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Caught in the web
As the third instalment of the angst-ridden webslinger swings its way onto DVD and Blu-ray, SciFiNow sits down and chats to the cast about the movie, their abiding memories of the shoot and, of course, whether there’ll be a Spider-Man 4.....
The man behind the mask talks about getting under Spidey’s skin, the foolishness of celebrity and the benefits of good ankle support
Has it got any easier doing these big blockbuster films?
Well, after we released the second movie the studio said, “Okay, the third movie is coming out in May 2007,” so the ticking clock was on us. When we went into shooting although the script was written, it didn’t have the polishes that you would normally have before you start so the whole process became a more collaborative experience where the actors got to be part of the building of the story.
With this film there are a lot of sub-plots. How did it evolve from the first draft to the last one?
The thing I was most concerned about was how to balance it all and make it all fit under one theme and feel like one movie. There are a lot of storylines and even in the cutting room Sam Raimi was still balancing it out.
So how did the duality of the storylines develop?
Well, Sam and his brother Ivan structured the story and then Alvin [Sargent] wrote the screenplay. Once the screenplay was in I came in and went over the scenes and gave notes on my ideas on the tone and where I thought the character should go. It was a work in progress throughout really.
Was it fun playing a more aggressive Spider-Man then?
Yeah, it was a lot of fun playing that side of Peter Parker. In the beginning of the film he’s basking in the glory of being Spider-Man and he becomes arrogant and self-important and it starts interfering with his relationship with MJ. That was a lot of fun to do but also I just found it funny to watch him being kind of a jerk
The scene where you see how the public really loves Spider-Man seems like a parody on your own status as Spider-Man…
Well I certainly didn’t draw any parallels from me to Spider-Man, and I don’t think that was the intention of the filmmaker, but his reaction to the public’s admiration of him is funny.
He has a very naïve viewpoint of his success…
Yeah, definitely. He’s always battling with the public’s perception of him and J. Jonah Jameson’s always pushing the fact he’s actually got some other agenda.
Because you had to find the new suit alluring, did they make it more comfortable to give you a bit of method?
Not much more comfortable but it wasn’t too bad. They put some support in the shoes, which was good because on the first movie it was just like a slab of rubber plastic that I was walking on all day.
In Spider-Man 2 you could see Dr Octopus’s face, so was there more of an attempt to get the mask off you this time in the action sequences to keep that connection?
We tried to do that at every step of the way really. And I thought it was a cool choice to have that opening fight scene just as Peter Parker.
How did you find doing a longer scene with Bruce Campbell this time?
Oh man, Bruce was so good in this movie! I thought this was his best role in the three movies and it was great. We played around a lot and tried different things and there are probably a few lines that didn’t make it in the movie but that was fun.
And so will there be a number four?
Well I’m sure there’ll be more Spider-Man movies, whether I’m involved or not, I’m not sure. I think that this film does conclude some storylines that we opened up in the first two pictures but in terms of future movies, if there’s a great story to be told, if there’s something new and interesting for Peter Parker, if Sam Raimi was involved and the right cast was in place, then I would consider it.
Kirsten Dunst
Kirsten Dunst talks about growing up with Mary Jane and why it’s tough going out with a superhero.
Mary Jane goes on quite a journey in the film…
Yeah, she’s going through a hard time. She’s based a lot of her confidence in her work and at the beginning of the film she’s very happy, but then you slowly watch her deteriorate and her confidence just goes out the window. She’s a girl trying to be a woman and everything is much more complicated for her than it was in the previous films.
Could you identify with what your character goes through then?
Yeah. She has problems in her love life and work and those are the two important areas in life. I’ve based my confidence in my work before and there’ve been ups and downs in how I felt about starting my acting career so young but right now I am in a place where I’ve finally embraced my history.
So how did you find the role as an actress?
