Mark & Jay Duplass – Jeff, Who Lives at Home

With two films out this year, directors Mark and Jay Duplass continue to add to their unique independent filmmaking repertoire. After breaking onto the scene in 2005 with “The Puffy Chair,” the Duplass brothers have since etched out a formidable place for themselves in the film industry and have proven to be directors to keep a close eye on. Following another micro-budget project in 2008, the horror/comedy “Baghead,” Mark and Jay were given the opportunity to make their first studio film, the 2010 dark comedy “Cyrus,” which starred Jonah Hill, John C. Reilly, and Marisa Tomei. Hill played the title character, an extremely dependent young man who butts heads with his mother’s new boyfriend.

This year, the Duplass brothers give movie audiences “Jeff, Who Lives at Home” and “The Do-Deca-Pentathlon.” In “Jeff,” Jason Segel (“The Muppets”) stars as an apathetic man living in his mother’s basement who is waiting for a sign that will lead him to his true calling in life. In the smaller-budgeted “Do-Deca-Pentathlon,” Mark and Jay tell the story of two rival brothers who challenge each other to a 25-event Olympic showdown.

During an interview with me at the South by Southwest Film Festival in March, Mark and Jay talked about their own sibling rivalry, which centers on the sport of ping-pong, and the intimate feeling they want all their films to have, no matter what the budget.

Both of your latest films, “Jeff Who Lives at Home” and “The Do-Deca-Pentathlon,” feature brothers who have some issues with each other they have to work out in different ways. Specifically in “Do-Deca,” there is some sibling rivalry. Can either of you admit when your brother is better at something than you are?

Mark Duplass: Oh, yeah. We’ve been through tons and tons of therapy and have no egos left at all. I’ll go ahead and rattle of a few things for you: Jay is more patient, elegant, and a better long-distance runner than me. He’s a much better editor than I am in general. When he’s improvising as a lead guitar player, his solos are more spiritual than mine. He’s better at…Wait, I don’t know if that’s true anymore. I was going to say you were better at portion control with your food than I am, but I think now I’m doing better than you on that front.

Jay Duplass: You’ve got that shit on lockdown, dude. I had to switch to eating food I don’t even enjoy. It’s portion control because I don’t enjoy what I eat anymore. You are far more evolved than me in the food category. I would just have to say Mark is infinitely better than me at compliments. That was wonderful, Mark! Thank you! What a great way to start an interview!

MD: Absolutely!

JD: My god. Well, even though people think I am the more spiritual and sensitive one, I think Mark just might be more spiritually evolved than me, which would probably be a surprise to our friends.

I read “Do-Deca” was actually shot before “Jeff” and even before your film last year, “Cyrus,” although most people won’t get to see it until later this year. When you revisit a film like this two years later, do you see how you’ve evolved as filmmakers?

MD: Yeah, it’s kind of like watching a video of yourself when you’re like 16 years old. You would immediately say, “Oh, my god, I was so different.” And then you’d see something else and you’d say, “Oh my god, I haven’t changed at all.” That’s the way we feel. “Do-Deca” is a shaggy, micro-budgeted movie with some actors who are also some of our best friends. It represents a time in our lives, like with “Puffy Chair” and “Baghead,” when we were running around like maniacs with a camera trying to figure out what we were doing. While in some ways it’s rougher and less refined, the heart and the spirit and the tone of what we are doing is exactly the same.

What are your family reunions like, if you actually have them?

MD: A lot of ping-pong.

JD: Yeah, well, our parents live in Los Angeles near us now, so we get together a lot. And, yes, there is a lot of ping-pong. We’re an activity-based family. We like to do things. We don’t like just sitting around talking. There is definitely competition. When Mark and I were younger – before I left for college – when we were both in high school, we had these raucous two-on-two ping-pong competitions where my mom and I were on one side and Mark and my dad were on the other side. It was freakin’ epic. What would we play, like best two out of three every day after school?

MD: Some people remember McEnroe vs. Connors, but they had nothing on us.

Would your family consider the both of you the successful Duplasses?

MD: Well, that’s weird because we’ve never discussed that and we’ve never thought about it in any way, shape, or form. I know my parents were super proud of us. There were no industry connections for us growing up. We grew up in the suburbs and just found our way to filmmaking by making up the process. There is definitely this feeling like, “How the hell did we get to the point where we can make a studio movie?”

OK, so now what I’m going to do is name a competitive event and you tell me who would win. Arm wrestling?

MD: I would win.

Laser tag?

MD: Jay would win.

JD: Yeah, the problem is I will sacrifice my enjoyment of the event to win.

Skee-ball?

JD: Mark would win.

MD: Yeah, I would win that one.

I was going to ask about a game of midnight ping-pong, but I’m assuming it’s too close to call.

MD: Yeah, midnight ping-pong would be a toss up. I think that would probably be our closest event. Jay was clearly dominant in the early years. Then when Jay went to college, my dad and I got really good. When he came home, we would destroy him. Those were dark years for Jay. Then he joined forces with Susan Sarandon and her ping-pong club. Now, it’s a dead heat.

Speaking of Susan Sarandon, I really enjoyed “Jeff, Who Lives at Home.” Would you consider it your most mature film to date?

MD: Interesting. We don’t know. I love all my children, but I love that one a little bit more.

JD: I think it’s definitely the one we’re most proud of.

