Joaquin PhoenixDoesn’t like to be complimented.
Mike Mills, a filmmaker, explained why he wanted Phoenix to be part of his new drama about his family. “C’mon C’mon”When the actor politely, but firmly cut him off.
“OK, all right, thanks for sharing. Next question?” Phoenix interjected. “You guys are free to talk later without me around, but I can’t be a part of that.”
Phoenix, 47, is famously uncomfortable with interviews, bristling at questions about Method acting techniques and his eclectic career choices. Phoenix’s tender, charming performance is a result of his caginess. “C’mon C’mon”This is a fantastic surprise, especially after his shocking turn in the DC villain origin story “Joker,”He was awarded the Oscar for best actor in 2020.
The new film (Now in theatres) follows a public radio journalist named Johnny (Phoenix) who travels the country interviewing kids on their thoughts about the future. Johnny is reunited with his sister, Viv (Gaby Höfmann), and soon he volunteers to take care of his nephew Jesse (Woody Norman), 9 years old.
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This mix of narrative and documentary storytelling is unique. “C’mon C’mon”Explores the emotional complexity of children as well as adults. Like the director’s last two films – “Beginners” (starring Christopher Plummer), inspired by his dad, and “20th Century Women” (with Annette Bening), a tribute to his mom – Mills’ latest outing also draws from family relationships, this one with his 9-year-old child, Hopper.
Through fellow parents and Hopper’s teachers, Mills says he’s learned the importance of giving kids “space for all of their emotions; treating them equally and legitimate, and not less than or cute.”
Phoenix is a dad himself: He welcomed a son, River, with fiancée Rooney Mara last year, whom they named for Phoenix’s late brother. The “Walk the Line”Star was attracted by Mills’ curiosity and the story’s first meeting. “interesting and limitless” possibilities.
“Even now, there are moments or ideas or feelings (in this film) that resonate with me,”Phoenix is considered a dark horse candidate to win his fifth Oscar nomination. “C’mon C’mon”In This year’s best actor race is fiercely competitive.
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Over the course of the movie, the single and childless Johnny learns to communicate with Jesse, who struggles to express his feelings about his absent, bipolar father (Scoot McNairy). They share a sweet bond over books, pizzas, wrestling matches, long walks, and sometimes temper tantrums.
Jesse confides to his uncle in one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the film that he worries about forgetting about their time together. Johnny assures his nephew he’ll be there for him.
“Memories are one of the more precious things to me,”Mills states. “I think a lot about what (memories) I hold onto and what might’ve slipped away. And it’s kind of mind-boggling what my kid doesn’t remember, even just about last year.”
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As Jesse travels with his uncle from Los Angeles to New York to New Orleans, Johnny interviews children and teenagers about their hopes and concerns for the planet, our future leaders and their families. These thoughtful conversations are completely unscripted except for the list of prompts Mills gave to Phoenix before filming.
“I felt like I was always relying on that piece of paper with the questions on it,”Phoenix recalls. “I have a lot of appreciation for what (journalists) do. I always thought it was so fun and easy, and I had the hard part (as the subject). But asking the questions is very difficult, at least for me.”
The actor admitted that he was “very concerned and nervous”interviewed children at their homes and made sure they felt safe.
“We started every interview saying, ‘I’m going to ask you a bunch of questions. If there’s anything you don’t want to talk about, say (so),’ “Phoenix declares. “I thought it was going to be more difficult to get them to open up, but they were just hungry to be heard.”
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The purpose of the interviews is to introduce “a bigger spectrum of life from a young perspective,”After talking so much about it “intense specificity of being with your own kid,”Mills claims. Mills says that Hopper, despite some autobiographical elements is still a great filmmaker. “not that interested”You can watch “C’mon C’mon.”
“My kid’s very smart and understands this isn’t totally about them,”Mills states. “They know it’s just the way my work goes.”
Phoenix chimes back in, joking that he makes his son watch the film on repeat: “He’s 13 months old, but I’m teaching him to say, ‘Daddy’s great, Daddy’s great,’ as he’s watching it over and over. So that’s beautiful, Mills, but now I feel like I might be a bad dad or something?”
“No, don’t worry,”Mills said, laughing. “This is a safe space.”
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