Well Mary Jane takes an emotional beating and so every scene was pretty dramatic for me but I really wanted to make an effort not to be a depressed lump throughout the film. It’s hard to be Spider-Man’s girlfriend. He could die or run off with some other girl and his life is constantly threatened and so they’re living on the edge together. But I’d much rather cry all day than do bluescreen! Those action and bluescreen scenes were really the bane of my existence.
So you didn’t enjoy the action in Spider-Man then?
I don’t really like doing the action because basically it entails sitting in a trailer all day doing nothing. You get there at 6am, you get all dressed up, put your makeup on and it seeps into your pores all day long and it’s really boring. I always have a lot of action in these films but I don’t like it. Everything that you see in the great action clips takes weeks and months to do.
So it’s fair to say the film was challenging, in one way or another?
Yeah, for my first day of work I had to walk down those steep stairs in high heels and a long dress while lip-synching to my own voice. To sing in high heels and not look down at the stairs wasn’t easy so the singing and dancing was definitely the hardest part.
How much does Spider-Man mean to you?
It’s been such a gift because I can really mark how I’ve changed as an actor. I’ve definitely grown up along with Mary Jane and the franchise and I really cherish it in my life.
It must have been a big thrill getting the first Spider-Man film?
It was fantastic. At the time I was 16 and I was in Germany doing The Cat’s Meow and I knew that Spider-Man was going to be a big studio movie with interesting people and so my heart just exploded for this role. They went through a lot of different women but I know Tobey was influential in me getting the role. I had done a commercial for Gap and Tobey was driving down Sunset Boulevard and saw a poster of me. So he and Sam came out to Germany and Tobey and I had great chemistry and, of course, I got the job.
How much do you enjoy being a leading actress and being famous?
It is wonderful. I get to meet anyone I want to just because I’m famous which is ridiculous. I would love to meet Barack Obama (Democratic presidential candidate), but I don’t think I could even talk to him. I would pass out I am such a fan.
Would you make another Spider-Man film?
Yes, I would definitely do Spider-Man 4. As long as Sam Raimi was the director and Tobey was the star and there was a good story to tell, I’ll be there with bells on.
Thomas Haden Church
Misleadingly regarded as a newcomer, Thomas Haden Church reflects on playing Spidey nemesis Sandman and moving into the big leagues as an older gent.
Joining an established team, did you make use of your director’s enthusiasm and knowledge?
Yeah, Sam is nothing but dedicated and so it was really nice to be invited to his little franchise village.
How did you develop the character of Sandman?
When I was brought onto the movie there was no script. All they had to show me were storyboards and sequences that Sam and Ivan and Laura [Ziskin, producer] knew they wanted. But when the action settles the characters have got to be compelling but that’s where Sam is really at his best, and, for me, that was where the collaborative process really hit its stride.
There was a gentle demand that we bring a lot of the nuances of who the character is and so the whole process started lumbering forward and you just start sharpening and sharpening and then one day you get it all to where it needs to be.
Was it hard to judge how you did in the role at first when so much of the film, effects wise, was unfinished?
Well, because there’s so much at stake with these movies they kind of have the advantage in that we finished principal photography at the beginning of July and they could see what connective tissue was missing. Every time somebody asked me ‘are you done?’ I would start saying that we had re-shoots but it really wasn’t re-shoots. I think additional photography is a more appropriate description. They just go back and fill in the pieces that we were unable to get.
Was that difficult for you?
It was a unique experience. We did three different versions of a particular scene so Sam and the rest of the creative collective had the opportunity to go and examine it and see how it worked. But as far as energy, you rely on somebody who has the exquisite professionalism of Tobey. He was kind of my hero through the whole process and so watching him and James Franco and actors that had been there, you realise what they had gone through on the first two pictures.
Being such a physical role, did you sustain any injuries?