In your last three films you’ve had similar types of male characters who go through life without much responsibility – almost like a grown-up kid. If these kinds of men existed in real life, which I’m sure they do, would you consider them losers? Do they need to get a life?

JD: No, we’re very much the opposite of that. I think we approach all of our characters with the ultimate love. In the case of “Jeff, Who Lives at Home,” what excites us about that story is that we’re taking a character who lives in his mom’s basement and smoke a lot of pot and has been judged by society about what kind of person he is, but we’re focused on a completely different side of the story. We introduce him as such, but 99 percent of the movie is spent on the other side of that character, which is usually neglected [in other movies]. It’s the heroic side of this person who is cautiously choosing not to go down the normal road in life and take the road less traveled and wait for what he feels is the grand design for his life. Mark and I see that as somewhat tragic, but also beautiful and exciting.

We’ve seen your films grow in production over the years. I’m wondering, is it easier to make a movie with more money to spend?

MD: It’s not quite that simple. I would say one challenge we face making bigger-budget films is doing big things but still making them feel intimate. We’re not trying to leave behind our small-budget roots. We’re trying to incorporate smaller, personal stories into bigger-budget filmmaking. In doing so, we want all these elements to shape the tone. It’s nice to have some money to throw at it, but we still have to curate it, creatively speaking.

Do you feel like there are different levels of independent filmmaking? If so, do you think those levels are dictated by the budget or the mindset of the filmmakers? I’m just wondering if you’ve ever rolled your eyes at someone who calls themselves an independent filmmaker that you feel doesn’t fall under that category.

JD: We don’t really obsess over categories and qualifications whether it’s with other people or with ourselves. We’re just super busy trying to make something that doesn’t suck, which we find very challenging. We feel like making movies is very hard and making good movies is almost impossible and takes 100 percent of our attention, love, care and effort. We did have a discussion one time with John C. Reilly, which I think we subconsciously go back to. What he said was that he’s been on $100,000 movies that have felt like the most controlled studio set you’ve ever been on, and he’s been on $100 million movies that have felt like someone making a film in their backyard because there is an element of freedom and chance. We’ve felt that, too, as we’ve been through the system. It really emanates from the mindset of the creators themselves.

Yul Vázquez – Magic City

In the new original series “Magic City,” actor Yul Vázquez (“The A-Team”) plays Victor Lázaro, a hard-working Cuban hotel manager in Miami Beach in 1959.

During an interview with me, Vázquez, talked about the authenticity of his new TV show and what was reconfirmed for him during his last trip to Cuba in December.

What was the reason you wanted to be part of this new series?

When I read the script, the first thing I thought was that whoever wrote this knew South Beach really well. Also, it was refreshing to see my character was a three-dimensional human.

Was there something specific about the authenticity of the story that solidified your choice to take the part?

What really brought it home was the script. It was from an authentic voice and written with intelligence. When I talked to [executive producer] Mitch [Glazer], he explained that my character was one of those guy who was raised in Miami Beach who spoke perfect Spanish and perfect English without an accent. It was all very interesting to me because it portrayed what my life was like when I lived there. I was born in Cuba and moved to the states and I don’t speak like Tony Montana (Al Pacino’s character in “Scarface”).

Was the authenticity important to you because it is more of a personal story, or is that something you look for in all your roles?

I think I try to do that all the time. But this is a historical piece that needs historical accuracy. If you can’t find an authentic voice in something like this, you can get yourself into a lot of trouble. It’s different if you’re working on a fantasy or a sci-fi piece. But when you’re dealing with a specific place and time you have to line it all up for it to work.

Was there a specific time in your life when you realized what being Cuban meant?

I sort of knew it as a child. I remember growing up hearing about Cuba and Ché [Guevara] and Fidel. But when I was a kid I didn’t want to be an actor. I wanted to be a rock star. All my heroes were English rock stars. I didn’t come into my “Cubanness” until later in life.

What was it like being in the middle of a production that took you back to 1959 with all the clothes and music and set pieces?

You know, you go back to a period like 1959 and you have to forget you’re in 1959 and act from a human point of view. All the work has been done for you and all the dialogue is there. You just have to be there with the other actors.

Do you keep up with Cuba and the events that are going over there now?

It’s wild because Twitter has been a great way to find out what is going on in Cuba. People are tweeting from there. But, yeah, I follow all that stuff. It’s hard to tell me a story about Cuba and not get me talking about it to people who really don’t understand what happened there. I hear people say, “The triumph of the Revolution,” but I don’t know what triumph they saw. To me it was the destruction of a country. It’s very personal to me.

Where do you think the country is currently?

I was just in Cuba in December. I think it’s a complete scam. It’s a Communist country but it allows a Capitalist system to work under it because it’s the only way the place can survive. Nothing works there, but it seems to work somehow. It’s unbelievable to watch it unfold. I have a half brother in Cuba and we went to places that he can’t get into without me because I have dollars. It’s bad.

