Icon of Swinging London in the 60s, a reference for the most rabidly auteur cinema a decade later, British actress Charlotte Rampling has never stopped appearing on the big screen throughout a career that will be sixty years old in 2024. From a small appearance as a dancer in Dusk of a busy day (1964), the famous and graceful cinematic vehicle of The Beatles, passing through consecrated roles in The fall of the gods (1969), by Luchino Visconti, and, above all, night porter (1974), by Liliana Cavani, to more recent roles in feature films by François Ozon (The pool), Lars von Trier (Melancholia) and Paul Verhoeven (Benedetta), Rampling’s always powerful and often mysterious and ambiguous presence has been a magnet for filmmakers of the most diverse backgrounds and sensibilities. In recent years, faithful to a style that has never been anchored to a single production format, the actress born in Essex in 1946 He participated in major productions such as the diptych Dunedirected by Canadian Denis Villeneuve, and independent films such as The matriarchby New Zealander Matthew J. Saville, a film that will have its local commercial premiere this Thursday, July 4.
In The matriarch, Rampling plays a British woman in her 70s who, after an accident that has left her temporarily confined to a wheelchair, travels to New Zealand to spend time with her son, with whom she does not have the best of relationships. relationships, and an 18-year-old grandson whom he doesn’t know in the slightest. The tense and even violent relationship between Ruth – a former war photographer who now spends her days drinking reduced gin with water and lemon – and the teenager Sam (George Ferrier), whose grief after the death of his mother continues to mark his existence, is the starting point of a film that follows familiar paths, although with a modesty not too common in this type of stories, as well as a particular sense of humor. Before the local title The matriarchwhich replaces the original Juniper (“juniper” in English), Rampling reacts in a good way. “Well, Juniper It’s a strange title, which needs some explanation. I think The matriarch It’s good too”.
Beyond being Based on the real-life experiences of director Matthew J. Savillethe role of Ruth seems to have been tailor-made for Charlotte Rampling, whose filmography is crossed by Strong characters, sometimes cold and other times passionatea personal style brand that the actress has managed to cultivate throughout her career. During an exclusive telephone conversation with Page 12 from Paris, where she has lived for a long time, the protagonist of Max, My Love respond with a kindness and a sense of humor that seem to be at the antipodes of his character. “I received the script, as is usually the case, through my agent, and I thought the story was simple and really beautiful, although the grandmother character was a little older than me, about ten years older. I thought that detail and a few other things needed a little work, so I contacted Matthew and asked if he was willing to talk about it. Let’s discuss the character a little. The truth is that I didn’t know if that was part of his idea, but he immediately told me yes and traveled from New Zealand with his producer to meet up. It was three days of work, a wonderful experience. It was also a way to get to know Matthew better. One of the big changes was that the character went from being around 80 years old to around 70. It seemed more appropriate to play him if the age was closer to mine at the time.
-Was age the only change or were there other variations in the character?
-We changed the character quite a bit, his way of being, some dialogues. I imagine that it must not be easy for a young man like Matthew, around 40 years old, to imagine how an older woman might react to circumstances like those that Ruth’s character is going through. It’s really good when these kinds of collaborations happen with a director, especially a young director. It was very satisfying to have been able to work in this way. I love writing and I have never stopped doing it, so it is an area with which I feel very close.
-At a certain point in the story Sam asks Ruth what she thinks of New Zealand. Could she answer the same question, knowing that her relationship with that country is not new?
-It’s true. Before filming The matriarch He had traveled to New Zealand three times. My first husband was born there and my son Barnaby, now in his 50s, is half New Zealand. In that sense, I must say that something good happened linked to the idea of family. I mean, the story of the film is about a family and going back there felt kind of familiar too. The team was made up entirely of New Zealanders, the only exception was me.
-How was it working in terms of acting with the young actor George Ferrier? For the story to work, it was essential that there was a certain chemistry between the characters and, of course, the actors.
-This is something usual: the casting in a film is really very important, although one never knows if that chemistry between the characters is going to happen. Sometimes it doesn’t happen and that is always a disappointment, but I think that in The matriarch It worked out really well. Before shooting we talked on the phone with George and he even wrote me some letters. He was very flexible and really interested in developing himself as an actor through a character like this. I think it was a beautiful experience for both him and me.
