by
Paul Fischer
Laura Dern has come a long way since
her first major screen appearance in Mask. A star of 
some
40 films, including ther diverse likes of Rambling Rose, Jurassic Park, Bastard
out of Carolina and Dr T & The Women, Dern will be seen opposite
Steve Martin in the irreverent
black comedy Novocaine and is somewhat different opposite William
H. Macy in Focus. In the
former, Dern plays a dental hygienist with more than a employer/employee relationship
with her boss (Martin). In Focus, adapted from a novel by Arthur Miller,
she teaches William H. Macy all about anti-Semitism in a 1940s New York Protestant
neighborhood that doesn't particularly care for Members of the Tribe. The catch?
Neither are Jewish. CrankyCritic.com's Paul Fischer spoke to Laura in Los Angeles,
November 2001.
CrankyCritic: How does it feel being a new mom?
Laura Dern: Yea, it's huge, it's huge and it's amazing and it's beautiful
and it's overwhelming because I'm in, it's just been almost eight weeks, so I'm
just in the beginnings of.
CrankyCritic: Now you're doing press, what a trooper you are.
Laura Dern: Okay.
CrankyCritic: Unbelievable, we saw both of these movies in Toronto one
after another and couldn't believe how different both of these characters are.
Did you have more fun on the Novocaine than you did on Focus?
Laura Dern: It's kind of both. I have to say the most fun I ever get to
have is when I have the opportunity to play someone who is withholding who they
are, even from themselves, and have to -- during the course of the movie -- kind
of come to terms with themselves. Because it's a great exploration as an actor
and a person starts to ask you know, where I do that and why people do that and
both of these characters in the movies are at opposite extremes. Kind of walk
that journey, and especially then in comedy when you have a character where you
like in Novocain, you can't reveal who they are to the audience, but you also
have to reveal the extreme personality and yet you know that what seems the most
extreme in terms of being an 
obsessive
compulsive perfectionist is nothing in terms of what you are going to see later
in the story. So, how you walk the line, how you are going to make it funny and
you just try to be as honest as possible in that.
CrankyCritic: Which of those two characters would you say you could
have related to the most?
Laura Dern: Well Novocaine I would relate to people I've known,
unfortunately. We have all have met or seen, you know, a couple of people like
that on our path and that's disturbing. You know, am I, you know, are there parts
of me that are controlling or parts of me that are obsessive compulsive, I'm sure
and I've certainly had to take account of those. But Focus more so, you
know, in earnest, I think that affected me a great deal in terms of my own exploration
because she is someone that has allowed her fear to decide for her who she is
going to be for the outside world. If she wants to be who other people want her
to be and I think that it just reminded me to keep myself in constant check about
how I do that and how we do that culturally and of course, you know, there's an
obvious parallel to what we are all walking through now. You know, on a global
level, so.
CrankyCritic: It's interesting that Focus seems more eerily relevant
now than it was when Arthur Miller wrote the original book.
Laura
Dern: Isn't that amazing and shocking and disturbing because you want it to
be your history and you don't want it to be what you are going through now, but
in fact that is the case.
CrankyCritic: What can people learn from Focus about that? It might
not be anti-Semitism that necessarily . . .
Laura Dern: Right, any kind of racial profile and I'm sure is a draft and
it asks those questions. For me personally, you know, I can only speak from my
experience what I take from it but the thing that I am affected by the most is
that one has to overcome the terror, and just be in their own skin, and I think
that that's what the two lead characters have to get to, you know. He is so terrified
even in the first few moments of the movie that he won't even protect others,
he won't even allow himself to see and I love the allegory that Arthur Miller
has created it, of him not even allowing himself to see what is happening in front
of him up until he gets glasses that perception changes. He is able to see the
world but how the world sees him completely changes.
CrankyCritic: How would you compare working with both first time directors?