Coriolanus

Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Gerard Butler, Brian Cox
Directed by: Ralph Fiennes (debut)
Written by: John Logan (“The Aviator”)

Social and economic inequality set the cinematic stage in “Coriolanus,” a highly-inspired adaptation of William Shakespeare’s early 17th century play, which, in many ways, parallels the protest movement against governmental power tripping that began in New York City late last year and has since spread across the U.S. While some literary pundits would call the original text one of the more minor tragedies written by Shakespeare (or whomever, for all you Anti-Stratfordians), first-time director and two-time Academy Award-nominated actor Ralph Fiennes (“Schindler’s List”) builds a fascinating modern-day narrative on familiar themes including political corruption and blood-lusting revenge and drills it straight into a belief system that rebellion is the only way to save a threatened democracy. It’s a stark depiction of war and societal oppression complemented by a frighteningly intense performance by Fiennes as the title tragic character who gives Coriolanus its impressive scowl.

When scarred and stern-faced Caius Martius Coriolanus (Fiennes) steps out from behind a line of shielded soldiers and toward a riotous mob that is demanding the government provide them food, the seething look he gives them only hints at the depth of the the Roman general’s loathing (though he’ll soon be seeking support from those same detractors during his transition from despised war hero to demeaning political figure). His hatred, however, is mostly concentrated toward the Volscian army and his sworn enemy Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler), who he later joins forces with to get revenge on Rome when its citizens banish him from the impoverished city.

As Coriolanus’ prideful mother Volumnia, Oscar winner Vanessa Redgrave (“Julia”) is a standout, as is Oscar nominee Jessica Chastain (“The Help”) in a smaller yet significant role as his concerned wife Virgilia, and Brian Cox (“Red”) as Senator Menenius, an ally who keeps the pendulum swinging steadily in Rome before Coriolanus shoves it over violently. It’s Fiennes, however, as both the visionary debuting filmmaker and lead that deserves the most credit for taking Shakespeare’s distinct language and allowing it to flourish in a contemporary setting and from the tongues of proven actors. While the decision to stay committed to the original text might turn away some viewers who would’ve rather seen “Coriolanus” set in a high school starring Zac Efron, perhaps, purists can take solace in the fact that Fiennes’ ambitious interpretation of Shakespeare’s work is well executed and unsettlingly relevant even after four centuries.

E.J. Bonilla – Musical Chairs

For Puerto Rican actor E.J. Bonilla, acting is an artistic outlet he hopes will allow him to affect people in positive ways. In 2009, Bonilla starred in the drama “Don’t Let Me Drown” as a New York City teenager who starts to have feelings for a girl in his neighborhood who lost her sister on 9/11. Bonilla maintains his enthusiasm for dramatic roles in “Musical Chairs,” the story of a dancer named Mia (Leah Pipes) who must learn to perform differently after an accidents confines her to a wheelchair. In “Musical Chairs,” Bonilla plays Armando, a young man who motivates Mia to enter a wheelchair ballroom dance competition.

During an interview with me, Bonilla talked about his dance background and how movies like “Musical Chairs” coincide with his career plans as an actor.

How close are you to your character in terms of dancing in public?

(Laughs) It’s something I actually do. I’ll run out into the street and start dancing. It sounds a little crazy, but when you’re in New York people don’t really care. Most people in New York are crazy anyway. I love dancing.

What is your background in dance?

Even before I knew I wanted to be an actor I knew I wanted to perform. I found that in different outlets like choir and dancing in a ballet company. I took ballet for a while and modern dance for a couple of summers. I trained hard because I wanted to see if dancing was the way I wanted to go. But acting just worked out.

Were you a fan of dance movies in general?

Yeah, “You Got Served” is my generation. I had some friends that would tell me, “We can do that! If we start training right now, we could be great when we’re in our 20s.” But we never actually battled anybody. There’ve been a couple of bad [dance movies], but most of them are fun.

Do you feel closer to some of the Latin genres of dance because you are Latino, or is it just as fun to dance to hip-hop?

When you’re boricua and you’re raised New York, salsa music is always playing somewhere in your house. In my neighborhood, the salsa music had to be blasting louder than your heartbeat. I always danced with my mom in the living room, but I really didn’t feel it like my mother felt it. But one day I woke up and it was on and the rhythm hit me.

In “Musical Chairs,” you get to dance with someone who is confined to a wheelchair. What were the challenges in doing that just from a technical aspect?

Yeah, there is a different type of physicality to wheelchair ballroom dancing I didn’t know about. It’s fascinating. You’re using all these muscles, but you have to make it look fluid. When you dancing with someone in a wheelchair you have to retrain yourself on where to put all your weight and use all these different techniques. It’s like you become they’re anchor. It’s really challenging, but beautiful, too.

I really loved one of your last films “Don’t Let Me Drown.” Now with “Musical Chairs” out at theaters, where do you go from here? What kind of roles are you looking for?

I’m glad you’ve seen “Don’t Let Me Drown.” I knew when I finished that film I wanted to tell more stories like that. That movie taught me a lot about acting. I want to tell real human stories like that – stories that affect people. I hope to be recognized for my talent and as someone who can take people away from their everyday lives even if it’s just for an hour and a half.

Jeremy Rosado – American Idol

When Jeremy Rosado auditioned for the current season of “American Idol,” he was anything but a stranger to the popular talent show on Fox. Rosado, who is originally from Valrico, Florida, had tried out for the series four times before. Hearing the word “no” just wasn’t in his plans to become a famous singer.

“‘American Idol’ was one of those things I always dreamt about,” Rosado, 19, told me during an interview last week. “I wanted to see what it was like and wouldn’t stop until I did. I just kept coming back.”

