AOL Live presented a LIVE CHAT with Nicolas Cage, who answered questions about his new John Woo film, 'Windtalkers,' and much more.
NICOLAS CAGE CHAT TRANSCRIPT
AOL Host: Hello, everyone, and welcome to AOL Live's chat with Oscar-
winning actor Nicolas Cage, who stars in the new film `Windtalkers,'
which opens tomorrow, June 14, in theaters nationwide. Nic, welcome.
Great to have you here.
Nicolas Cage: Thanks for having me.
AOL Host: `Windtalkers' is a World War II movie, but it's about an
aspect of World War II that's never been explored before on screen.
Tell us about that.
Nicolas Cage: That's right. It's unique in that it examines the
Navajo nation's involvement in winning the war, World War II, and how
they developed a code which was instrumental in expediting military
air strikes, as well as medical aid and giving coordinates for all of
the Marines over there. So it had a lot to do with our victory, and
it's been unsung until now. It's perhaps a little overdue, but still,
it was a very exciting moment when they were all given the
Congressional gold Medals of Honor in Washington a few months back.
AOL Host: Who do you play in the movie?
Nicolas Cage: I play Joe Enders, who is a Marine who's been battle-
scarred. He is not a very happy man. He's lost people who he
considered to be his friends under his command, and he's carrying
that with him, that guilt. He then is assigned to protect, as a
bodyguard, the young Navajo code talker, played by Adam Beach, who is
excellent in the movie. And I also have orders to assassinate him if
he's captured by the Japanese, so that he would not be tortured into
giving up the code. And the code was never broken. So that's the
dilemma of the character and where the drama is in the piece.
AOL Host: We have our first question from the audience. A member
named Wholefunk wants to know, what research did you do for this role?
Nicolas Cage: One of the things that I did was I met with Sergeant
Major Jim Deavers, who was on the set, and he gave me three days of a
sort of intensive -- in terms of learning how to stand like a Marine
and operate the weapons like a Marine. He gave me some basic
strategies in terms of how you work together as a unit. One of the
things he wanted me to do was make sure I was comfortable in my
utility belt. He says you can tell right away if a person's a Marine
or not by the way they wear their utility belt. When I first put it
on, he was sort of like, well, I think you need to spend a couple
more days in that, until I got comfortable with it.
AOL Host: Where did you guys film this movie?
Nicolas Cage: We filmed most of it in Hawaii, and then some of it in
Southern California, if you can believe that. I mean, it actually
looks like Japan, but I never knew that before.
AOL Host: Did you get to meet any of the actual Navajo code talkers
while making the movie, or just afterwards?
Nicolas Cage: I did. I met Albert Smith, one of the actual code
talkers. He was on the set for the duration of the shoot. He was very
helpful. Even though we're actors and we see the sort of mayhem
that's going on out there, with like 250 bombs and bullet hits and,
you know, squib hits, which are like little blood packets that
explode, you use your imagination to kind of create a theater where
you could believe you were really there. And every time I would do
that as an actor, I would think, my God, how lucky I am that I'm not
actually a Marine out there who's been tortured, given his life in
this kind of hell, which this movie paints, this war.
Nicolas Cage: And when I spoke to Albert Smith about it, who was
there, this Navajo code talker, I said, how did you get through this?
How did you survive this? He said it was all about his faith, that he
got through it on account of his faith. That's one of the things I
find most interesting about Navajo culture, is their spirituality,
and they would come to the set and sometimes they would talk to me
about the rituals they have, their beliefs in the different animal
medicines, they called them. It was a very enlightening experience in
that regard.
AOL Host: Did your own faith or spiritual values change at all as a
result of this film?
Nicolas Cage: Well, I am a Christian, but, you know, I'm open to
looking at other religions and learning from other religions and
trying to understand what their beliefs are and their facets are, and
so I'm always open to energy and spirituality. You know, I was
baptized Roman Catholic, but I'm also very much interested in other
beliefs.
