Seasoned actor Christian Bale compares himself to Jim Davis, the character he is playing in his most recent movie, the independent Harsh Times: "We're both shape-shifters."
In fact, Bale has made a reputation for himself in the movie business for being able to take on almost any role. Although he is British, he took on two different kinds of American icons when he played Batman, in Batman Begins, and Patrick Bateman from American Psycho. He lost over 40 pounds for 2004's The Machinist.
In Harsh Times, Bale played a hoodlum in east L.A. The News-Letter interviewed Christian Bale by phone on Thursday night.
News-Letter: You're known for taking on difficult roles that include different accents and weight gain and loss. How did you prepare for this movie?
Christian Bale: For the ranger training I really fancied doing that to see if I could. But, it would have been completely unnecessary. I prepared by spending a lot of time with Dave [Ayer, the director] and his friends and east L.A. We had a 24-day hectic shoot.
The story is inspired by Dave and his friends, so I just spent a lot of time with him. Jim found his value as a soldier, which makes him lethal in east LA. And there was body language, verbal language of the military to adopt. You do that in the same way as with any role. You know, living and breathing it. You don't have to be a real deal to spot a fraud. You just have to do it until it becomes second nature.
N-L: What do you like about the script and working with Dave Ayer?
CB: It's very personal. [Jim is] a prick but at the same time someone I would like a lot in spite of himself. He's probably going to do nothing but bring bad to you. He has, to me, a whole lot of substance and a whole lot of heart. The piece has a whole lot of momentum to it, like a roller-coaster ride with a sudden stop at the end. There are just certain scripts that you read that just stick with you.
N-L: Why did the film take so long to be made?
CB: My first meeting with Dave was going to be a short one but it lasted five hours and there were broken glasses in the bar afterwards. By the time I met him it was going to be a studio movie and they had certain people they wanted and I wasn't on that list. Then I contacted him while I was filming Batman and Dave decided he was just going to finance it himself. I thought that was really great, it shows how much he cared.
N-L: Were you able to draw from personal experience with Dave?
CB: Jim is a foster child of the Chicano culture. I had to immerse myself in the culture. I don't like bringing myself to a character. I can relate to parts of it or relate to him in less extreme degrees. The thing between me and Jim basically is the shape shifter ability. To be able to fool people into believing you are something you're not.
N-L: What kind of person do you think will see this movie?
CB: All I can say is me. I was drawn to this type of movie. I think we did it very well and I think Dave has done a fantastic job with it and beyond that I have no clue. I'm not in marketing, I think it would be really dishonest to approach movies that way. What's the demographic?
I hope other people see in it what I saw, which is a very layered movie. Jim is a very interesting, intriguing and engaging character ... not someone you want to spend too much time with, but someone you want to hear about. I find him to be very bloody funny. But also interesting, he teaches that, the consequences of your actions becomes more deadly the more capable you become.
N-L: What was it like filming in Mexico and L.A.
CB: Everything is the real deal, except for me basically. (laughs) [There is] something about shooting on location that just adds that reality that just helps in every aspect of it. If you've seen the movie you know there is a fiesta scene in it. We created that fiesta, we invited everyone from the town and there was free food and drink.
N-L: What statement is Harsh Times making?
CB: That's for the viewer to decided. In my mind it ain't for the person making the movie or writing the book or painting the picture to tell people what you should be getting from it. You get what you get from it. My job is to create a character and that's it. And beyond that its kind of a cheat to tell people what I was trying to do. Either you get it or you don't.
N-L: Since Dave was the inspiration for the movie, did he ever tell you that you weren't playing it correctly?
CB: (laughs) No we had enough time ahead of time to sit and watch. Dave was the foundation, but I wasn't doing any type of imitation. Dave's life is very much in the Chicano culture, and he has a military background but it wasn't a biopic. It was inspired by him but that's it.
It just took hanging out, you know, drinking, driving around on the streets. This was a labor of love. I'm not just speaking just for myself, but for everyone else. We had a partnership. No one was there for a check because there weren't any really any check.