Rosado’s fifth time auditioning turned out to be the season he always knew would come someday. Unfortunately, Rosado’s time on “American Idol” came to an end on March 8. He was eliminated from competition after singing his rendition of “Ribbon in the Sky” by Stevie Wonder.

A week after his final show, Rosado talked to us about his experience on “American Idol” and how he hopes it will help him in his singing career, his thoughts on the controversial elimination of contestant Jermaine Jones, and what he really thinks about the nickname judge Jennifer Lopez gave him.

Were you disappointed with how the show ended for you?

You know, 112,000 people auditioned for the show and I made it to the final 13, so I’m grateful for that much. It was a little disappointing, but I’m happy I made it that far.

Is it going to be hard to watch the show?

I watched last night (March 14) and it was a little rough. But I will continue to watch it. I made a lot of brothers and sisters for life. I love each and every one of them. I’m excited to see them and support them.

Every season we hear how contestant becomes life-long friends with one another. Is that really true?

Yeah, you always hear it and I never really thought it would happen, but it has. We’ve done everything together for the past couple of months. There’s nothing but true love between each and every one of us.

Are you rooting for anyone specific on the show now? Jennifer Sanchez, maybe?

You know, I really love Jennifer so much. We are best friends. I can’t wait to see how the show plays out. I’m rooting for her and everyone else.

What was going through your mind when it was announced last week that you would not be coming back for another show?

It was devastating right then and there. It didn’t take any time. But I’ve come to realize how blessed I am. I know there will be great things to come.

Have you thought back to your last performance and wished you had done something differently?

You know, I was really happy with my last performance. I thought it was pretty good. I know it wasn’t my best, but I definitely didn’t think it was my worst. I just think it was my time. There was nothing else I could’ve done.

What are your thoughts on contestant Jermaine Jones, who was just disqualified by producers for lying about his arrest record?

It’s unfortunate that it happened to Jermaine. He’s a great person and definitely one of my brothers. It kind of stinks they publicized everything all over the world. I’m hoping he’s going to be alright.

What did you think about Jennifer Lopez’s nickname for you, Jer-Bear?

It’s definitely cool. My fans on Twitter call me that now. Who else can say Jennifer Lopez gave them a nickname? I’m happy with it.

Have you gone out and bought JerBear.com yet?

I have not bought JerBear.com, but I think we’re going to try to copyright some version of Jer-Bear. We’ll see what happens now.

What do you hope being featured on a show like “American Idol” will do for your career?

I hope to get a recording contract. I hope to get a TV show and some movies. I hope to win an Oscar! I have huge dreams!

Ezra Miller – We Need to Talk About Kevin

In director Lynne Ramsay’s 2011 film “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” actor Ezra Miller (“City Island”) plays title character Kevin Khatchadourian, a high school student whose unaffectionate and ambiguous relationship with his mother (Tilda Swinton) leads to a horrific massacre at the hands of the young man.

During an interview with me, Miller, 19, talked about playing such a disturbed individual and how developing a friendship with Swinton off camera made it easier to clash with her character during the shoot.

Where do you have to be emotionally as an actor to tap into someone as chilling as your character?

For me there was a wide variety of things. I found in Kevin there was something dualistic about his nature in a sense that his rational justification and actions are not necessarily representative of his internal motivations and true feelings. So, there was a sort of process of evolving before we started shooting the true internal condition of this character. The horrifying reality I found was that Kevin is an empathetic human being though he may not appear that way. Internally, he is experiencing a vast range of human emotion. He is tortured by the fact that he is deprived of one essential thing we are all entitled to: the love of a mother.

Personally, do you think Kevin’s problems come solely from the thoughts he is creating in his own mind or do they stem from his mother’s indifference during her pregnancy and his childhood?

I think that’s what you have to ponder in the film. You never really know where nature ends and nurture begins. I, myself, feel like they are intrinsically tied together. The development of a child on a physical and neurological level is happening from the instant the child is born and even in prenatal stages. I think the relationship a child has with his mother is very specific to that child’s neurological development.

I actually saw this film about a month after I had my first child, so thanks for scaring the hell out of me.

(Laughs) Oh, man. I must apologize. I had no way of knowing. Hopefully, there was a glimmer of hope and a lesson to be learned through all of the horror and bloodshed.

Is it easy to leave a role like this on the set, or do you take it home with you? If you do leave it on set, how do you not think about it?

Certainly I felt that I had the same emotional and physical condition of Kevin for the entire month we shot the film. It was strenuous and grueling, but it was also essential for me. I didn’t want to have to consciously tap into the emotional and physical conditions of Kevin. I wanted them to exist so I could focus on the rational mind of Kevin and how he’s using intelligent justification for his actions. It was a process that had me holding that condition inside my gut for the entirety of the shoot, which provided for a stark release when it was finally over. When it was over, I was able to let that character go and go play a drum in the woods.

What kind of off-camera relationship did you have with Tilda Swinton? Is it hard to create a friendship when you have to exude something else while filming?

You know, it’s funny because we were able to be quite friendly with one another in the moments we with each other outside the context of the film. She would always greet me as her first-born son. We would hug each other. We were able to have a rather pleasant and friendly rapport immediately off set. There was something about developing this mother and son bond that proved useful in filming the much more complex and strained relationship of the characters. That’s what made that bond so unique.

