Interview spoke with Eva Green about the normalcy of her character, the gallows humor of biologists and epidemiologists, and her electric character in the upcoming Tim Burton film, Dark Shadows.

CRAIG HUBERT: Initially, what interested you in the character of Susan?

EVA GREEN: I thought, first of all, that it was a very romantic movie, very sentimental; a thought-provoking film. Susan is a nice character, kind of damaged, her heart is broken and she doesn’t want to fall in love. It was a nice love story.

HUBERT: What is most important to you when deciding on a role? Is the script enough? Do you need to sit down with the director first, or know who you are acting alongside?

GREEN: Yeah, all of those things. Of course, the main thing is the script. The script and director, absolutely.

HUBERT: What were the early conversations like with David Mackenzie?

GREEN: The weird thing is I knew David. I’ve known him for years, and we always wanted to work together. I love the guy, and the script was very interesting, so it was an easy thing.

HUBERT: The romantic role is an unusual one for you in your career so far. Was part of your interest doing something different than before, maybe out of your comfort zone?

GREEN: Yeah—I thought she was quite normal. [laughs] Lately I’ve played quite extreme people, a bit mad. Sometimes I felt, my God, I’m playing boring. She’s the closest character to me in real life. There’s something very simple about her. You know, we have several blockbusters that deal with the end of the world, and this one dealt with it with a refreshing new angle. I see the film as quite positive, not a dark, depressing film.

HUBERT: What sort of research did you do for the character? Did you visit epidemiologists?

GREEN: I spent a few days in a lab in Glasgow with biologists and epidemiologists. It was very interesting. They had very thick Scottish accents, so sometimes it was not easy to understand them. They were funny; they had a great sense of humor. They joke about death and diseases and cancer. [laughs] You go, “Oh my God.” I think it’s to protect them. They need armor. That’s what actually struck me.

HUBERT: Working with Ewan McGregor, do you do any preparation before stepping in front of the camera? Do you hang out off set?

GREEN: Yeah, we have lots of sex. [laughs]

HUBERT: Let’s hope a tabloid doesn’t print that. No, I imagine being on camera with somebody for so much of a film, it must be hard to not even have had a conversation with the person.

GREEN: It is, absolutely. Ewan is such a nice guy—he’s such a big star. First of all, we had a week of rehearsal with the director, which really helped finding the intimacy of the scenes, and the tone. Ewan is very generous, extremely normal, and very down to earth. He’s a real gentleman, he really wants you to feel comfortable. He’s very pure—he’s not afraid to show his emotions. It was very easy—he was a dream to work with.

HUBERT: We’ve talked about the romantic, sentimental aspects of the film. Was it difficult to balance those aspects with the larger, end-of-the-world, aspects of the film?

GREEN: I think that’s more a director’s question. It’s funny, because when I read the script, in the very beginning, some stuff was quite funny. After seeing the movie, I thought it was not very funny at all. [laughs] You know, I kind of misread it.

HUBERT: Does that often happen? You may not be disappointed with the end result, but it’s one thing to you and then you see it edited, with a score, on the screen, and it’s something completely different?

GREEN: It’s always different. Most of the time it’s a surprise, you’re not in control.

HUBERT: Is that something you enjoy? Seeing what the film becomes, out of your hands?

GREEN: You never know, you know? I’m always rather anxious. It’s not like in theater when you are more in control. You’re more—not a puppet, but you don’t control it. You don’t own it.

HUBERT: I know you have Dark Shadows coming out soon, which was directed by Tim Burton. Many people are excited this film. What was the experience like?

GREEN: Tim’s a wonderful human being, first of all; very normal, not weird at all. He’s a real artist, very kind, and he hasn’t lost the child inside him. He’s beautiful—I adore him, I’m in love with him. [laughs] It was a great experience, he gave me an amazing role—my character has a kind of electric, crazy relationship with Barnabas Collins, played by Johnny Depp. It was crazy.

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She’s been seen recently as the ruthless heir to her father’s throne on Starz’s Camelot, donned amazing headgear and romanced Orlando Bloom in the Crusades-set Kingdom of Heaven and entranced us as a powerful witch in the fantasy flick The Golden Compass. Of course, she has also notably kicked butt as a Bond girl (in Casino Royale).

We recently got to chat with Green about her current role as a scientist investigating a mysterious disease in the very modern, no-costumes-necessary Perfect Sense, which opens today. It’s a far cry from those femme fatale roles that Green is so known for, yet her trademark intensity is palpable in every frame. “There is a bit of a darkness in the background, but Perfect Sense is an uplifting movie and a metaphor for falling in love,” says Green. Working with Ewan McGregor, who plays the the chef she falls for, wasn’t bad either. “He’s an instinctive actor. He’s a beautiful person and doesn’t behave like a big star. He’s down-to-earth and charming and pure.”

Read on to hear what the actress had to say about her surprising shopping source, her fashion staple and her role as Angelique Bouchard (another powerful witch!) in Tim Burton’s upcoming version of Dark Shadows. We’re pretty sure the film-geek demographic is salivating already.

You’re often cast in dark roles. Would you like to break away from that?

“I would love to play an unexpected character. Really raw and
simple and not a cliché—something rugged. People like to put actors in boxes.”

Tell us about Susan, the scientist you play in Perfect Sense.

