 Orlando Bloom plays his first role as an American
“I remember thinking, `Wow, we're making a really special, heartfelt story that I think a lot of people will be able to relate to,'” says Orlando Bloom, who plays Drew.
It is only after his father dies that Drew Baylor - the young man at the center of “Elizabethtown” - begins to know his father and to explore his own rich family tree. He is aided in his journey by Claire, the “warrior of optimism” he meets on his way to the memorial in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. The rich mix of comedy and drama makes it a movie experience not quite like any other and one uniquely that of a Cameron Crowe film.
“I remember thinking, `Wow, we're making a really special, heartfelt story that I think a lot of people will be able to relate to,'” says Orlando Bloom, who plays Drew. “When you're sitting in the theater and you see somebody coming to terms with life and death, success and failure - which is everything that Drew does - it feels freeing, because you realize that these emotions escape no one.”
Bloom recalls Crowe's vision for the character as “so specific and detailed but so loose and free. It is a very incredible way to work - you know he's got all the angles covered.”
Paula Wagner notes, “Orlando is a truly gifted actor. He inhabits the role of Drew with an energy and insight that makes for a transcendent journey. He brings a beautiful subtlety to his character that is at once charming and humorous as he takes us on the journey to Elizabethtown and back. His world opens up with the reflection of love and family that Drew's father held so dear and Claire's character so remarkably infuses into his world.
Through his collaboration with Cameron, Orlando successfully accomplishes the incredibly challenging role of a man on a journey in search of his truth. He beautifully reaches an emotional catharsis that allows the audience to share in the moment. This is such a unique performance. No one has seen Orlando quite like this before. He conveys such complexities so effortlessly.”
“Elizabethtown” marks the second collaboration between Crowe and Bloom. Crowe had previously directed a 30-second spot for The Gap that featured Bloom and Kate Beckinsale. Cameron was impressed with the actor (who had been seen only in “Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” and a small role in “Black Hawk Down”) and the two made a pact to work together in the future.
At Crowe's suggestion, Bloom also spent hours studying classic relationship movies like Billy Wilder's “The Apartment” and George Cukor's “The Philadelphia Story.” Another favorite was William Wyler's “The Best Years of Our Lives.” Bloom watched “The Apartment” numerous times, as did nearly every actor in the film. Bloom recalls the director's enthusiasm for the film: “He would tell me, `Just watch Jack Lemmon.' Drew has the heart of Jack Lemmon and, on a good day, the elegance and style of a young Cary Grant.” As a result of the multiple viewings, Crowe relates, “Orlando can do a mean Jack Lemmon imitation. But most importantly, he has what the great actors have: heart and soul and humor and the vulnerability to put it all out there.”
But the most important result of this take-home work was that it helped him get into the spirit of those classic Hollywood films to which “Elizabethtown” pays homage. “Movies like that aren't about the visual effects and explosions - they're human stories about family, about life, about death. I think that's the kind of movie Cameron makes.” Many of Bloom's roles have required the actor to ride horses, wear elaborate period costumes and master difficult stunt work with weapons and hand to hand combat. For “Elizabethtown,” the actor's biggest physical challenge was to lose his famous British accent; Bloom plays his first role as an American in this film. He worked diligently on set and off to perfect the accent and credits his ability to lose his accent in large part to his dialect coach and to Crowe's focused concept of the character.
For the role of Claire, Crowe knew he would need a radiant presence capable of becoming, in his words, “the soul of the movie, a character that is pure and simply a messenger of love.” As production began, Cameron was pleased to find that his instincts regarding Dunst were accurate, noting that “she's finely tuned and amazingly instinctive.” Each new scene took him to new levels of appreciation for her attitude and technique. “It was a blast working with Dunst,” Crowe remarks. “There's nothing wasted in her acting.”
Dunst recalls, “It was one of the best characters that I've ever read for a woman my age - it was so well written. It was just really easy for me to just slide into these words.” She was drawn to Claire's constant life perspective: “She's not self-deprecating at all; in fact, she's very positive all the time. She's really just there to help the other person - I can relate to that.”
Claire is an airline attendant who takes her job very seriously. “She's the type of girl who's there to make people happy and help people,” says Dunst. Portraying an airline attendant came easily for the actress as her mother worked as an airline stewardess in the 1960s and `70s. “It's in my blood,” the actress jokes.
Working with Bloom was also a positive experience for Dunst. “He has such a vulnerability about him and such a sweetness. He's not jaded at all. He's just so easy to be around because he's a dork like me; neither of us had to try to be cool with each other. It was just so very easy.”
“Kirsten's portrayal of Claire in `Elizabethtown' is flawless and honest,” says Wagner. “Besides being a consummate professional, she is truly a naturally gifted actress who dedicates herself to finding the unmistakable truth that brings her characters to life. In Claire, she creates a unique individual - although we have not met her before, we feel as though we have known her for years. As Claire says, `I'm impossible to forget but, I'm hard to remember.'”
Like her co-star, Dunst raves about working with Cameron Crowe. Both actors tout his ability to make the set comfortable and safe. As Dunst describes it, “I've never worked with a director who's been so involved in my performance. The tone he sets is a very safe atmosphere and everybody is so supportive.”
For the part of Hollie Baylor, Drew's recently widowed mother, the director chose veteran actress Susan Sarandon. For Crowe, the Academy Award winning actress's wide range of memorable roles in many different kinds of films made her the perfect choice to portray the character described in the screenplay as “an earthy woman with a restless intellectualism - a brainy seeker of truth and knowledge.”
“Susan Sarandon is iconic as a movie star,” says Crowe. “She brings a lot of power. She has captured people's hearts - she plays characters that people bring into their homes; they make a personal connection with her.”
Sarandon says her part calls on her to be both strong and frail while she deals with the devastating news that her husband has died. Initially, Hollie crumbles under the pressure and enlists her oldest son to handle the details. At the memorial service, she is able to gather the strength to move forward and begin to live a life without Mitch.
During production, Crowe became even more of a fan, noting that her scenes with Judy Greer, who portrays her daughter Heather, have “magic to them. I can feel the story of the movie in all their shots.” Sarandon felt strongly about fitting the part and becoming one of the Baylor family. When she first met Orlando and Judy Greer, who plays her daughter, she looked into their eyes and stated with a laugh, “Yep, we look like a family.”
The role required her to expand her already impressive skill set to include tap dancing. Hollie has a very moving scene at her husband's memorial in which she dances a soft-shoe number to the tune of “Moon River.”
“When her husband passes, Hollie gets a little lost... but she's a strong woman -- she's going to get through it,” says Sarandon. “I admired her resolve; Cameron wrote a beautiful role and it was a dream to work with him. He creates an atmosphere conducive to taking chances. And he was passionate about this project. I was proud to be part of this trip and was grateful to be given the opportunity to unleash my dormant tap dance monster.”
Orlando Bloom's experience working with Sarandon made a huge impression: “She just rocks in this role… she takes this sort of neurotic and terribly painful, heart-torn woman and puts this brave face on it… she's strong and you know she's going to survive… and get it all done.”
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