How do you think you were able to take a role like this and make it different than the typical role you’d see in a horror or thriller than centers on a disturbed kid? Was there something you specifically used in the script or was that work you had to do on your own?

For me that existed in the script and story already. This story fearlessly confronts the idea that a child doesn’t need to be “the bad seed” or the son of the Devil or a changeling in order to be horrifying. In fact, the scariest thing is that a simple human being is the most capable of such atrocities.

Whether we’re talking about a tragedy like Columbine High School or Virginia Tech, school massacres always seem to shake the moral foundation of our society and give us this sort of wake up call. Did you have to revisit any of these horrific events to get a sense of why they happened and who were the people behind them?

I looked into it for my own purposes and my own understanding. I found that the school shooting is a smoke screen for Kevin and not the cause or the center point of his campaign. He utilizes the massacre to battle for authenticity with his mother. He could have done many things to engage in that warfare. The school shooting just happened to be what he chose.

The final scene of the film is interesting. We have Tilda Swinton staring in your eyes, which are basically empty. Is there room for any type of forgiveness in this story? Where do you think these characters are at the end?

I find the ending of this film to be incredibly hopeful. I think in the core, primordial instance where she asks him why he did this and him saying, “I don’t know” there is a platform and a beginning for possible hope and a future between these two people. At that point, however, it really is all interpretation.

Do you think Kevin will realize later what he has done?

Yeah, even in that last scene, I feel he has already plunged into that painful, realistic confrontation as opposed to these fictional rationalizations he has created. I my own opinion, I do see that as hope for this character.

The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson
Directed by: Gary Ross (“Sea Biscuit”)
Written by: Gary Ross (“Sea Biscuit”), Suzanne Collins (debut), Billy Ray (“State of Play”)

There are a few things inherently lacking in director/co-writer Gary Ross’ highly-anticipated film adaptation of “The Hunger Games” that should be puzzling to anyone who is familiar with the history of the sci-fi genre and even the more complex ideas behind dystopian literature and how it carries into the social context of today.

Thematically, the film, which is based on the popular young adult series by Suzanne Collins, doesn’t have a single original thought in its flimsy framework. It’s bothersome because young fans of the series won’t care how similar it is to films of the past. Audiences just want something to replace the hole that will soon be left by “The Twilight Saga.” It is fortunate “The Hunger Games” doesn’t stoop to a level like Stephenie Meyer, but it still makes it hard to appreciate Collins’ concepts when she does nothing to separate herself from the pack.

Set in the future, “The Hunger Games” takes about an hour of the first act to explain the mythology behind the title competition. Two kids or teenagers from 12 different districts are chosen through a lottery system to compete in an all-out fight to the death on national TV where only one of them will survive. Representing District 12 is Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson). Katniss enters the competition after her younger sister Primrose’s name is chosen and she volunteers to take her place.

Whisked off to the Capitol (a sort of Emerald City on acid), Katniss and Peeta are pampered like royalty and assigned a mentor, Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson), a former Hunger Games champion who is now a drunk, to teach them the ins and outs of a competition that will leave at least one of them dead.

Borrowing generously from the text of writers like Aldous Huxley (“Brave New World”), Shirley Jackson (“The Lottery”), and Richard Connell (“The Most Dangerous Game”), “The Hunger Games” will definitely attract its fan base who have been itching to see the film come to life on the big screen. While its easily-accessible plot and characters also might generate some new interest from others not familiar with the books, the movie has no real ambition. More importantly, it fails to build any type of emotional structure around its characters besides Katniss herself. As kids get picked off one by one in the battle royale (look it up, kids: Kinji Fukasaku’s 2000 film “Battle Royale”), it’s about as affecting as watching pawns get removed from a chess board.

Take away the fact that “The Hunger Games” is a 142-minute rehash, and we’re left with a perfectly-cast Lawrence in the lead role who makes up for a lot of the film’s problem areas. As Katniss, Lawrence, nominated for an Oscar for the fantastic 2010 drama “Winter’s Bone,” is a strong female protagonist that puts someone like the always-suffering Bella Swan of “The Twilight Saga” to shame. Lawrence is the reason to hope the inevitable sequels to this franchise can break away just a little more from Collins’ original text and at least give it a style that doesn’t feel so synthetic at times.

Wilmer Valderrama – Awake

Best known for the eight seasons he played the flirtatious foreign exchange studentFezon “That 70s Show,” Venezuelan American actor Wilmer Valderrama returns to the small screen in what might be the most accessible series he’s starred in since the blast-from-the-past comedy that ended six years ago.

In the TV drama “Awake,” Valderrama, 32, plays Detective Efrem Vega, partner to Detective Michael Britten (Jason Isaacs) who is involved in a car accident that leaves him caught between parallel realities. In one of those worlds, Vega is assigned to keep an eye on Britten who is finds himself in an extremely bizarre mental predicament.

During an interview with me, Valderrama, who also has a few films on his resume including “From Prada to Nada” and “Larry Crowne,” talked about what makes a show like “Awake” different and fresh, and why he doesn’t think he could handle working as a police detective in real life.

“Awake” airs on Thursday nights at 9 p.m. on NBC.

What do you think it is about “Awake” that makes it one of the most original shows on TV right now?

