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Movies & TV

Interview: Catherine O’Hara

This may come as a shock to some people, but Catherine O’Hara is nothing at all like a monster.

Okay, that won’t shock anyone. Unlike Judith, the grumpy, resentful beast she voices in Where The Wild Things Are, O’Hara is lively, open and very, very funny. So funny, in fact, that most of her interview is best experienced in the audio clips below reading her words in cold text just doesn’t compare to hearing her speak them live.

And if O’Hara seems even more animated than usual in this conversation, that’s because she clearly had a great time pretending to be a Wild Thing for director Spike Jonze – and an even better time watching the finished film.

I was surprised by how much this movie is geared toward adults …

Really? You think that?

I do.

That’s ’cause you’re all about you, aren’t you? (laughs) No, that’s good. I love that. It’s your own experience – this movie allows you that. It’s almost like a book, where it actually leaves something to the imagination.

The voice actors recorded their lines long before shooting started, like an animated movie. Was it just you in a recording booth?

We physically acted everything. For a month. With remote microphones on our heads. It was genius of Jonze to put us together, because we’re so dependent on each other in every moment.

How did that work?

Spike Jonze and Catherine Keener would take turns playing Max for us. When he needed her to, he would have her play Max. Her Max was very curious and kind of sweet and his was like, “I think I should pull that horn off. Why don’t I pull off that horn?” And he was so in my face, he was always trying to piss me off, jump on my back – I mean, as Max.

Did you ever feel like you wanted to be on the set, actually wearing the Judith suit?

Oh, yeah, you want to be part of the whole thing. I wanted to go to Australia, but I didn’t get to do that. But seeing how much movie they made after our involvement, it’s like, wow. They used all the footage as guidelines for the actors inside the Wild Thing bodies.

It’s amazing that you never interacted with Max Records, the star of the film.

Never met him until two weeks ago at a press junket. He acted with these Wild Things, and they were right there for him. He was really sad that he had to say goodbye to all of them – they had a real serious relationship. Spike just told me the other night that they were actually playing the (audio) track for Max to act with.

How does Jonze approach material like this?

It seemed to me that he wanted innocence – child-like, Wild Thing innocence – from everyone. He talked to the orchestra and said, “You played too well! I want this to be the first time you’ve ever played this instrument!” The same with the actors doing the voices. I’m realizing this after the fact: he didn’t want us to bring anything that we’d done before with us. It was like, “Forget your experience.”

And the same with the digital animation on the faces: “Don’t do it like you’ve done it forever and you know what you’re doing. Start fresh from what these characters are going through.”

What was it like, watching these acting sessions get turned into a full-blown fantasy?

I saw it really early on. Spike’s also really open that way. He invites all his friends and everyone to come and see it: “What did you think? What do you think she should say? Should it be different there?”

He had a bunch of kids come and see it, he had all the crew’s kids on the set in Australia – he didn’t want Max to be surrounded by all adult crew members. I mean, what kind of world is that for a kid? Spike provides the atmosphere in every way.

I got to bring my kids and some friends to early screenings when there was no animation on the faces, and no music. And then to see the finished version, with such beautifully done, minimalist – minimally? – CGI, and just to see Australia, where they shot it, to see the wind blow through the hair of these live wild things. It kinda blew me away. Wow, there was a lot of movie after our jobs. But we’re there our voices are there. And I’m proud of it.

Given the relatively innocent nature of the book, this is a really dark and complex film. Do you think audiences are ready for it?

I hope so, and I hope audiences will want to see it again and have a different experience at different ages, because I think that’s actually possible with this movie.

I also hope it influences other people making children’s movies. When we first met with Spike at his house, as a cast, we had a live iChat with Maurice Sendak. What a thoughtful, smart, beautiful man. Respectful of children. He talked about how kids’ll go see anything, and you’ve got to respect that and give them worthy entertainment for their fresh little beautiful minds.

Interview Clips

Catherine O’Hara on working with Spike Jonze:

Download associated audio clip.

O’Hara on improvising as a Wild Thing:

Download associated audio clip.

O’Hara on how younger audiences might experience the movie:

Download associated audio clip.

O’Hara on the rambunctious recording sessions:

Download associated audio clip.

O’Hara on the sorry state of most children’s movies:

Download associated audio clip.

normw@nowtoronto.com

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