Nigel Parry/Esquire You knew Leonardo DiCaprio was a movie star the first time you saw him on-screen. He keeps getting better because he watches the other movie stars (and directors and cameramen and costume designers) he works with -- watches them with intensity -- and he learns. Here DiCaprio, 35, the centerpiece of Martin Scorsese's new thriller, "Shutter Island" (opening February 19), talks about what he's picked up along the way in the March issue of Esquire.
1. On His Childhood
"The earliest memories I have are jumping up onstage before concerts in downtown LA and trying to get on the mic and breakdance, or do imitations of my mother's friends or my father's friends, or be a comic in class. I was the most insane child you can imagine, pretty intolerable to be around. High-octane energy all the time, never wanting to focus on schoolwork."
1. On His Childhood
"The earliest memories I have are jumping up onstage before concerts in downtown LA and trying to get on the mic and breakdance, or do imitations of my mother's friends or my father's friends, or be a comic in class. I was the most insane child you can imagine, pretty intolerable to be around. High-octane energy all the time, never wanting to focus on schoolwork."
2. On Risks and Really Growing Up
"What you risk just to have thrills when you're in your twenties is absurd. It's all part of that process of doing things that are daring to be accepted by your peers -- and it's absolutely insane. You can enter a never-ending vapid hole trying to catch the next exciting moment without ever stopping to appreciate it. It can be a never-ending process of chasing something that isn't there. I know it's a clich, but I'm happy to be alive. I went skydiving and my chutes didn't open. Two of them."
"What you risk just to have thrills when you're in your twenties is absurd. It's all part of that process of doing things that are daring to be accepted by your peers -- and it's absolutely insane. You can enter a never-ending vapid hole trying to catch the next exciting moment without ever stopping to appreciate it. It can be a never-ending process of chasing something that isn't there. I know it's a clich, but I'm happy to be alive. I went skydiving and my chutes didn't open. Two of them."
3. On Fame After 'Titanic'
"It wasn't the era of penetrating Internet paparazzi that we have now. But my name wasn't me anymore. I was sort of this thing. Kate felt it, too. But a lot of the attention was on me because of the teenage girls who repeatedly went to see the movie. I had the blond hair, and I was Jack Dawson, this heroic figure. So I set up everything in my personal life to rebel against that image in order to strip it down. I had a lot of fun stripping it down. But ultimately, that knocked me a few rungs down the ladder."
"It wasn't the era of penetrating Internet paparazzi that we have now. But my name wasn't me anymore. I was sort of this thing. Kate felt it, too. But a lot of the attention was on me because of the teenage girls who repeatedly went to see the movie. I had the blond hair, and I was Jack Dawson, this heroic figure. So I set up everything in my personal life to rebel against that image in order to strip it down. I had a lot of fun stripping it down. But ultimately, that knocked me a few rungs down the ladder."
4. On the Night River Phoenix Died
"When I was eighteen, River Phoenix was far and away my hero. Think of all those early great performances -- 'My Own Private Idaho.' 'Stand by Me.' I always wanted to meet him. One night, I was at this Halloween party, and he passed me. He was beyond pale -- he looked white. Before I got a chance to say hello, he was gone, driving off to the Viper Room, where he fell over and died. That's a lesson."
"When I was eighteen, River Phoenix was far and away my hero. Think of all those early great performances -- 'My Own Private Idaho.' 'Stand by Me.' I always wanted to meet him. One night, I was at this Halloween party, and he passed me. He was beyond pale -- he looked white. Before I got a chance to say hello, he was gone, driving off to the Viper Room, where he fell over and died. That's a lesson."
Nigel Parry/Esquire
5. On the Greatest Actor in the World: Meryl Streep
"Then when I sat in the theater, it was, 'Oh, my God, she's the only person who looks completely natural.' She's the only person who has actually made her character into a real human being who would have an erratic moment because those erratic moments are what make you more human. That was a huge moment of discovery. Meryl may be the greatest actor in the world."
5. On the Greatest Actor in the World: Meryl Streep
"Then when I sat in the theater, it was, 'Oh, my God, she's the only person who looks completely natural.' She's the only person who has actually made her character into a real human being who would have an erratic moment because those erratic moments are what make you more human. That was a huge moment of discovery. Meryl may be the greatest actor in the world."