I think the writers have done an incredible job to find a unique way of narrating [Britten’s] journey. It’s what makes it fun and different and fresh. It’s very refreshing to see the way we are telling this story. It has so much more heart than any regular [police] procedural. Audiences are so much more invested in the cases and [Britten’s] personal journey. As awesome and cool and thrilling as “Awake” is, there is also this great fundamental heart, soul and spirit to the show that is very easy to relate to.

During my interview a couple of weeks ago with actor Jason Isaacs, he told me he felt “Awake” was not a high-concept show and that audiences shouldn’t have a problem following the narrative. Do you agree?

Well, the writers and producers have done an incredible job in staying with a formula that is easy to follow. I don’t think “high-concept” is a bad phrase. I describe it as something outside of the box – something original. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to do this show. I wasn’t going to be doing something that I’ve been doing on TV for the last decade and a half.

What kind of police detective do you think you’d be in real life?

A really good-looking one, I can tell you that. (Laughs)

(Laughs) But could you solve a crime?

To be honest, as a detective I wouldn’t know what to do. (Laughs) Detectives are their own breed of human being. I give them the same of love and respect I give the men and women of the Armed Forces who go on these journeys to places likeIraqandAfghanistan. These are very powerful individuals. I mean, we are all powerful in our own unique way and play to our strengths, but my hat goes off to them for how they look at life and the thankless job they take on.

Génesis Rodríguez – Casa de mi Padre

As exaggerated as some telenovelas are, actress Génesis Rodríguez is a big fan of the genre. Not only did she start her career on TV shows like “Prisionera” and “Doña Barbara,” her experience working on these types of series has prepared her for her role in “Casa de mi Padre,” a Spanish-language comedy starring Will Ferrell (“Step Brothers”).

“In novelas, sometimes you get the most ridiculous situations, but you make the best of it,” Rodríguez, 24, told me during an interview last week. “But novelas are a very special genre. That’s why they’re still alive today. When you see some of that drama happening, you just want to sit down and watch.”

In “Casa de mi Padre,” Rodríguez plays Sonia, the love interest of Armando Álvarez (Ferrell), who is caught in the middle of a drug war between her fiancé Raul (Diego Luna) and drug lord Onza (Gael García Bernal).

During our interview, Rodríguez, who is of Cuban and Venezuelan heritage, talked about tapping into the humor of a scene by taking it extremely serious, and shared what she thinks is the most macho thing about Will Ferrell.

Did you feel like there were some obvious similarities with “Casa de mi Padre” and some of the Spanish-language novelas you starred in at the beginning of your career?

Well, the situations and characters were very different. My character in “Casa de mi Padre” is an ambitious woman. I had never played that kind of character before. I knew what kind of genre “Casa de mi Padre” was going for. But my character, specifically, I think is very real. There are a lot of extravagant characters in the movie and I think Sonia is the anchor for all of them.

A lot of people would say novelas are made to be overly dramatic and exaggerated. Do you think that’s what “Casa de mi Padre” was trying to do?

I think what we were trying to do is be extremely serious and let that extreme seriousness come off as funny. It might be ridiculous dialogue, but if you say it extremely serious that’s what makes it so funny. I think what we were trying to do is play the actors who act in telenovelas. Those actors go for it and take it serious.

The movie poster for “Casa de mi Padre” is epic – you thrust into the arms of Will Ferrell. What did you think when you first saw it?

It was a surreal moment for me. It’s the first movie I ever did and I’m Will Ferrell leading lady! I couldn’t be more honored. Will is an incredible human being and an incredible actor. I was a huge fan before I ever got to work with him.

Did you feel safe in the arms of someone so manly?

(Laughs) Absolutely. I think anyone who sees that poster can feel the macho through the paper.

So, what is the most macho thing about Will Ferrell?

He knows how to use a gun and ride fake horses! And he can woo you by singing.

What impressed you the most about him learning how to speak Spanish for his role?

He took it so seriously! He wasn’t messing around. He wanted to be the most authentic Mexican possible. He didn’t want to be an American speaking Spanish with an American accent. He wanted to have a Mexican accent. That’s what was the most impressive to me. To see someone who doesn’t know the language well dominate that cadence was very impressive and incredible.

Did you get to help him with any of his lines?

He would ask me, “Hey, why is this word feminine and this word masculine?” He wanted to learn more about the language. He wanted to learn all these little things because he would improvise his lines on us. We were sticking to the script and he would add to it and it would blow us out of the water.

You started in Spanish-language TV but have since moved to American TV and movies. Was it a goal of yours as a working actress to make it to Hollywood?

For me it was always a dream to be in the mainstream market. But I grew up bicultural and bilingual. I remember as a kid watching [the telenovela] “Luz Clarita” and wanting to be in it. But I would also watch a movie like “E.T.” and wanted to be Drew Barrymore, too. I wanted the best of both worlds.

21 Jump Street

Starring: Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Brie Larson
Directed by: Phil Lord (“Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”) and Chris Miller (“Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”)
Written by: Michael Bacall (“Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World”)

Considering the handful of ’80s TV shows adapted into films over the last decade, it’s impossible not to dread the idea of “Manimal” or “Magnum P.I.” finding their way to the big screen anytime soon. Even as popular as the retro revival is today — from skinny jeans to the resurgence of 3D movies — there’s really no excuse for things like Michael Mann slummin’ with “Miami Vice” or the intentional ridiculousness of “The A-Team.” For obvious reasons, we’ll give Jessica Simpson wearing Daisy Dukes a pass for now.