-One of the most important elements in constructing the tone of the film is that it avoids excess emotionality. Something that is not usually felt in films about older adults, their families and the proximity of death, which often border on or fall completely into sentimentality.
-I know, I know, I know. Exactly. That’s what I liked about the script from the beginning: that it doesn’t put emotions first, but it ends up taking you there.
-There is an early and completely unexpected scene, which includes a drink and a well-aimed blow, and which points to a particular sense of humor.
-Yes Yes (laughter). That’s the character. Ruth is really a challenging person, as could happen in real life. It is a way of saying to the grandchild “How are you going to learn to behave with me?” At first, the two characters resent each other; They don’t know each other in the slightest. In fact, it is the first real contact between the two, between that 18-year-old young man and his 70-year-old grandmother. The script clearly indicated that Sam had to stand in front of Ruth; That is the starting point. They are characters who act from the heart, from the gut. At the same time, there is something minimalist in the approach to the story, from the script and from the staging. In that sense, since we basically have a single location – the house where the story takes place – it was very important that we were able to shoot the film chronologically. This allowed the changes in the characters and the relationship between them to occur in a much more natural way; that resentful thing at the beginning, and how it changes as the days and weeks go by.
-Was it an extensive shoot?
-Independent film shoots are getting shorter and shorter, but in this case it was eight weeks in total, which is quite a lot these days. With series it’s the opposite: it’s getting faster and faster and faster.
-Are you interested in alternating small films like The matriarch with blockbusters like Dune?
-That is an interesting topic, because a film like Dune attracts a large number of young viewers. And it is a really great film but, at the same time, it has a philosophical component, beyond the confrontations and battles. Denis Villeneuve has a poetic sensibility when it comes to approaching big-budget films. Beyond the spectacle, there is always something intimate. Personally, I think it’s a good way to reach out to new mass audiences who didn’t previously know me as an actress. I have had people come up to me and tell me that they had been interested in seeing other films in which I had acted. For a young viewer that is good, because it can bring them closer to a type of cinema that they did not know and not simply stick with what is released weekly. In other words, get away from massive commercial releases a bit and approach more auteur cinema. Discover new ways of seeing, of feeling, of transmitting emotions through cinema.
-The first adaptation project of Dune, which was never made, was directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky, and he was going to play an important role there. Finally, he managed to participate in another version, although several decades later.
-I guess it was meant to happen: I finally got to have a role in Dune! (laughter) Even if it was that of an older woman. I always thought it was a very powerful book, ever since I read it in the 1970s.
-Beyond the filmmakers who are usually named when describing his career, such as Luchino Visconti and Liliana Cavani, he has worked with filmmakers from all over the world, very different from each other. Do you understand that this is something essential?
-Yes, yes, working with very different people and from diverse backgrounds. That is something that has always interested me: different countries, different cultures, different philosophies. Ultimately, that is what has always interested me about cinema, something that in turn implies trying out different ways of living.
-What has changed for better and worse in the world of cinema since you started acting?
-The main thing, as I said before, is time. Before we had much more time. Now films are made faster, although there are also cases like that of The matriarch, where it was not necessary to run. There is something positive about it, however, that began to happen when digital appeared, which makes everything faster. It is also possible to film much more material. But in strictly acting terms, I think there is nothing essential that has changed too much. I mean, nothing relevant has disappeared from the creative process. The only thing I do believe is that film, analog support, is more beautiful than digital. Through various processes it is possible to make digital resemble film, but it is not the same. Maybe there is also something nostalgic about missing the 35mm. And those huge, heavy cameras, and the big lights. It is now possible to make a movie with a tiny camera or even a phone. But ultimately that doesn’t change the result too much: the film itself. There are still people who know how to use cinematographic tools to tell a story and touch the emotional fibers of the viewer. Fortunately, there are still people who make great films.
Before saying goodbye, Charlotte Rampling, true matriarch of international cinema, says goodbye with a message “I am very glad to have had this conversation and that The matriarch “It will finally be released in Argentina. It is a film that is already a few years old, but better late than never. I have family in Argentina and I hope they enjoy it a lot.”
