe and have a Happy New Year, my friend; looking forward to your SPEAKEASY and DARK PAGES fun and frolic in 2013!

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  6. I've recently taken an interest in the life of FDR. I read a huge biography on him and I also started reading Eleanor's autobiography (haven't finished), so I knew about his extramarital affairs prior to this movie being announced. Unfortunately, the negative reviews have scared me off seeing it theatrically. Maybe I'll see it on video or something. (BTW, definitely see 'The King's Speech,' it's very good.)

    I once saw Bill Murray when he was filming 'What About Bob.' He was in midtown Manhattan, on 3rd Avenue, I think, and there was a crowd gathered outside the entrance to a building watching the filming taking place. I remember saying something to him about the Cubs during a break, but I forget what.

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    1. Rich, although I understand your reluctance to spend money on a first-run movie that got mixed reviews (especially in this economy), I hope you'll at least give HPoH a chance when it hits second-run theaters or a bargain matinee, or even DVD/BluRay. Now that you're reading about FDR's life, I'd be especially interested in your thoughts about the film when you have an opportunity to at least see it at a bargain matinee.

      Is it me, or do an awful lot of Presidents seem to be unable to stay faithful to their wives? I wonder how many of the Presidential couples, especially back in FDR's era, might have married for convenience? Or am I just naive? :-)

      How cool that you got to see Bill Murray filming WHAT ABOUT BOB? (another Team Bartilucci fave) being filmed in my hometown, and that you had a chance to chat with him! When I lived in NYC, it was fun when we happened to get an opportunity to see movie or TV stars actually filming!

      Yes, I did indeed get to see THE KING'S SPEECH, thanks to Netflix! I really enjoyed it, and I'd definitely recommend it. I agree it's well worth taking time to watch. It's an inspiration to formerly shy, tongue-tied people everywhere!

      Thanks for joining the HPoH chat, Rich, and Happy New Year to you and yours from all of us here at Team Bartilucci HQ! Looking forward to your 2013 blog posts!

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  7. Dorian, Fascinating piece and a great opportunity for Team B! I am looking forward to this film though from what I have read while Murray has gotten very good reviews, the film itself seems less so. I have been an admirer of Murray's since his SNL days and his early films. In many cases his performance/personality rise about the material. And he has always been willing to stretch himself as an actor.

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    1. John, thanks for your kind words about my HYDE PARK ON HUDSON post - your enthusiastic comments have gotten 2013 off to a great start, along with the fun of seeing the film and Bill Murray in person! :-D He's come so wonderfully far as an actor, and it's great to know he's a great guy, too. Happy New Year to you and Dorothy and all you care about, from all of us here at Team Bartilucci HQ - looking forward to great more TWENTY-FOUR FRAMES posts in 2013, too!

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  8. Dorian, Fascinating piece and a great opportunity for Team B! I am looking forward to this film though from what I have read while Murray has gotten very good reviews, the film itself seems less so. I have been an admirer of Murray's since his SNL days and his early films. In many cases his performance/personality rise about the material. And he has always been willing to stretch himself as an actor.

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  10. Ooh, ooh, I knew I wanted to see this at some point. BUT NOW I KNOW I WANT TO SEE IT SOONER RATHER THAN LATER!!! Thanks, Dorian for all the inside dish too. I always thought Murray was a wiseguy and I wasn't at all sure I liked him (except in GROUNDHOG DAY) but after reading your post, I think I'm in love. Ha!

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    1. Yvette, thanks for your kind words, and I'm glad to see you're feeling better and ready to check out HYDE PARK ON HUDSON! Bill Murray was so affable, playful, and kind, you can't help loving that man! :-) I hope you'll get to see HPoH soon now that it's in wide release!

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