AOL Host: One of our members has a question about the director
of `Windtalkers,' John Woo. You worked with him on `Face/Off.' What
is it about him that made you want to do a second movie with him?
Nicolas Cage: I had a great experience working with him
on `Face/Off,' because he allows actors freedom to be expressive, and
he dances in a place that's very operatic and very musical. He likes
extreme situations; I like extreme situations. I like pushing it to
the limit, in terms of whatever those limits may be, as an artist or
actor. Just to not be afraid to fail, if it has to be, but to try to
go a little further, to try to attempt something new, is always the
goal. And he's the same way. I think we really understood each other.
AOL Host: Is it true you're going to be doing a third movie with him?
Nicolas Cage: We've been talking about doing a third movie together,
called `Men of Destiny,' which has been his dream, which is about the
building of the railroad in the United States, and also the relations
between the Chinese and the Irish.
AOL Host: Are you close to taking that role, or are you still
discussing it?
Nicolas Cage: I'm set to do it, it's just, again, it's a big movie,
and it's going to be a period film, and it's a lot of sets, and it's
going to be expensive. We're still looking for where the financing
might come into place.
AOL Host: Another question from a member who wants to know what the
pros and cons are of being a famous actor?
Nicolas Cage: I mean, it's sort of like the pros and cons of
anything. One of the things as an actor, you're going to meet more
people than if you weren't a well-known actor. So, you know, because
you're going to meet the -- the average celebrity meets 100,000 more
people per year than someone who isn't. And that means that you can
get out of the right side of the bed or the wrong side of the bed. If
you get out of the right side of the bed, it's good to go out, say
hi, and be in a good mood and try to spread some warmth. But if you
get out of the wrong side of the bed, it means you got to stay home
and wait until you get out of the right side of the bed.
AOL Host: Question from another member, a comment as well. He says:
Hey, Nic. You're a great actor. I've enjoyed all your work. Is there
a movie you regret doing, and why?
Nicolas Cage: Well, first, thanks. I appreciate that. And I'm going
to say that I don't regret doing any of my movies, even the ones that
haven't worked, because they're my teachers. I learn from my
mistakes. And they're all my children, on some level, my characters.
So some of them are not doing so well, and some of them are doing
better. But you love them all.
AOL Host: Offbeat question from a member named CliffnPatti, who
wants to know if you plan on visiting New Orleans again to make
another film.
Nicolas Cage: I love New Orleans, and I had a good experience there
when I did `Sonny.' It's a town with a lot of culture. It's a town
with a lot of pride. And I would like to just be able to spend a
couple of weeks there every year. And I would do another movie there.
I would, because there's so much culture there. I'm fascinated with
the voodoo in the city, and I'm also fascinated with the -- with some
of the traditions, in terms of the Mardi Gras and the parades. It's
almost like its own country within our country. It's unlike anything
else I've ever experienced.
AOL Host: Another question from a member, who wants to know: What
kind of music do you like to listen to?
Nicolas Cage: Well, my tastes in everything are pretty eclectic, and
that means also music. You know, I can go from listening to Bach, one
of my favorites, to techno music, or to David Bowie, who I've always
thought was a great artist. I like U2. I like Miles Davis. I like a
lot of jazz. So I'm sort of all over the place.
AOL Host: We have a question from a member, and a comment. He says
he enjoyed you in `The Rock' and `Con Air.' Are you planning on
making any more movies with Jerry Bruckheimer?
Nicolas Cage: I like working with Jerry a lot. He allows you to sort
of do some of your own creating, maybe come up with some ideas with
the characters, put it in the writing, because the scripts when you
get onboard with Jerry are sort of half-hatched, and you -- he
invites all of the other actors to sort of help draw their
characters. We don't have any plans at the moment to work together
again, but I certainly would like to work with him again at some
point in the near future.
AOL Host: A question from a member named EncagedAngel, who says: Hi,
Nic. I was just in L.A. I saw you at the `Windtalkers' premiere. You
looked great. Is `Ghost Rider' still in the works for you?