“My character is kind of normal. Recently I’ve played cuckoo characters, but Susan is the closest I’ve played to my real personality. She encounters difficult relationships. She’s afraid of falling in love. She doesn’t want to get hurt again and opens up to the character Michael (Ewan McGregor) and they fall in love.”

You’ve done fashion ads before, notably for Dior. Do you enjoy modeling for campaigns?

“I like style. For Dior, I did more of a collaboration shoot, not just a single image—so there was more to it. It’s a very prestigious brand. I like their style and feel like their style is mine.”

What are some of your favorite looks?

“I love fashion from the 1930s and ’40s—shoulder pads, high waists, things with structure. That is classy for me. Andrea Riseborough from the Madonna movie W.E. had an amazing wardrobe.”

Where do you shop?

“I’m not the greatest shopper—I’m like a man, I’m impatient. I went to Topshop yesterday. I go to Topshop three times a year. I have my own style and don’t really follow fashion, but I like leggings. They’re easy to wear and can go with anything.”

What do you like to wear on the red carpet?

“Sometimes I enjoy the red carpet, but I have to be in the mood. I like getting ready if it is a fun dress, a bit eccentric…but I’m always in black. I usually choose between McQueen and Dior.”

Tell us a bit about your upcoming project, Dark Shadows.

“It was a dream to work with Tim Burton. He made my character, Angelique Bouchard, a real human being. She’s funny and witty with a black sense of humor. The movie takes place in the 17th century. I wear a corset and have blonde hair.”

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ELLE: Living with all of your senses, the idea of losing them seems unthinkable. How was it to prepare for the role?
Eva Green: It was more an emotional thing, an emotional crisis. The most difficult scene was the loss of hearing, because it was kind of more anxious, and anxiety feelings. But there was no specific preparation for the part.

ELLE: Which sense would be the one you’d most be willing to give up?
EG: My eyes, maybe…but I hope it never happens!

ELLE: Is there a sense you’d miss the most?
EG: The sense of smell. Without that, [you lose your] sense of taste—and I love foie gras, so that would be really bad.

ELLE: What is your favorite scent?
EG: Maybe the food that my grandmother used to make me. She used to make an amazing lemon cake, each time I sense something similar I think of that.

ELLE: If you lost your sense of sight, what image would be in your mind forever?
EG: Oh my God! Wow…. landscapes in Morocco at sunset.

ELLE: The film seems to be about more than just the relationships between lovers—there are also the relationships between families, between people.
EG: With such a catastrophe, there’s an urgency. They’re all kind of hungry for each other, not just sex, but there’s something to touch each other, to enjoy every moment. You have to seize the moment, because you don’t know what will happen

ELLE: You’re currently filming Dark Shadows, the Tim Burton film with Johnny Depp, which is also a dark love story. Are you drawn to these atypical romantic plots?
EG: I think they’re very different—in Dark Shadows it’s very cuckoo and electric and funny. It’s a different style. Weirdly, I found Perfect Sense more naturalistic and normal, even though there’s a catastrophe. But Dark Shadows is fun—I’ve never had that kind of opportunity before to play such an extreme character and to not be afraid of doing too much. It’s kind of close to being [in a] German experimental film, in the 1920s. It’s very unusual….but it’s a pleasure!

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Starring Ewan McGregor and Eva Green, the film follows scientist Susan (Green) working on finding a cure to a strange disease affecting the whole world. She meets Michael (McGregor), a talented chef working at a restaurant located below her apartment. The two of them seem to connect instantly on a level they haven’t been able to with other people before.

But with the entire world’s population affected by a strange disease that first depresses you then takes away your sense of smell, we are left wondering if this is only the beginning to the disease and at which point it will stop.

As the audience, we are told the story through Susan and Michael’s eyes. We see the evolution of the disease and how they experience this new world. It’s quite fascinating actually and will definitely make you think.

I was quite surprised by how the film was marketed versus what it actually is. From the trailer and official synopsis, you would be led to think it is a love story between Ewan McGregor and Eva Green’s characters. But that’s not really what it is at all, that’s only showing 50% of it. While the core of the story is about the love story, the film also is about this global pandemic and how people are affected by it.

Director David Mackenzie (Young Adam, Mister Foe) has crafted something beautiful here. He uses a very simple love story as the thread to guide us through something much more dramatic. Not only that, he translates parts of the disease using auditive and visual tools, which gives the viewer a sense of uneasiness and immersion into the world. It was quite hypnotizing, especially towards the end of the film.

Eva Green and Ewan McGregor both offer strong performances as their characters deal with the effects of the disease. It was a pleasure to watch them interact and go through a large spectrum of emotions.

Perfect Sense will make you think, but will also make you smile with its beautiful love story. There is a slow build but I wasn’t bored for one second. I absolutely recommend that you check it out, especially if the premise sounds like something you might enjoy. And if you’re not a fan of love stories, not to worry, it is definitely not your typical romance, but much more.

I enjoyed Perfect Sense from beginning to finish, and I hope you will give it a chance too.

Perfect Sense is currently available on VOD (you can rent it on Amazon and other On-Demand services) and opens in New York at IFC Center today.

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Actress Eva Green would take a bite out of the Big Apple.

“The best way to explore your senses in New York City: I love Le Bernardin French restaurant,” says Green, who plays a Scottish epidemiologist investigating a pandemic that’s wiping out the human race’s sensory perceptions in “Perfect Sense,” opening Friday.