Yet on the heels of these substandard movie versions comes the surprisingly clever and often funny “21 Jump Street,” an adaptation of the TV series that launched teen heartthrob Johnny Depp’s career in 1987. While the plot itself leaves much to be desired, screenwriter Michael Bacall (scribe of the overrated “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World”) and directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller (the duo behind the deliciously entertaining “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”) use the kitschy nature of the crime show to their advantage by mocking its own drawbacks. More telling is their recognition that a “21 Jump Street” movie isn’t necessarily something fans of the series were begging Hollywood to make. With the pressure at a manageable level, the filmmakers toss all logic aside, don’t overdo the nostalgia, and simply have fun with it.

Starring hunky Channing Tatum (“The Vow”) and not so chunky Jonah Hill (“Moneyball”) coming off his first Oscar nomination, “21 Jump Street” takes the procedural buddy cop setup and injects some much-needed energy into the tired formula. Assigned to go undercover as high school students to find the supplier of a new hip, hallucinatory drug students are dropping, rookie police officers Jenko (Tatum) and Schmidt (Hill) maneuver their way through the social network of a younger generation. It’s not just about popular kids and nerds anymore, as we learn when Schmidt points out a group of Asian girls hanging out before class dressed like punk manga comic book characters and asks, “What the hell are those?!”

Like Drew Barrymore in the 1999 rom-com “Never Been Kissed,” Hill and Tatum are forced to revisit their awkward teenage years (Jenko was a dumb jock; Schmidt was a wastoid) and do so with some sharp comedic timing. Neither will ever be able to pull off Peter DeLuise’s mullet, but the hilarious Hill and Tatum tandem is a good enough reason as any to ignore ’80s TV show-turned-movie history and (cue Holly Robinson) jump down on Jump Street.

Edge – Bending the Rules

As an 11-time World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) champion, wrestling superstar Adam “Edge” Copeland knows it takes giving everything he has to be the best in the business. Forced into retirement last year because of a major neck injury, Edge now hopes to be as successful as he was in the ring during the next chapter of his life, a chapter that includes acting.

In the action comedy “Bending the Rules,” Edge plays Nick Blades, a detective who teams up with an Assistant District Attorney (Jamie Kennedy) to bring down a criminal faction in their hometown of New Orleans. Along with his new movie, Edge will also be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on March 31 where other famed wrestlers like the late Andre the Giant and Hulk Hogan have already claimed their legacy.

During an interview with me, Edge talked about his plans now that his wrestling career is behind him.

Did it feel like acting was the natural step to take after wrestling?

I didn’t really know what the natural progression would be when I retired because I didn’t expect to retire. It kind of came out of nowhere. I just thought making a movie would be fun to do, and it was. We shot the movie in August 2010. Since then, so much has changed. Now that I have time, I think it could be something going forward that I could legitimately do.

Does it help that the WWE is so supportive of its wrestlers when it comes to branching out as movie stars and even has a production company where you can start your career as an actor?

I think it does because it gives us an opportunity that we wouldn’t normally get. Just being in the WWE helps. I mean, two days after I retired, I got a call through our offices from SyFy. They wanted me to do a show called “Haven.” The producer saw my retirement speech and thought I would be good on the show. I did the second season of “Haven” and will shoot the third season soon. It looks like acting could be a semi-regular thing. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll get an agent.

Go back to your retirement speech you made last April for a bit. Was there something specific you wanted your fans to know about you?

I just really wanted to go out and say how I felt. There really wasn’t any kind of direct message or anything like that. In hindsight, I think a lot of people thought it was my choice to retire. There’s been some confusion there. It wasn’t like I got the news [about my neck injury] and said, “Alright, looks like I’m going to have to hang em’ up.” No, it was like I had to retire. The WWE was not going to allow me to wrestle anymore. They were right, but I would’ve still kept going.

Oh, really?

Yeah, I mean, I was wrestling [with a neck injury] for a while before we actually got a real close look at it and were like, “Whoa! It’s pretty messed up in there.”

Is there a chance you could wrestle in another organization?

I definitely wouldn’t go to another organization. I can’t go from the NFL to the Arena Football League. More power to everybody who has done that. I hope they can all make a living doing that, but I’ve wrestled in front of 80,000 people at WrestleMania. I couldn’t go anywhere else.

How are you health wise right now?

Now, I feel great. There are certain things that annoy me and I’m learning as I go. I’m still active. I’m still able to get up and go hiking and mountain biking. I’ll probably have to get another surgery at some point, but I figured I would just put it off for as long as I could. Long flights bother [my neck]. When I find out that something bothers it, I just don’t do it anymore.

What was going on in your head when you got the news you couldn’t wrestle anymore?

I think I had already been taking those steps [to retirement] for the last few years. I knew how I felt physically. I didn’t feel great. I was walking around like an 80-year-old man at 37. I didn’t assume [my wrestling career] was going to last forever. I knew I was much closer to the end of my wrestling career than I was to the beginning.

You’re 38 years old now. If the health concerns weren’t a factor, how long do you think you could’ve gone for? I mean, Rick Flair is still going strong in his 60s.

I wouldn’t have gone that long. I would’ve gone to 40. I think that would’ve been a good age. I started wrestling when I was 17, so I’ve had a long career.

