Gay&Night December 2015

213
Interview / Rooney Mara
‘I’VE BEEN
CALLED
DIFFICULT
MANY TIMES’
‘THE WORD
LESBIAN
DIDN’T EXIST’
Do you think the lm also comments
on the situation of gay and lesbian
people around the world today?
‘No, I don’t think the lm reects on that.
It’s a lm about the 50s, seen from our
perspective in the 21st century. The lm
couldn’t have been made in the fties,
because now we know how far we have
come concerning the gay subject and how
far we still have to go. But the story doesn’t
comment on that knowledge. It’s just a love
story.’
The word lesbian is never
used in the story.
‘Because nobody knew the word back
then, it didn’t exist yet. We take all the gay
and lesbian communities we have now for
granted. But sixty years ago, they didn’t
exist. It was so hard to nd people with the
same feelings.’
The period of the fties is crucial for
the story. How do you incorporate
that background into your acting?
‘The time period formed everything in the
lm: the costumes, the make-up, the way
we talked, the way we walked, the way we
interacted. The way I speak now doesn’t
represent the way people spoke in the
fties. I worked with a dialogue coach to try
and nd Therese’s voice. It was a different
018
way of using your breath. And I watched
a lot of lms from that time period to nd
the right connection. We didn’t want to
make too big a deal out of it, because then
it could have been a distraction for the
audience. We had to nd a middle ground.’
Therese is trying to nd what kind
of woman she wants to be. You are
30 now. Have you realized yourself
what kind of woman you want to
be?
‘I have found out more than Therese. But
I am still guring that out. And hopefully
I never will – I want to continue to grow
as a human for all my life. I never asked
myself “what kind of woman do I want to
become”. But I often ask myself: “what kind
of life do I want to have?” That question
comes with every decision you make.’
You mentioned The Girl with the
Dragon Tattoo. Are you going to
appear in the sequel?
‘I really don’t know, it’s not up to me. I
would love to return to Lisbeth, I love her so
much. But no one has approached me yet.
When we were shooting Dragon Tattoo my
mind was set on three lms, because I didn’t
want to say goodbye to her yet. There is still
so much to discover about her.’
Even with director David Fincher
and his sometimes difcult working
methods?
‘Who said he was difcult? Yes, sometimes
he wants to do a scene a hundred different
times. But that’s your job: I would do
two hundred takes if he asked for it, he’s
the director. What does that even mean,
“difcult”? It is a word people often use
for people who have a strong opinion, who
have a unique point of view. My experience
is that the word is more often used for
women than for men. In most cases it just
describes a person who knows what he or
she wants. I have been called difcult many
times. I don’t think I am. And if you have
any doubts, ask Todd, ask David, ask Cate.
I have an opinion and I am not afraid to
give it when opportunity knocks. But that’s
because I am highly devoted to the work I
do.’
Is it hard to be a woman in
Hollywood?
‘There a lot of places in the world where
it’s hard to be a woman. But Hollywood
isn’t one of those places. Yes, I suppose
it is easier to be a man in Hollywood. But
that’s not the same issue. It’s hard to be
a woman in a country where women are
not allowed to get education, are not
allowed to vote, are not allowed to decide
who to get married to. That’s not the case
in Hollywood. It’s just a little bit more
challenging to be a woman than being a
man.’
You have a very privileged
background. What kind of role did
that play in building a career in
Hollywood?
‘It’s like in sports: it doesn’t really matter
where you come from, nobody is going to
hire you unless you’re a good athlete. At the
end of the day, Todd Haynes is not going to
ask me to play a part because of my wealthy
family.’
You are naked a lot in lms. Do you
ever have any doubts about that
kind of scenes?
‘I don’t ask for those scenes in particular.
And I would never consider doing it for no
reason. But I have no issue or problem if it
is part of the story. For example, the love
scene in Carol is simply beautiful. And that’s
the way people behave while making love:
they take their clothes off and get naked.
It’s your job as an actor to imitate life. I
never really understand all the fuss about
nudity. What’s so exciting or interesting
about it? Every single person in the world
has the same body parts underneath their
clothes. After all, it’s just skin.’
213