“It’s kind of a fusion of Japanese and French cuisine,” raves Green. “It’s one of the best restaurants in New York. It’s a real treat, kind of an old-world beauty.”

After treating her taste buds, the French actress would indulge her eyes and ears with the city’s most iconic green space.

“I love also going to Central Park,” she says. “The views … my God. It’s kind of a weird city; I feel like it’s so modern, and everything is at such a crazy pace in New York … I have to go to Central Park to escape.”

“Perfect Sense” avoids becoming an apocalyptic downer thanks to the sizzling chemistry between Green and co-star Ewan McGregor, whose characters fall in love as the world around them falls apart.

“There’s been lots of blockbusters dealing with the end of the world, and I was drawn to the refreshing new [way] this deals with it,” says Green. “It’s a love story with the background of a worldwide epidemic.”

She sees the pandemic in the film as a metaphor for falling head over heels for someone. “I’ve lost my senses for love — oh yeah,” she says. “You know that experience when you fall in love, and you become blind or deaf to everything else? I can relate to that, sure.”

She doesn’t relate to the blinding jealousy fueling her character in the upcoming gothic thriller “Dark Shadows,” however, where she turns Johnny Depp into a vampire after he breaks her heart.

“No, I’m so not like that. I think taking revenge is so silly,” says Green. “I find life is too short.”

What revenge would she consider taking on an ex? “I don’t know … turning somebody into a vampire is quite bad, though!” she laughs.

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Q: ‘Perfect Sense’ is not your typical, Biblical end-of-days film. Since it offers a new angle as to how mankind could end, did you walk away with any new fears or ideas on how the world might end?
A: Oh my God, I’m not a medium [laughs]! But the planet and the pollution is really bad. It’s scary. The past century has been quite nasty to our planet, we’ve just been killing it. But that’s a tricky question… I’ll have to think about that.

Q: Although this movie has a love story in it, it’s stripped down to the basics and far from traditional. We don’t know a whole lot about these two characters and their back stories. It could be argued that their connection is purely sexual, but it comes across like an actual relationship and not just a lustful one; would you agree?
A: Yeah, it’s so intense around them that it brings them closer. It’s all about the senses. They’re exploring each other and they have to enjoy every moment quickly. They’re hungry for each other. It’s a very sensuous movie, for sure.

Q: Without the epidemic that brings them together, we don’t know that these two would have been drawn to each other or survived as a couple. Do you find this to be more of a love story or about the fear of being alone?
A: Well, it is scary to be lonely, but one of the most beautiful things is to share things and love. You become human when you love. Even with the loss of their senses, they still cling to each other, which is quite beautiful.

Q: Was there one sense that you found most difficult or most interesting to convey the loss of?
A: The loss of hearing was the most difficult to portray, because you don’t have earplugs and you can actually hear what’s going on, and you have to pretend you can’t.

Q: One of the most poignant parts of the movie was the idea that losing the sense of smell wouldn’t be as tragic as losing all of the memories that are triggered by different smells. Did shooting this film heighten your senses, or make you more aware of any memories they trigger?
A: We take a lot of that for granted. We never imagine we would lose anything at all. But the sense of taste and smell–when you’re a child and Grandmother makes you a cake, and you get into her flat, and you smell it, years later you smell that same smell again and it triggers things inside of you. It’s great, it’s all in your brain, but it’s great.

Q: By the end of the movie, your character and the others appear to be absolutely drained from going through such traumatic events. Did you feel any additional exhaustion after wrapping beyond the typical ‘I just finished shooting a movie and I’m tired’ type of feeling?
A: Like a psyche crisis, yeah. It’s emotional and physical. It was a five-week shoot that was really, really intense. But I don’t see this film as dark or very depressing. It’s weirdly uplifting. You want to sort of ‘carpe diem,’ seize the day, seize the moment, and really enjoy life, because what matters most is love. It sounds kind of cheesy, but it’s true.

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The actress compares going blind and deaf in her moody apocalyptic drama “Perfect Sense,” opening Friday, with embarking on a whirlwind romance.

“It’s a love story with the background of a worldwide epidemic,” explains the 31-year-old stunner, who steps away from her recent femme fatale roles to play a Scottish epidemiologist trying to stop a mysterious pandemic that’s wiping out the human race’s five senses, one by one.

“It’s not too dark!” she insists. “It’s a metaphor for falling in love; you know, how when you fall in love, you lose your senses.”

Ask the French actress to pick one sense she could live without, however, and you get a different story.

“Maybe the sense of smell?” she ponders. “But the problem is, it’s quite related to taste, and I love eating. It’s a big dilemma.”

Green’s character makes the most of her senses (particularly touch) by finding solace in Ewan McGregor’s arms as society breaks down around them.

“He’s a beautiful human being, and pleasant, and a great actor,” she says.

“There is something very instinctive about him; very raw. And I’m too much in my own head and cerebral, so we complement each other.”

Although she bared all in the 2003 drama “The Dreamers,” Green confesses feeling a bit bashful around her handsome “Sense” co-star during their numerous love scenes.

“He knew that I was very anxious, and he was a gentleman,” she says.

“He’d say, ‘Come on, do you want to have dinner?’ We were lucky that we had a week of rehearsal before shooting, so we got to know each other.”

While her star rose with “The Dreamers” and “Kingdom of Heaven,” she didn’t become a household name until playing the temptress who left Daniel Craig’s Bond shaken and stirred in 2006’s “Casino Royale” — a part she originally turned up her nose at.