What about a future as an announcer since you have a degree in radio broadcasting?

No, no. I don’t want to be that close to [wrestling] and then not do it. I say that now. But you know, the part that I don’t miss at all is the traveling. With [being an announcer] there would still be traveling involved. I want to do traveling on my terms now. I don’t miss the hectic grind of that schedule. I know I couldn’t do that anymore. I flew here last night and I was already tired. (Laughs) I like retirement.

How does it feel going into the WWE Hall of Fame at such a young age, and before other wrestlers like “Macho Man” Randy Savage?

I don’t really think in terms of other people. I don’t really put a whole lot of thought into stuff like that. I did get text and calls when it was announced I would be inducted. Two of the first people who called me where Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart, who told me they were proud of me and that I deserved it.

Would you like to have an acting career that resembles the one the Rock has had over the last few years?

I’d be up for it. But I don’t look anything like the Rock. I don’t think we’d be going up for the same parts. He’s half Samoan and half black and I look like a Viking. Will I aggressively pursue it? Probably not. I think occasional stuff would be fine. I wouldn’t put myself in a position where I wasn’t going to have fun. I’ve had fun my entire adult life, so there’s no sense in stopping now.

What was it about the role in “Bending the Rules” that you liked?

Well, it didn’t take itself too seriously. I don’t take myself too seriously. I’m a detective who walks around in a Hawaiian shirt and Hawaiian shorts. The character felt like [Jeff Bridges’ character] from “The Big Lebowski” if he could fight. I thought I could handle this easy-going knucklehead who likes to eat doughnuts in every scene, but when push comes to shove would headbutt your face off. I thought I could take this experience and build on it toward other things.

Was there good chemistry between you and Jamie Kennedy?

Yeah, right from the get-go we found out that we were both total idiots. We just hung out. I think that transferred to the set because we acted exactly like we did when we weren’t acting. It was good to have that rapport with him.

Throughout a majority of your career you were known as the “R-Rated Superstar.” What would you say is the most G-rated thing about you?

Probably the rest of my life. In the WWE I played a character that’s nothing like the person I’m going to be in retirement.

Mayes C. Rubeo – John Carter

It’s tough working as a costume designer in Hollywood these days, especially if you want your work to be noticed. Although there is endless competition in the industry, there are only so many films out there that will really get a costume designer noticed. There’s even less if a director stays loyal to a designer he or she has worked with in the past.

“We all want to design the cool movies, but sometimes you can’t,” costume designer Mayes C. Rubeo told me during an interview from Los Angeles to promote her new sci-fi action film “John Carter.” “Every costume designer wants to design wonderful things and get acknowledged and rewarded.”

At the beginning of her 24-year career, Rubeo started as an assistant in the costume and wardrobe department on such films as “Total Recall” and “Born on the Fourth of July.” Her first film as head costume designer was on the 1996 sci-fi film “The Arrival” starring Charlie Sheen. She went on to design costumes for the 2006 Mel Gibson-directed film “Apocalypto” and James Cameron’s 2009 blockbuster hit “Avatar.”

In her new film, “John Carter,” Rubeo helps director Andrew Stanton create a new world first imagined by author Edward R. Burroughs in 1912. “John Carter” tells the story of a Confederate captain who is mysteriously transported into the center of a major conflict on Mars.

During our interview, Rubeo, who is of Mexican descent, talked about the vision behind the film and why she doesn’t allow her Latina heritage to influence her work as a costume designer.

How much of the original text by Edgar R. Burroughs did you explore to start on a project as massive as “John Carter?”

I think our director Andrew Stanton used a combination of his books for the film. We didn’t follow just one book like “A Princess of Mars.” We included others.

As a costume designer, do you usually do a lot of research on the film’s subject?

Yes, but in this case we wanted to be more original with the design. There is a huge background of artistic influence in these stories. The character of John Carter has been around for 100 years. There have been many attempts to make this movie by many filmmakers. Many of those had their own artwork and were different from each other. Andrew really knew what he wanted to do with the film. It was very easy for me to work with his very specific and creative ideas.

How does the process begin for you when you sign on to do a new film? Does it start with a meeting with the director?

Andrew knew me from my prior projects, which were “Avatar” and especially “Apocalypto.” “Apocalypto” is a project that has brought me a lot of exposure. It was a high-caliber design movie. We manufactured every single thing that existed in that movie. That was a good guarantee that I could help Andrew create the new world he wanted. I was asked to come and interview for the job, which is a normal procedure. We wanted to see if we were on the same page from the start. From there it was only constant and creative dialogue between the two of us. Andrew always kept me in the creative circle even in post-production. It was a great collaboration.

The John Carter series has a huge fan base that has been waiting a long time for this movie. Do you feel like those fans are going to look at this new film under a microscope because they want everything to be perfect? Does that worry you?

I think it’s natural to feel a little pressure and feel exposed to the expectations of so many fans. It would be the same if people were waiting for a new Superman movie. Everyone would be waiting to see if he had on the right cape. I think John Carter fans are going to have fun with the movie.

Do you ever let your Mexican culture influence any of your costume designs?

I try not to because I don’t want to be a designer that people will tap just to do ethnic stuff. A costume designer should be able to do any kind of costume for any kind of period that is put into their hands by a director. That’s the kind of costume designer I want to be.

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