Nicolas Cage: Thank you. Yeah, `Ghost Rider' is still in the works.
Hopefully once they finish the script, I'll be in production on it
sometime early in the year. The following year.
AOL Host: Over the years, your name has been attached to a bunch of
movies based on comic books -- `Ghost Rider,' `Superman,' `Iron Man.'
Were those stories true, or was it because you're known to be into
comic books?
Nicolas Cage: I was going to do `Superman.' I had a contract in
place. Tim Burton was to be the director. I was very excited by that
project, because I always saw Superman as a great symbol of the
outsider, the person who feels like an alien in society, and in this
case who is an alien, with the Superman character. I thought it was a
rich ground for an actor to be imaginative with, in a new sort of
way. That fell through, for whatever the reasons. I think the budget
perhaps got a little too extreme for the studio at the time, so they
decided they didn't want to pull the trigger on that. But I have been
attached to other comic book characters; Constantine was one. That
didn't work, for whatever the reasons. Also Iron Man.
Nicolas Cage: It is true, I've always had a great affinity for the
comic book culture, because I find it to be so imaginative. But for
whatever the reasons, it hasn't really happened for me, and I don't
really think it's a bad thing. Maybe in an unusual sort of way, you
know, the fact that I like the comic book culture and the characters,
it's informed my work in my dramatic work in movies
like `Windtalkers' or even `Con Air.' Without having to wear the
cape, I still use my influence from the comic book.
AOL Host: Did you read Kevin Smith's script for that Superman film?
Nicolas Cage: I did. It was a good script. I like Kevin. He's a
creative writer. Again, I think it became too expensive. But you know
what? After `Spider-Man's' success, all the studios will be pulling
out their big guns, and `Superman' is one of them.
AOL Host: A comment and question from Zip32, who says: `Gone in 60
Seconds' totally ruled. How would you compare `Windtalkers'
to `Saving Private Ryan' and `Pearl Harbor'?
Nicolas Cage: First, thank you. I'm glad you liked `Gone in 60
Seconds.' I love cars, and that's why I wanted to make that movie.
Both `Pearl Harbor' and `Saving Private Ryan' were terrific movies,
but `Windtalkers' is different, in that it digs into the idea of
different cultures co-existing, and I find that unique. With John's
movie, you have a Navajo and you have an Italian-American and you
have a Norwegian and a Greek, and they're all working together. It's
almost like the -- you know, an international group of Marines. And
what happens here is that they become color-blind, and that they
don't see their differences anymore; they just see themselves as a
unit, and that unit is going up against the enemy. And the irony, of
course, is that perhaps if the world was color-blind, we wouldn't
have wars. So I think that makes `Windtalkers' unique as a war
picture.
AOL Host: We have a question from a member named RDavis, who says: I
love your voice. Do you have any plans to sing in any more of your
films?
Nicolas Cage: You know, I never really considered myself much of a
singer. I always felt more like a barking dog. But I like to sing
around the house sometimes, just to goof off. But for some reason, it
seems like whenever I'm acting, I do break out into song, and I don't
know why. It happens almost accidentally. Then I look back and I
think, oh, my God, I did it again. And I'm not really a singer. I
never start a movie saying, I'm going to sing in this movie. Usually,
I shy away from it. Then I wind up singing anyway. If that answers
the question.
AOL Host: Another member wants to know what you like to do when
you're not working on a movie.
Nicolas Cage: When I'm not working on a movie, I like to spend time
with my family and friends. I like to ride my motorcycle. I like to
race on the track. I enjoy being out in the -- near the ocean. I like
to go fishing. You know, a good book is always a pleasant experience.
And I like to watch movies.
AOL Host: Another member points out: You've done a bunch of
different genres -- action, drama, comedy, romance. What type do you
find the hardest to do, and why?