“I was quite pretentious, I remember, when they were doing auditions,” she laughs. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, I don’t want to be a Bond Girl! What is that?’

“And then I read the script, and I thought it was a cool character. She’s a normal human being, not a typical Bond Girl in a bikini. She has a real relationship with Bond. I was very lucky to get it, actually. I’m very grateful.”

Green continues leaning toward complex characters struggling with internal conflict, such as sorceress Morgan le Fay in the short-lived Starz series “Camelot.”

“I really liked playing her,” says Green. “She’s very ballsy and also very vulnerable. There are so many dimensions to play. She’s great.

“I hate clichés. That’s why maybe I don’t work as much as I should,” she admits.

While she’ll be sinking her teeth into yet another seductive role opposite Johnny Depp in the vampire soap opera “Dark Shadows” later this year, she’s itching to try something … grittier.

“I was just telling a friend that I want to play a [house] cleaner next,” she says. “Something rough, raw.

“I don’t want to play a sophisticated, beautiful woman again … but something kind of rugged … maybe somebody in prison! I’m definitely trying to avoid being typecast.”

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Thanks to Antigonus and George for the link.

What attracted you to Perfect Sense?
I thought it was kind of a brave, unusual story, thought-provoking but mainly a love story with the background of a catastrophe. I thought it was quite charming. I knew the director, David Mackenzie, and also the fact that Ewan McGregor was onboard was very appealing.

Did you know Ewan beforehand?
No, I knew his work but I hadn’t met him.

You share some very intense scenes with him. What was that like?
The good thing was that we had a week of rehearsal before shooting which was a luxury because it’s quite rare to rehearse on a movie so I got to know him and we were less shy towards one another. It just helped us to find the intimacy. Ewan’s also a very generous guy, very courageous, there’s something very pure about him and he’s not afraid to show his emotions.

Do you ever get used shooting such emotional love scenes on camera?
I don’t think so. I could get used to that, but it’s very unpleasant. You feel like a moron, all these people are around you, and you wish you were at least on drugs or alcohol. And yeah, you don’t feel very sexy. But it’s great when you have a partner who is in the same situation and humble and a gentlemen.

After you made The Golden Compass, you took a break from big budget films. Was that a conscious decision?
No, I always do things from the heart and it can be a big film or an independent movie, something that has a soul. I need to fall in love with the material, it’s not a matter or money. As an actor, I just choose what’s around and what has quality. In an ideal world of course if you can it’s good to do a big budget movie because it makes you kind of bankable or whatever that means, and then you can do something smaller.

When you make a movie like Perfect Sense, is it something you do to fulfill yourself as an actress? Or do you make it for audiences, and in the hope they’ll find it?
I mean, both. You always hope that some people are going to see your movie. It’s true, independent movies are more difficult to reach a lot of people, but I think Perfect Sense is rather commercial, weirdly. But you never know, it’s a crazy business.

What is the rapport like between Johnny Depp and Tim Burton on set?
Like a married couple.

Is that what it seemed like?
Like best friends or brothers. Yeah, they are artists, very humble people and Tim is a sensitive guy, it’s always been my dream to work with him and it was treat, it was amazing.

What kind of tone can we expect from Dark Shadows? Is it dark, as its name indicates? .
It’s very funny, lots of black humor. Of course, it’s also very poetic, and the relationship between the characters is very complex. My character has an electric relationship with Barnabas Collins played by Johnny, and it’s kind of extreme. My character’s a wacko, it’s great. You don’t get that opportunity very often.

Is there any truth that you’re being pursued for the 300 sequel?
I don’t know, it’s a great character, so we’re trying to make her as complex as possible.

So you’ve been approached?
Yes, I’ve been approached.

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Thanks to George for the link.

Amid catastrophe, though, the pieces are finally falling into place for Green’s Susan: She’s found love and a rock to lean on in Michael (Ewan McGregor), a chef with just a splash of bad-boy. It’s this love story that Green is most in touch with, and what drew her to the film in the first place. The emotional and, it must be said, super-steamy scenes between Green and McGregor halt the chaos and serve as a reminder that we should always stop to smell the roses, even if we technically can’t.

Movieline talked to Green about her career path, love vs. calamity and Tim Burton fostering collaboration on Dark Shadows.

How have you gone about choosing roles since being a Bond girl?
You know, I’ve always liked characters that are complex, and even the Bond girl that I played was a complicated character, and intelligent. And you know, I always like complicated, interesting characters.

Yeah, Vesper was the ultimate Bond girl.
Yeah, I think so. But it was nice because there was a love story in [Casino Royale]. Not like a cliche, but a real human being.

What made you connect with the Perfect Sense script?
I really enjoyed the love story when I read it. I thought it was kind of a brave, unusual story. Thought-provoking, but also very romantic.

But with a public panic angle. A few years ago, Blindness was adapted to film, and I don’t know if you read about this but there was recently a documented case of mass hysteria among a group of girls. What is it about stories like this that we find so compelling?
I would say that, in this film, people come together. There’s an urgency. It’s very dramatic. Everybody has to become hungry for each other. You know, you have to seize the moment, seize the day and tackle the enemy, like we say, and what matters in life is love. Sounds very cheesy, but it’s true. People come together and still cling to each other after the loss of everything.

