Miller, Buscemi Tangle In "Interview"

Celebrity interviews can sometimes be demanding for both star and reporter when personal questions are asked and boundaries are broken.

"Interview," which opens this Friday in select markets, tackles just such a topic as the film centers on a disgruntled journalist and his rather bizarre night spent with a party girl actress.

Steve Buscemi, who stars in and directs the film, was able to snag Sienna Miller for his onscreen counterpart in this intimate tale of two conflicted characters. Recently, at a swank hotel in Manhattan, the two stars met with The ShowBuzz to discuss their reasons for taking on a rather challenging production.

"It was a really interesting project … It's the first film I've done that I actually loved," said Miller.

Most of "Interview" was shot in one room and the two leads are alone throughout a majority of the movie. "I found it a compelling film … I think this story lent itself to the way it was shot," Buscemi said.

With an unconventional story concept, Miller decided to perform in this film because of her costar. "If it was good enough for Steve Buscemi, it was good enough for me," she said of the film.

To prepare for her role, Miller became an anthropologist of sorts as she observed the behavior of her Hollywood peers. "I'm very different (from) that character, thank God. But I know people who aren't that different. So I hung out with them and watched them," she said.

In person, the actress betrays the promiscuous party girl image the tabloids have awarded her. On first sight, with her perky smile and charmingly innocent demeanor, Miller is more Hilary Duff than Lindsay Lohan.

But the 25-year-old actress was quick to reveal that she is similar to her onscreen character in some respects. "I'm quite bouncy," she laughed. "So throwing myself on the floor came quite naturally to me. … (The scene) when I ran and jumped onto the sofa, that's kind of the behavior that goes on in my house."

Miller's director and costar found shooting "Interview" to be equally natural in some respects. "I remember telling Sienna that we don't need to judge these characters. There's a reason that they do everything and it's not always motivated by self-interest … They're both survivors," Buscemi said.

Buscemi is on screen in virtually every scene of the film, yet as director he also had to supervise the process of filming. That could have been a daunting task, but Buscemi stayed motivated by his interest in the dynamics of the journalist and actress in this film.

"I didn't have an interest in making a film about people that I wouldn't be in a room with," Buscemi said.

Indeed, while Buscemi and Miller's characters can both sometimes be irritating, neurotic, selfish, and just downright evil, these morally repulsive characters do provide for an intriguing interview — both on screen and off.

"Interview" is the first of three English-language remakes of films by Theo van Gogh, who was shot and stabbed to death in 2004 by a man who was angered by the way he depicted Islam in a TV movie. The next two come from Stanley Tucci and John Turturro.
By Ken Lombardi