Nicolas Cage: Well, I think that ultimately, on the one hand --
they're all difficult for different reasons. But drama, when done
well, should be the most examining of one's self, the deepest in
terms of soul searching, and that sometimes can be painful. Comedy,
you always have the difficulty of not getting the laugh and making a
fool out of yourself. And with action, you have the difficulty of
being upstaged by a special effect, so you want to be as succinct as
possible, in terms of the character you're trying to develop. So in
action, perhaps more than any of the others, you're walking in a
field of mines, because at any moment you can really look ridiculous
or silly, if you can't keep the auspices and the powers that be on
the film set working to get towards something that has some
creativity and not just exploitive action.
AOL Host: We have a member named Steve who says he's a huge fan
of `Valley Girl' and wants to know what you think of the film now,
and the fact that it's become such a cult favorite over the years.
Nicolas Cage: I'm really happy to hear that, because I like the
movie, because it feels like almost a time capsule.
AOL Host: Almost like a documentary of that time.
Nicolas Cage: Like a little time capsule of the early 1980s. I like
the movie. Deborah Foreman was great in it. She was a nice person to
work with. So I have fond memories of it. I'm happy Steve likes it.
AOL Host: We have a question about what's the coolest or most
interesting location you've ever shot a film in.
Nicolas Cage: I would say the most interesting location I ever shot
a movie in was Africa. I was in Nairobi, Mambaza and Zimbabwe. I was
doing an Italian movie called `A Time to Kill.' I think it was also
called `The Shortcut.' Not a lot of people saw it over here, but it
was a great experience. I would ride home after my day's work in my
car, and the sun would be setting and giraffes would be running in
the fields and there would be zebras. I'd never seen anything quite
like that before. It was the most beautiful and unusual, exotic
experience I've ever had.
AOL Host: We have a member with the question: What is the one gift
you've always wanted but never received?
Nicolas Cage: That's a good question. Wow. The one gift I've always
wanted but never received.
AOL Host: I got a feeling you might be receiving it after you say it.
Nicolas Cage: Yeah, but I've got to be careful how I answer this,
because -- I think it would -- I would have always liked it if
someone had given me a dog as a gift. I never got a dog as a gift. I
bought dogs for myself, but I've never been given a dog. Now that
I've said that, I don't know what's going to happen. I might have
like a dog farm.
AOL Host: Check your mail.
Nicolas Cage: OK.
AOL Host: In 1996, you won the Oscar for best actor for `Leaving Las
Vegas.' Did that have an instant impact on your career? Were you able
to instantly do projects that weren't available to you before then?
Nicolas Cage: The Academy Award was sort of a turning point in my
career, in that it felt like a validation of work that had happened
prior. I've always had a very loyal but small group of fans that were
with me, like through `Vampire's Kiss' and `Wild at Heart'
and `Raising Arizona.' These were people that sort of understood what
I was trying to do and stuck by me, while there were a lot of people
that didn't get what I was trying to do. And when the Academy Award
happened, it was sort of like all the previous work had come into
focus. Then it seemed like more of the people in the Hollywood system
understood me.
Nicolas Cage: And then that was also the same year that I did `The
Rock,' which was my first action film. So it kind of -- for me, it
kind of made the statement that I was interested in doing a little
bit of everything. So that's why that year was a turning point for me.
AOL Host: A member named RoadRunner wants to know what kind of cars
are your favorite.
Nicolas Cage: I like old Ferraris. You know, I like old English
cars. And I like Porsches. And I like old Corvettes. But I like
looking at pictures of them. You know, I'm not interested in
worshipping false icons. It's not that. It's just that I love
handmade things. I love art. And I think creativity is in the
automobile. It is a sculpture. It is a sculpture that you can move
in, that you can feel like you're a part of. And I've had great
moments in cars, just driving on my own, and, you know, nothing like
a good bit of winding road, a nice stretch of road in Malibu Canyon.
You know, within reason, getting on a little bit, navigating the
curves, listening to the sound of the engine. It's always been a
passion of mine.
AOL Host: We have a member named BroncoGal who wants to know if you
consider yourself a role model.