The character you play suffers grief and heartache so deeply, and that’s even before the world goes haywire. Did you find it exhausting to portray this woman?
Oh, no. I kind of identify with her. She’s quite normal. She was unlucky, and a bit damaged, and came out of a hard relationship. And the character that Ewan played was also damaged, but little by little she opens up to him and allows herself to be vulnerable and honest with him, and falls in love with him. I don’t see this film as something dark or dramatic because there’s a catastrophe. It’s also that she’s kind of awakened, weirdly. It’s a bit late because the senses are disappearing, but she is becoming, I don’t know how you would say it, but more human.

Yeah, I think the opposite is true, too. She experiences happiness pretty deeply, and there were also some moments of levity, like the bathtub scene with Ewan.
Yeah, that was fun to shoot, eating soap. And the flowers. I had to eat flowers in another scene. And toothpaste and lipstick. Lovely.

Then you moved to Dark Shadows, playing another woman who’s had her heart ripped out.
Oh, it’s a very different character. She’s an extreme character, completely obsessed with a man [laughs], and will do absolutely anything to get him, to own him. She looks like Barbie, but a bawdy Barbie. She’s a big character, and lots of fun to play, that’s for sure.

Did you feel like you were coming in to an already formed family? Tim Burton and some of the other cast collaborate all the time. How did you mesh?
Tim is very normal, and he is extremely open to suggestions, which is a luxury. He wanted me to feel as comfortable as possible. It was a real collaboration, which is very rare, and he was very kind, very creative, very supportive and we really got on.

Is it true you almost took the role in Antichrist that went to Charlotte Gainsbourg?
Yeah.

Why did you decide against it?
Oh, it’s hard to say. I didn’t agree with everything the director wanted me to do.

Do you think you’ll work with Lars Von Trier eventually?
I don’t know. I think he’s a genius, and Melancholia is a beautiful movie. I hope so, but we’ll see.

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One of the scarier of these scenarios is of course the viral apocalypse because, along with post-nuclear, it seems like it’s something that could actually happen some day, if we’re a very, very unlucky species. Numerous movies have been made on such an apocalypse—some looking at it as a sickness quickly spreading, while others fuse it together with the basic idea behind zombie apocalypses and unleash the fury of them both. But none of them (at least that I know of anyway) has a love story at its core. Which brings us to Perfect Sense.

The movie follows Susan (Eva Green), a scientist who’s studying a strange new string of illnesses that appear to be one in the same. It begins with an immense sense of loss and sadness—every pain you’ve ever felt rushing back on you at once—causing you to sob uncontrollably. Not long after that, you lose your sense of smell. While trying to figure out what might be causing it, if it’s contagious, and if it gets worse than that, Susan is also trying to figure out her own personal life, which isn’t going quite how she expected.

One day she meets Michael (Ewan McGregor), a chef who works across the street from where she lives. She ignores him at first, her mind racing with other troubles, but eventually they get around to talking and hit it off. But as their relationship grows, so does the mysterious virus Susan is studying, and before long it’s catching up to more and more people, taking senses one by one, and leading to devastation. As things continue to get worse, it forces people to figure out how to continue with their lives the best they can…if they can at all.

First of all, this is a beautiful movie. As beautiful as you can be with disaster as a backdrop, anyway. Not only is it shot well, but it integrates photography and some wonderful music that help to give it an artistic but not “artsy” feel. Embedding such pleasantly aesthetic things into your apocalypse movie is not only an ingenious way to get your audience to warm up to your film, but it also helps to enhance the effects of the devastation when it arrives.

I will admit that it took a little bit for me to start getting into Perfect Sense. There’s nothing really wrong with the beginning of the movie, but it is a tad slow and I found myself wondering early whether it would win me over or not. It did. Around the time that the two main characters begin to hit it off and the world starts to go into a pandemic Hell is when I began to see this wonderful little love story dancing with utter tragedy, and it all began to click: this isn’t a movie about a virus or an apocalyptic event, it’s about connecting with another human being, and it’s about finding the things in life—no matter how little they might be—that are familiar and that make you smile or make you feel safe, even in the scariest situations imaginable.

The relationship between McGregor (Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace, Trainspotting) and Green (The Dreamers, Casino Royale) progresses quickly as they latch onto each other in this extraordinary situation, and the chemistry between the two actors is strong, as was expected. Yes, there is a romance budding between them, but even more importantly than that they truly seem to need each other to get through this horrific experience. To keep each other safe in our most vulnerable of moments as a species. A great supporting cast that includes Ewen Bremner (Trainspotting, Snatch), Connie Nielsen (Gladiator, The Devil’s Advocate), and Stephen Dillane (King Arthur, Stannis Baratheon in season 2 of Game of Thrones) also helps bring it all together, but the focus is primarily on the two leads.

Perfect Sense hits many emotional tones and will evoke them in you as you watch, which, for me, is a very good thing. I smiled at warm and touching moments, frowned when things took a turn for the worst, laughed as these characters made the best of a bad situation, and was genuinely concerned as things deteriorated. Some sequences were even downright scary, especially when you put yourself in their shoes.

It’s a movie about the human soul and the resiliency of the human spirit when all hope seems lost, and it will inspire you to find the things in life that make you happy so that you may always turn to them and use them as a shield against even the most ferocious of horrors that await you outside.

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Apocalyptic love stories never end well, but Ewan McCregor and Eva Green have no problem making sense of them.

