The_Film_That_Changed_My_Life

The Soft Skin
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about him, you know that this was one of his great obsessions, women, and
this inability to ultimately choose between them and to be faithful and all of
those things. So he obviously could pull from that wellspring and did quite
well, in terms of choosing material and making films that have some lasting
impact. But I think the danger always is that you can get too close, that you
lose sight of what it is you’re trying to do rather than what it is you’re trying
to say. It’s all about the why. Why do you need to make this? Is it for anybody
else, or is it merely for yourself?
A movie can cost a hundred million dollars or cost two million, and
you pay the same amount to go see it. It doesn’t matter what Master and
Commander cost. I don’t know what he had to live through, this accurate
portrayal of relationships unraveling. I just get to sit back and say whether I
think it was worth watching or not. And happily, I think it was.
Do you think it resonates within the film, though—is there that extra
element? The Soft Skin was inspired by a newspaper story of a true-life
event. Parts of it were shot in Truffaut’s actual apartment.
LaBute: Well, no doubt. I’m sure that the battlefield, the landscape, being
that close to the director’s life, couldn’t help but pepper his judgment and
his choice of shots. Just the number of times that you see the guy walk up
and down the stairs. And that’s what he does the whole movie, and he’s
constantly climbing toward somewhere else. There are some very obvious
kinds of motifs like that. After he’s met Nicole, the airline hostess, there’s this
wonderful shot of him walking around his hotel room and turning on lights.
It’s literally like a lightbulb going on over his head.
It’s nice when somebody’s actually so bold as to do something so obvious.
We’re always so worried about being so subtle, and “Oh, is this a cliche?”
I think life is often a cliche; you find yourself in moments where you
go, “If this was in a movie, people would say this is ridiculous, this is too
much.” And yet, it happens all the time.
For you, what does the title mean?
LaBute: Well, I think it’s kind of lovely and ironic because it’s a beautiful
title in and of itself. So that’s enough for me. But I think there’s precious little
time devoted to the physical aspect of the story, and I think that’s true in life.