Nicolas Cage: I don't see myself as a role model, no. I try to live
my life well in a way where I'm not doing anything to hurt myself or
hurt anybody else, I mean, but I've made mistakes, you know. But the
thing is, if other people want to look at me that way, that's their
business. But I don't claim to be a role model, no.
AOL Host: We have a member named MaxRackatansky who wants to know,
out of all of your films, which of the characters do you relate to
the most, personally?
Nicolas Cage: I guess in terms of my own life, I guess I related a
lot to Doug Chesnic in `Guarding Tess.' I don't know why, but that
character -- he took his job very seriously, and when he had a job to
do, he tried to do it well. And sometimes he didn't really -- he
wasn't really understood, even though he was trying to do his job
well. I can relate to that. And I think Doug Chesnic was that way.
AOL Host: Is there anybody, either an actor, actress or director,
that you haven't worked with yet that you really want to still?
Nicolas Cage: Well, I would have loved to have worked with people
like Fellini or Kubrick, but unfortunately they've moved on. Or
fortunately. I don't know. But they were heroes to me. You know, I
like a lot of the new talent that's out there. I like Nolan. I think
he's a terrific filmmaker. I like -- I was happy that I worked with
Spike Jonze on `Adaptation.' He's certainly a creative thinker and an
original. So I like to mix it up. But I believe in the grand masters.
There were times in the 1970s, it was like a renaissance of
filmmaking. A lot of things came out of that. You know, Fassbinder.
I'd still like to work with Herzog, maybe at some point.
AOL Host: Another member wants to know if you own a computer and if
you're into surfing the Web.
Nicolas Cage: I do have a computer. Usually I just use it for mail.
But sometimes I'll surf a little Web. I don't do it a lot. I did it
more in the beginning when I was first discovering that whole world,
which is exciting, but you know, I found myself glued to the computer
screen for like three or four hours every night, and then I just
wasn't getting much sleep, so I realized I was getting hooked on it
and decided to take a little time off from it.
AOL Host: Did you find it at all flattering or even disturbing that
there are so many fans out there that have created sites that are
tributes to you?
Nicolas Cage: I find it flattering. At one point there was a
suggestion that I create my own site, that other actors were doing
it, then you could have more control over it. I thought that that
takes the fun out of it for people, and even for me. I'd rather hear
what people really want to say or have to say, good or bad. Go ahead,
go for it. You can create a site about me. And I think that some of
them have been really wonderful, like the Original Nicolas Cage
Society is one of the first. They're always really great. You know,
I'm very happy that they have it, and I wouldn't want to take that
away. I'd rather let them do the work.
AOL Host: You mentioned earlier a film called `Sonny,' which I
believe is a film you directed yourself. Can you talk a little about
that?
Nicolas Cage: Yeah. It's my first movie as a director. It's not easy
material. It was a project that I was going to star in about 15 years
ago, and I almost had Barbet Schroeder direct it. For whatever
reason, he moved on to do `Barfly,' which is a great film. But it
didn't happen. The material is about a male prostitute, also about a
dysfunctional family. I was never able to get it out of my head. It
was very edgy to me, but heartbreaking and original. I thought, if
I'm going to direct, I'd like to do something smaller, I'd like to do
something that has to deal with family, and I would also like to do
something that's in the vein of a tragedy. So that came back to my
mind. I re-read it. I was crying at the end of it. I was very moved
by it. I felt a lot for these two people, a female prostitute and
male prostitute, who find a kind of love together, albeit a desperate
one, and I thought it was kind of cool that these two people have
this kind of horrible existence or job to do, where they have to have
sex with strangers, people they don't know, yet they don't get
jealous and still love each other. I thought that that was kind of an
amazing statement about sex in America.
AOL Host: Is directing something you want to continue doing?