In David Mackenzie’s “Perfect Sense,” which premiered at Sundance last year, “Casino Royale’s” Eva Green plays a scientist who falls in love with Ewan McGregor whilst discovering a worldwide epidemic. The disease, which is “so powerful they don’t even have time to give it a name,” destroys the senses and puts all emphasis on emotions; and when Mcregor and Green contract it at the same time it brings them closer together.

“I’ve always loved making love stories. I love romance and romantic stories,” McGregor said of the film, according to Sweet On Sigma Films. “I’ve always been drawn to them and never tired of it. Falling in love with someone is very powerful and all-consuming, physical and emotional experience, that we really like as human beings. So I hope we’ll never tire of telling those stories.”

As for Green, she was drawn to the power of the script itself.

“The script was very particular, it was very unconventional, very brave, and very moving,” she said in the featurette. “I thought it was a really cool story, and also I found the love store very powerful.”

“Perfect Sense” is currently available on SundanceNOW and VOD, and hits theaters on February 3.

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They will be joined by Ursula Andress and Eva Green and at least a dozen of the other beauties who have played Bond Girls since Dr No was released in 1962.

The party will be the climax of what MGM calls “a whole year of birthday celebrations for 007 in the movies”. It will be held after October’s Hollywood premiere of Skyfall, the 23rd film in a series that has made more than £3.5billion at the box office.

Current Bond Daniel Craig said: “It’s an astonishing record for any character to endure for five decades in showbiz but I’ll bet this: the franchise is such a phenomenon that in another 50 years time a whole new bunch of actors and their leading ladies will be gathering for another party when Bond becomes a centenarian.”

The other Bonds are:

Sean Connery, 81, who was not first choice to play 007 in Dr No. Male model Peter Anthony, then 28, won an open casting contest but when shooting began was clearly not up to the role. Producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli turned to established actor Connery. Australian George Lazenby, now 72, was the star who only lived once as Bond, in 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.

Sir Roger Moore, now 84, was initially criticised as too “boyish-looking” to play Bond but became the most enduring 007 with seven films and was eventually criticised for being too old for the role.

Welsh actor Timothy Dalton, 65, played Bond twice but says: “When you’ve seen Bond from the beginning, no one could possibly replace Sean Connery.”

Irishman Pierce Brosnan, 58, made four films but bowed out after Die Another Day in 2002, feeling he was too old to play 007.

The 1967 spoof Casino Royale, which starred the late David Niven as Bond, is not part of the franchise.

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He said that not every member of the Dark Shadows cast — it includes Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Eva Green, Chloe Moretz and Helena Bonham Carter — was familiar with the source material, a gothic soap opera that aired daily on ABC from 1966 to 1971. However, they quickly caught on to its “strange vibe”:

It’s got such a strange vibe. And it’s not something that a lot of people necessarily know. You’re trying to do a weird soap opera. I felt really lucky, because the cast is really good. People like Michelle [Pfeiffer] grew up watching it. Some of the cast knew about it. Some didn’t, but they were all game for it — getting into the weird spirit of what Dark Shadows was. It has a weird sense of heightened melodrama. There was a generation of us who would run home from school to watch it. That’s probably why we were such bad students. We should have been doing homework; we were watching Dark Shadows instead. It was hard to put into words the tone it was. It had a weird seriousness, but it was funny in a way that wasn’t really funny. We just had to feel our way through it to find the tone. We didn’t do any real rehearsals, because the cast all came in at different times. But there was an old photo of the [original] cast which I always remembered, so a couple days before shooting, we got the whole cast together to take a similar shot so everyone could see each other and get that vibe from doing a group photo. That helped set the tone more than anything.

The director also explained that the film deals with a bit of time travel, is set mostly in 1972 (although partially in the 1700s), and mostly takes place in the house. He also skipped 3D for this project because it just didn’t feel right for the era. “It’s the ’70s, man,” Burton said. “Only Frankenstein’s Bloody Terror was in 3-D. That’s the only one I remember from that time.”

Burton also talked about the ongoing process of bringing Frankenweenie to the big screen. The director first told this story as a black and white live-action featurette when he was working for Disney, and it directly led to his firing.

“I’m very excited about it,” he said. “The opportunity to do it in black-and-white and 3D really fits the story. For me, it’s the heart of the story that we’ve gotten to go back to and expand. It’s more of a House of Frankenstein kind of situation now, but also it stays with the same thing. It taps into the politics of other children that you remember from school. It’s still intimate, though. It’s still the basic story with a few more elements.”

When not directing his own pictures, Burton is also lending a hand to Timur Bekmambetov on his adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith’s Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. “With Lincoln, Timur is great,” Burton said. “I’m there just to support it. It’s a project I really liked and just wanted to see.”

Speaking of Grahame-Smith, Burton confirmed he asked the writer for some ideas on a new Beetlejuice movie, but said that they haven’t talked about concepts since then.

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Eva Green has entered negotiations to play Artemisia in the movie, which is currently working with the title 300: Battle of Artemisia. Noam Murro (Smart People) is directing.

The epic follow-up to 2006′s Gerard Butler action pic 300 sees the Persian king-turned-god Xerxes lead an army against Greek forces, who have little training but are under the guidance of a general named Themistokles. (The giant battle at the center of this movie is supposed to occur at the same time as the fighting in 300.)

Green would play a ruthless, gold-covered goddess who persuades Xerxes to amass his army and helps lead them into battle.