Well I grew a third testicle on this movie, I don’t know why but I did. I’d say that I did probably about 97 per cent of my stunts, which, for a guy in his 40s, is a pretty high percentage. I started physically training for the movie almost two years before and I realised when we started shooting that the hidden benefit of that was that I was able to endure some of the more taxing stunts. I didn’t do the stuff that was absolutely too dangerous but I am an older guy and I got injured in a variety of ways. Nothing lasting though and nothing that was disabling while we were shooting.
Did the production need to be persuaded that you could do these stunts?
The one that was very dangerous, Sam only wanted to do it once. I think it was because of insurance though. I convinced him to let me do it again and so we did it twice but everybody was pretty nervous. It took him several hours to set it up, and we had rehearsed it a month prior for several hours. Basically it was machinery and men, and it was a dangerous stunt but I think all of these movies have dangerous stunts.
Do you find it odd to all of a sudden have been considered an overnight sensation?
After I did Sideways, the very first thing that was enormously appealing to me was Spider-Man 3. Sam and I almost worked together on another movie called The Gift a number of years before but it just was a convergence of fate that I was in a position where they thought I was the right guy for this movie.
Topher Grace
As the villainous Venom and Peter Parker rival Eddie Brock, Topher Grace had a lot on his plate in his first blockbuster role.
Sam Raimi created an incredible world. Did you sometimes feel like a stranger in a strange land?
Yeah, but that’s the best part of the gig. I knew how well the first two had done and part of signing onto a film like that is being passionate about the role. The other part is you know you’re going to have an action figure made after you!
Why have you opted for ensemble cast movies rather than choosing the star vehicles like other actors?
I really love ensembles because having a large cast helps you to understand your utility in a film. It helps you to work out which person is the protagonist and it’s very easy to see that Sandman is a classic antagonist, while Venom was something different. So I figured out what I was in opposition to Peter Parker and then it’s fun to section off what part is yours and colour inside the lines.
Does the commitment a film like Spider-Man 3 demands affect your choice of roles?
You spend so much time focusing on one character that you want to keep challenging yourself. I spent a year filming Spider-Man 3 and playing a bad guy and so afterwards it was a great to go and spend a year on a fun comedy like Kids In America where the character I play is completely the opposite. I like doing big blockbuster films but I also love defying expectations.
Speaking of defying expectations, how did you want the audience to feel about Eddie Brock?
I really love having the audience feel lots of different things for a character. With Eddie Brock, he is even more terrifying because you understand his motives and why he’s doing what he’s doing, which is worse than him being insane and wanting to take over the world.
Thus Eddie ‘Venom’ Brock starts out seemingly as the nice guy but quickly becomes someone else…
Yeah, if someone walked into the movie not knowing how it was going to end you might think Eddie was a funny, upbeat nice guy. I did that to show that if someone has worked so hard on his or her exterior most likely it’s hiding a weak interior. That’s really the opposite of what Peter Parker is. He has this bumbling exterior but we know he has a strong core, therefore when they are faced with the same super power, one of them uses it for good and the other uses it for evil.
Every hero has an alter ego; does Topher Grace have one lurking inside of him too?
I think there’s this misconception when people come to Hollywood that you have to be mysterious or have some element to your personality that’s special. At the beginning of your career maybe you want to create some kind of alter ego that’s cooler than you but everyone deep down knows they are a dork.
You have enormous respect for people with long-term careers and experience. Is that something innate to your work ethic?
If you are seeking longevity rather than tabloid stuff you have to turn to people who have succeeded in that but I’m also really obsessed with directors. Great directors like Sam Raimi teach you a lot about acting.
You have shared the screen with leading Hollywood A-listers. What have you learnt from working with such experienced actors?
I realised they are just hard working guys and girls that are really talented, but more than that, they just work harder than anyone else. It’s all about putting your nose down to the grindstone. I can’t tell you I’m the best actor, but I can tell you nobody works harder then me.
Spider-Man 3 is released on DVD, UMD and Blu-ray on 15 October, courtesy of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
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