Laura Dern: Yea, you know it's always different. In the case of Novocaine,
David Atkins had written the screenplay but had never directed anything
so, you know, you don't know what the experience is going to be like working with
the person as a film maker. He knew the story so well and it's is such
a clever script that that's always an exciting experience, because he will help
you define the character because he created it, and anybody who created [Dern's
character] Jean Nobel is like, got to be pretty bizarre and interesting to work
with to say the least. In the case of Focus, Neal Slavin is, the
little bit I know about a lot of things. I'm actually a huge fan of photography
and had known and really loved his work and had been a great admirer of his. His
choice of portraitures and how he creates characters through his portraits and
this kind of garish use of color in photographs, I don't know if you have seen
any of his photographs. . .
CrankyCritic: Sorry, no.
Laura
Dern: . . . the colors are almost assaulting. I found that so exciting; how
he used that as well in Focus. I mean especially for a period he's usually,
like, sepia tones and everybody wants to just look that way an old photograph
look, and he just blasts you with these over saturated colors that some how make
the world kind of nauseating and I just find that really interesting because he
kind of does that in his photography and he makes you forced to be in this place
where you don't want to be, which is what Arthur Miller does he exposes the face
of America that we don't want to admit is our own.
CrankyCritic: You seem to be a great fan of independent films as well
as studio movies. Is that where the great roles are do you think, or is that simply
coincidental?
Laura Dern: I think it can be. I think it is the luck of the draw and just
like independent films have tried to become more commercial and you will find
a very violent independent go what are they trying to do. They are trying to make
money. Then you'll find a studio that's making a very sweet, intimate and human
story that you would think: Oh, that would usually be done by an independent.
So everything is getting more stirred up, more than ever now, which I think it's
great. I would say I would go where the work is, but go where the love
of the work it.
CrankyCritic: Do you think that motherhood at all changes your perceptions
of what to look for in a role?
Laura Dern: I would say not necessarily will it affect my specific choices
because I am someone who has been very specific about my choices, always,
I really care about what I do, and the movies I've done I really like. I like
them for specific reasons and I like the makers I am working with or the story
or the character for specific reasons. I think the way it will affect my choices
the most is just that it will, I feel inspired to learn more because I've got
to teach stuff and he's already teaching me stuff much more than I could
ever teach him, but you know it's like you want to catch up and grow up,
so as an after it's a thrill to throw myself into that much more challenging parts.
Maybe I will take on things that I would have been afraid to a few years ago.
CrankyCritic: What about the film Daddy and Them, which I've
heard some really great things about?
Laura Dern: I haven't seen a finished form, but what I saw I loved. I think
it's a really interesting, again dark comedy. It deals with relationship challenge,
alcohol and family and all kinds of wild stuff and just an amazing cast of people
that I absolutely love knowing and working with and I really loved my character.
It taught me a lot and I think it addresses a lot about love and communication
and the lack thereof. I hope it does surface in some form. Some people are saying
it could come out this fall.
CrankyCritic: Bill Macy credits you with having convinced him to do Jurassic
3.
Laura Dern: Is that right? Well, that's interesting. I mean certainly we
talked about it a lot, what do you do with dinosaurs, and all those things, I
had the best time of my life. I had an amazing time working with Spielberg, who
was incredible. The cast was amazing, the most wonderful people, the most wonderful
cast of people.
CrankyCritic: You directed a short film a few years ago. Are you planning
to do any more?
Laura Dern: You know, I am and that's one thing that motherhood -- if I
can learn to orchestrate my life better then maybe I'll be capable of directing
a movie. If I could get through the next five years of managing all the things
I want to do already. There is a book that I have been developing to direct and
I feel that when it's ready and I'm ready it will organically happen.
CrankyCritic: What is that?
Laura Dern: There are actually two different projects, both of which are,
I shouldn't say probably titles of or anything, but one is a southern dark comedy
and the other one is a southern dark comedy. I was raised in the south around
southern women and I feel like it's where my heart is.
CrankyCritic: What else is coming up?
Laura Dern: Damaged Care, for Showtime, which is such an interesting
movie that I hope you will all connect with. It's the true story of Linda Pino
who is this sort of this major advocate now for bringing down the HMO's. She's
an incredible woman and doctor and she's sort of exposed the HMO's and it's a
really interesting and legally fascinating movie.
CrankyCritic: Do you have an air date for that?
Laura Dern: No, probably in the spring.