The studio is hoping to start production in the first quarter of 2012. Mark Canton, Gianni Nunnari, Bernie Goldman, Zack Snyder, Deborah Snyder and Thomas Tull are producing.

British actress Green may be best known to American audiences for playing James Bond love interest Vesper Lynd in Casino Royale or appearing in the international hit The Golden Compass. She recently wrapped shooting Dark Shadows, Warners’ big-screen take of the gothic soap opera starring Johnny Depp and directed by Tim Burton.

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Thanks to George and Emma for the links.

1. Vesper Lynd
The drop-dead gorgeous Eva Green is hands down the best Bond girl of all time. A working-woman with overtly feminist tendencies, an insatiable ambition, and a secret plan, Vesper is the first — and maybe the only — real, complex woman in the Bond series. She is passionate. She is forgiving. She is unforgiving. She denies Bond on several occasions — and she’s not playing hard to get, she’s just saying no. She’s beautiful. And, most importantly, she gets under James’ skin like no other woman ever has. In essence, Vesper Lynd makes James Bond who he is. No other Bond girl can make that claim.

Simply divine!!!

GALLERY LINK:
L’Officiel – December 2011/January 2012

GALLERY LINKS:
Public Appearances > Perfect Sense Premiere (UK) – October 4, 2011
Public Appearances > The Rum Diary Premiere (London) – November 3, 2011
Public Appearances > UK Montblanc Arts and Patronage Awards – November 23, 2011
Public Appearances > Montblanc De La Culture Arts Patronage Awards – December 1, 2011
Scans > L’Officiel – December 2011/January 2012 (cover & featured image)

GALLERY LINKS:
La Vanguardia (Spain) – September 21, 2011, thanks to Chini
Dazed & Confused (UK) – December 2011

GALLERY LINK:
L’Express Styles – November 2011

Rien ne semble arrêter l’ascension d’Eva Green. La brune ténébreuse vient de tourner dans Dark Shadows, de Tim Burton. Au printemps 2012, elle sera aussi à l’affiche de Perfect Sense, de David Mackenzie, avec Ewan McGregor. L’égérie de la joaillerie Montblanc pose pour nous dans ce numéro et se confie.

Avec son visage d’une pâleur extrême et ses yeux bleus immenses qu’elle charbonne, Eva Green a la beauté gothique des peintures symbolistes. A la fois androgyne et coquette, l’ex-James Bond girl déborde d’une énergie qui se noue et se dénoue, à l’image de ses jambes, qu’elle tresse pendant qu’elle se raconte. Fonceuse, perfectionniste, sélective dans le choix de ses rôles, la fille de Marlène Jobert aime le cinéma indépendant, les personnages au charme vénéneux. Comme la prof saphique qu’elle jouait dans Cracks, de Jordan Scott, ou la sorcière séductrice qu’elle incarne dans le nouveau Tim Burton, Dark Shadows (sortie prévue le 9 mai 2012), au côté de Johnny Depp. Celle que Bernardo Bertolucci a lancée dans Innocents, en 2003, et a décrite “si belle que c’en est indécent”, se révèle une anxieuse, hypertimide, remettant sans cesse son image en question. Peur d’être trop lisse, marre d’être vue comme une femme fatale, elle rêve de montrer son côté abrupt. La comédienne, bien que française, est installée à Londres depuis six ans et n’a pratiquement tourné qu’en anglais. Il y a deux ans, elle déclarait au Times : “Si seulement Tim Burton m’appelait…” Aujourd’hui, elle avoue à L’Express Styles : “Si Jacques Audiard me faisait signe… de battre mon coeur s’arrêterait !”

Dans Perfect Sense, du Britannique David Mackenzie, vous incarnez une scientifique qui tente d’enrayer une épidémie planétaire. Qu’est-ce qui vous a attirée dans ce scénario ?

Son message. Perfect Sense décrit une fin du monde sensorielle. Frappés par une étrange maladie, les gens perdent l’usage de leurs cinq sens : l’odorat, puis l’ouie, le toucher, le goût et, enfin, la vue. Ils réagissent par des crises d’angoisse, des excès de rage. Ce film est une métaphore de notre mode de vie, de plus en plus déconnecté du réel. Nous avons séparé l’intellect de notre sensibilité, notre capacité d’analyse de nos perceptions. Perfect Sense montre ce qui pourrait advenir si nous n’étions plus capables de ressentir. Le constat est effrayant. Parfois drôle : après qu’ils ont perdu le goût, les gens mangent n’importe quoi ! On me voit en train d’avaler des fleurs, du rouge à lèvres… Ce film est aussi un éloge de l’amour : alors que le monde s’effondre, mon personnage, Susan, une femme endurcie, tombe amoureuse d’un chef cuisinier, incarné par Ewan McGregor… Ça va sonner cucul, mais j’assume : l’amour est la réponse.

Vous venez de tourner Dark Shadows, de Tim Burton. Un rêve concrétisé ?

Tim Burton est un cinéaste et un peintre que je vénère. Je suis allée voir, je ne sais combien de fois, son exposition au MoMa, à New York. Elle sera prochainement à Paris. Quand il m’a appelée, j’étais au comble de la joie… Mais, dès le lendemain, j’ai commencé à me mettre une pression incroyable. Je suis toujours angoissée avant un tournage. Là, j’étais pétrifiée. Les deux premières semaines ont été très difficiles. J’étais intimidée par Johnny Depp et, surtout, par Michelle Pfeiffer, qui joue ma rivale dans le film. Tim a cru en moi et a tout fait pour me mettre à l’aise. Finalement, ça a été le plus beau tournage de ma vie.