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6. On That 'Confrontation Scene in 'The Departed'
"In 'Departed,' we had this confrontation scene. How would I react to him being suspicious of me being the rat? We did the scene, felt good about it, and that was it for the day. But I believe Jack went up to Marty afterward and said, 'I don't know if he necessarily believed me. I don't know if he was sincerely threatened.' Marty said, 'Let's do it again tomorrow.' So I come on the set the next day and hear we're doing the scene over for lighting reasons. Okay. But then a prop guy comes over to me and says, 'Just to let you know, there were some props Jack asked for. I had to get him a fire extinguisher, a bottle of whiskey, a lighter, and a gun.' "
7. On What He Learned From a Mustard Jar
"When I was 15, I got this amazing opportunity to audition for this plum role opposite Robert De Niro and Ellen Barkin in 'This Boy's Life.' Before that, it was 'The New Lassie' or a Bubble Yum commercial. They were using the mustard-jar scene in the audition. De Niro was going up to the kids with this almost empty mustard jar and cramming it into their faces, really pushing the kids' buttons. The scene was being used to see if the kid could stand up to De Niro, and it was hard not to be overwhelmed. When he started bludgeoning me, I completely overcompensated. He said, 'Is this empty? Is this empty?' I slapped the jar out of his hand, got right up in his face, and screamed at the top of my lungs, 'Noooooooo!' It was the most god-awful way to do the scene. I was supposed to be the victim, not the antagonizer, and there was complete silence. De Niro looks at me and goes, 'Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh,' in that way only De Niro can laugh. 'That was good. That was goooood. I like that. A little over-the-top but good.' "
6. On That 'Confrontation Scene in 'The Departed'
"In 'Departed,' we had this confrontation scene. How would I react to him being suspicious of me being the rat? We did the scene, felt good about it, and that was it for the day. But I believe Jack went up to Marty afterward and said, 'I don't know if he necessarily believed me. I don't know if he was sincerely threatened.' Marty said, 'Let's do it again tomorrow.' So I come on the set the next day and hear we're doing the scene over for lighting reasons. Okay. But then a prop guy comes over to me and says, 'Just to let you know, there were some props Jack asked for. I had to get him a fire extinguisher, a bottle of whiskey, a lighter, and a gun.' "
7. On What He Learned From a Mustard Jar
"When I was 15, I got this amazing opportunity to audition for this plum role opposite Robert De Niro and Ellen Barkin in 'This Boy's Life.' Before that, it was 'The New Lassie' or a Bubble Yum commercial. They were using the mustard-jar scene in the audition. De Niro was going up to the kids with this almost empty mustard jar and cramming it into their faces, really pushing the kids' buttons. The scene was being used to see if the kid could stand up to De Niro, and it was hard not to be overwhelmed. When he started bludgeoning me, I completely overcompensated. He said, 'Is this empty? Is this empty?' I slapped the jar out of his hand, got right up in his face, and screamed at the top of my lungs, 'Noooooooo!' It was the most god-awful way to do the scene. I was supposed to be the victim, not the antagonizer, and there was complete silence. De Niro looks at me and goes, 'Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh,' in that way only De Niro can laugh. 'That was good. That was goooood. I like that. A little over-the-top but good.' "
"Shutter Island" hits theaters on February 19. Paramount Pictures
8. On What You Can Learn From a Plate of Spaghetti
"What can you learn from a plate of spaghetti? I've never been asked that one before. I loved that character in 'Gilbert Grape.' You have to understand that Arnie was a creation that came out of going to a home in Texas and getting to hang out for a few days with some mentally disabled kids. I got to capture their youth-like innocence and that playfulness, that almost rebellious defiance they have for almost any type of authority. I remember going to Lasse Hallstrm with this checklist for him to do with the character. It was really Lasse believing in me and allowing me to run amok in all these scenes. It was incredibly fulfilling because there were no rules. Zero. There was nothing I wasn't able to do, no circumstance that I couldn't create, even if it was in defiance of the narrative. So Lasse would put a plate of spaghetti in front of me at the table, just to see how I could create chaos. You have to really look at that plate of spaghetti and understand how happy Arnie is because he's getting to eat his favorite food. The fact that there's this family dynamic going on around the table that's filled with tension doesn't matter if you're Arnie ... because he's getting to eat spaghetti."
8. On What You Can Learn From a Plate of Spaghetti
"What can you learn from a plate of spaghetti? I've never been asked that one before. I loved that character in 'Gilbert Grape.' You have to understand that Arnie was a creation that came out of going to a home in Texas and getting to hang out for a few days with some mentally disabled kids. I got to capture their youth-like innocence and that playfulness, that almost rebellious defiance they have for almost any type of authority. I remember going to Lasse Hallstrm with this checklist for him to do with the character. It was really Lasse believing in me and allowing me to run amok in all these scenes. It was incredibly fulfilling because there were no rules. Zero. There was nothing I wasn't able to do, no circumstance that I couldn't create, even if it was in defiance of the narrative. So Lasse would put a plate of spaghetti in front of me at the table, just to see how I could create chaos. You have to really look at that plate of spaghetti and understand how happy Arnie is because he's getting to eat his favorite food. The fact that there's this family dynamic going on around the table that's filled with tension doesn't matter if you're Arnie ... because he's getting to eat spaghetti."
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9. On Jack Nicholson
"Out of any actor, I can't think of anyone who's got more memorable moments in cinema than Jack Nicholson. Jack never takes a single line straight on. Never takes an emotion written in the script at face value. He brings terror into what you thought was supposed to be a light moment and makes a light moment out of a cutthroat vicious line. He flips everything on its side. When you're working with somebody like that, it's just a matter of keeping up."
9. On Jack Nicholson
"Out of any actor, I can't think of anyone who's got more memorable moments in cinema than Jack Nicholson. Jack never takes a single line straight on. Never takes an emotion written in the script at face value. He brings terror into what you thought was supposed to be a light moment and makes a light moment out of a cutthroat vicious line. He flips everything on its side. When you're working with somebody like that, it's just a matter of keeping up."
10. On 'Shutter Island'
"I have to say, I'm pretty proud of 'Shutter Island.' I'd love to tell you a particular story about it, but I can't. I'm not going to talk about it in any detail because I don't want to ruin it for anyone who's going to watch it."
"I have to say, I'm pretty proud of 'Shutter Island.' I'd love to tell you a particular story about it, but I can't. I'm not going to talk about it in any detail because I don't want to ruin it for anyone who's going to watch it."
To read more of Leonardo's Esquire interview, pick up the March issue on Tuesday, February 16.
And check out the trailer for "Shutter Island":
1 comment :
Very energetic blog, I loved that bit. Will there be a part 2?
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