Nicolas Cage: I do. I do. I think I will again. Right now, I'll be
focusing on the acting for the next few years, but we'll see
how `Sonny' is received. But I found the most exciting thing about
directing was that I think it enhanced my own thought process on
acting. I feel like I learned from my actors. James Franco is
outstanding in the movie. Just being around that kind of new talent
is very stimulating to me, and it helps me get restimulated as an
actor. Also, the idea of having to think about the different
characters and what they're going through as male or female, and
getting their coverage as a director, then being able to focus on
their wants and their motivations, their points of view, was unique
and exciting for me. I think it helped me use a lot more of my mind
than I would have if I was just focusing on myself as an actor. So
this way it sort of is exercising my abilities.
AOL Host: We have a question from a member named Schnoogans who
mentions that you've played a lot of accents, like in `Con Air'
and `Captain Corelli's Mandolin.' Is that hard to learn?
Nicolas Cage: The difficult thing about accents, people come to know
you or hear you a certain way -- they've become accustomed to your
sound -- then it's very hard for them to accept you in another
accent. So -- especially an Italian accent. But that particular
accent was designed by John Washington in Europe with me, and we both
agreed we didn't want to do the sort of Italian-American sound, or of
an Italian immigrant sound trying to speak in English, where it's
sort of broken. We wanted to do a European-Italian sound, which is
very different, very sort of elegant and refined.
Nicolas Cage: But to answer your question, it is difficult to do
that, because you have to back up all these feelings that you're
building as an actor and channel it through this very foreign and
alien sound, so you have to exercise those muscles until you get them
relaxed enough and strong enough that you can become free with the
accent.
AOL Host: We have time for a couple more questions. I wanted to
mention that you have the film `Adaptation' also coming out later
this year. I'm wondering if you could tell us about that, because
that has a real interesting story and concept behind it.
Nicolas Cage: Yes. `Adaptation' is unusual. It's a story about
Charlie Kaufman, who I play, who is a writer, who is struggling with
the idea of making a movie about flowers. At first he's excited about
it. Then he becomes very, very distressed that it's not working. Now,
meanwhile, he has a twin brother named Donald, who I also play, and
Donald Kaufman decides that he wants to be a writer too, a
screenwriter, but he's going to go with thrillers and action.
Nicolas Cage: So what happens is it becomes a sort of competition
between the two, of a sort. Donald not so much, but Charlie starts to
get a little resentful of the fact that Donald's script is becoming
well received by agents around town. He's getting paid big money for
it. Whereas he's still struggling with his script about flowers. Also
about his own opinions of himself, because he's overweight and he's
bald and not happy with the way he looks or appears. You know -- his
personality, rather.
AOL Host: Is there a release date?
Nicolas Cage: I think it will probably come out in November or
December.
AOL Host: I think we have time for one more member question. It's
from a member named QEF, who wants to know if you ever get nervous
when filming a movie.
Nicolas Cage: Whenever I begin a new movie, I get nervous. That's
good, and it's OK to have it, and you learn how to harness it and
utilize it. The day you stop getting nervous is when you're in
trouble. It's best not to be nervous when you go on talk shows and
things like that, but when you're acting, you know, at first it's OK
to be nervous. Then eventually, you know, like the first week or
second week, you'll relax into it, but don't let the nerves scare you
away. Just figure out a way to access them and channel them. Maybe
that day your character's nervous, so then that will relax you, and
you can play that part a little nervous. You don't have to worry
about being totally smooth and relaxed all the time, because that
ain't life.
AOL Host: Well, unfortunately, that's all the time we have tonight.
I want to remind our audience that `Windtalkers' starring Nicolas
Cage is in theaters nationwide tomorrow, Friday, June 14. Nic, it was
a real pleasure to have you on AOL the first time.
Nicolas Cage: Thanks for having me. I want to thank all the people
in the chat room with us for dialing in. So bye-bye.
AOL Host: I hope we can get you back in the future, Nic.
Nicolas Cage: OK. Thank you.
AOL Host: Thank you, Nic. Thank you to everyone for their questions.
Copyright 2002 America Online, Inc. All rights reserved.
Portions of this transcript may be edited by AOL to correct spelling,
punctuation and/or remove any material that violates AOL's Terms of
Service
|