Que raconte Dark Shadows ?

C’est une adaptation libre d’une série américaine des années 1960. L’histoire commence au XVIIIe siècle : j’incarne Angelique Bouchard, une servante amoureuse de son maître, le riche et puissant séducteur Barnabas Collins (Johnny Depp). Angelique est la méchante de l’histoire : sorcière, elle fait de lui un vampire puis l’enterre vivant. Deux cents ans plus tard, en 1972, Barnabas est libéré de sa tombe et il retrouve Angelique. Métamorphosée, elle est devenue une femme d’affaires redoutable. Blond platine… Une Barbie avec un fouet ! Je ne peux pas trop dévoiler le scénario, mais l’univers de Tim Burton y est toujours aussi fascinant : cruel et tendre, macabre et poétique. J’ai aimé ma rencontre avec Johnny Depp. Electrique ! Nous partageons une passion pour la métamorphose et les personnages barrés.

Quels sont les personnages barrés qui vous ont le plus marquée ?

Le premier est celui de L’Histoire d’Adèle H, interprété par Isabelle Adjani. A 14 ans, éblouie par ce personnage puissant qui sombre dans la folie, j’ai décidé de devenir comédienne. Ensuite, il y a l’adolescente paumée et fougueuse que j’ai jouée dans Innocents, de Bertolucci, au côté de Louis Garrel. Et puis le personnage que j’interprète dans Cracks, de Jordan Scott. Pour ce rôle, je me suis inspirée de Blanche DuBois (Un tramway nommé Désir). Elle semble forte et perverse alors qu’elle est sensible et fragile. Ces personnages vivent des amours impossibles. Leurs sentiments les rendent fébriles. Et moi, j’aime les passions violentes.

Vous êtes installée à Londres depuis six ans. Pourquoi avez-vous quitté la France ?

J’avais déjà pris des cours d’art dramatique à Londres à 17 ans, puis tout s’est enchaîné et le James Bonda beaucoup accéléré les choses. J’aime cette ville, ses parcs, j’y ai plein d’amis. Et je m’y sens libre. Londres, c’est ma ville d’adulte. A Paris, je régresse. Je redeviens la fille de…

Quelles valeurs vous a transmises votre mère, Marlène Jobert ?

Concernant mon métier, elle me prend pour un ovni ! Elle se demande pourquoi je fais des films indépendants que personne ne va voir ! [Rires.] Mais elle est fière de moi. Ma mère m’a transmis le goût du vrai : j’ai du mal à mentir, à faire semblant si je n’aime pas quelqu’un. J’ai aussi hérité de son sens de la responsabilité. Enfant, j’étais très studieuse, carrée, un petit soldat. Je voulais toujours être la première, je ne sortais jamais… Je suis restée la même : je me dis qu’il faut se donner à fond, aller jusqu’au bout, dans mon métier, mes relations. Je mets mon coeur sur la table. Trop d’ailleurs ! Mais je préfère ça à une vie en demi-teinte.

Vous êtes donc une pasionaria…

Oui… Non. Enfin, c’est à l’intérieur de moi que tout se passe. Je suis une Cocotte-Minute qui n’explose jamais. Quand je m’énerve, ça devient plutôt : Eva contre Eva ! Parfois, j’aimerais crier, mais je n’y arrive qu’au cinéma… Ma mère me dit que j’ai plusieurs personnalités. Et c’est vrai ! J’ai souvent l’impression d’être effacée, hypertimide et, tout d’un coup, je suis capable de dire des énormités. C’est assez incompréhensible, même pour moi… Mais comme l’écrit Patti Smith dans son livre Just Kids, “on est qui on est. Et puis merde !”

Quelles expériences ont le plus forgé votre personnalité ?

Une en particulier. J’avais 16 ans, j’habitais à Paris dans le XVIIe arrondissement et je ne voulais plus aller à l’école française. Mes parents m’ont inscrite à l’école américaine et ça a été la révolution : il y avait une telle aisance, les élèves pouvaient mettre leurs pieds sur la table, on s’habillait comme on voulait. Ça m’a libérée. Tous les jours, je faisais un défilé. Je mettais du fard à paupières en accord avec mes tenues gothiques. Je portais des bagues avec des têtes de mort. Je me suis teint les cheveux en noir-bleu… Depuis, je n’ai pas beaucoup changé. Je n’aime pas être trop visible. Sauf sur les red carpets. Là, je sors le grand jeu : je veux du glamour, du théâtral, du rock !

Des souhaits ?

J’ai conscience qu’il s’est établi une barrière entre le cinéma français et moi, et je le regrette. J’aimerais vraiment tourner en France avec des cinéastes comme Audiard, Giannoli, Desplechin… Je voudrais aussi me débarrasser de cette image glacée, sophistiquée, qui me colle à la peau. J’aimerais jouer un rôle d’homme. D’ailleurs, tous les personnages féminins que j’aime sont très masculins. Comme celui que j’interprète dans la série américaine Camelot : j’y incarne Morgan, une guerrière. Elle a le même charisme que celui d’un homme. Presque plus !

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The English translation of the article can be found here.

Thanks to Aima for the link.

GALLERY LINKS:
Dazed & Confused (2011), thanks to edenLiao
L’Express Style (2011), thanks to Aima