Amid construction-paper valentines and candy-coated hearts, the apt release date of "Definitely, Maybe" was definitely not a coincidence. Opening on Valentine's Day, this film meanders through the love life of Will Hayes (played by Ryan Reynolds) and his history with three very different women. This unconventional romantic comedy echoes the current electoral climate with an unexpectedly political slant. Hayes, an ambitious newcomer to New York City, aims to make his name as a politician by working on Bill Clinton's presidential campaign in 1992. The Daily recently spoke with Reynolds about love, politics and crackheads.
Question: The movie is scheduled to be released at this time - is that very auspicious, right in the middle of the primaries?
Ryan Reynolds: It is a nice little release date, isn't it? No, not at all. In fact, at the time everyone was shooting the film, we were wondering who the frontrunners were going to be, in terms of the nominees. I remember we were shooting in Brooklyn, and we had this big set that was supposedly the Bill Clinton campaign office ... People kept walking in wanting to volunteer for Hillary.
Q: How was working with Kevin Kline?
RR: Great; he's an amazing actor ... not shy about letting his robe fall open ... [laughs] ... very intense and dynamic.
Q: Do you have to tweak little things just to make it look like it was 1992?
RR: You just really have to be careful about background artists and what they're doing, what they're saying, what they're wearing ... it's not a perfect science ... occasionally you'll see a 2004 minivan cruise by - there goes that take!
Q: What was it like to work with Abigail Breslin?
RR: She's incredible ... she's a wonderful actor, let alone you can't quite believe she's in that pygmy shape ... I kept wondering if she was just Judi Dench in good makeup ... incredible kid, and she's just so comfortable being a kid. There are a lot of these young child actors focused on sounding 40 years old ... that's not creepy at all! I just loved hanging out with her, and we hit it off, right off the bat. The chemistry and the dynamic that we share on screen is exactly the same as off screen. And I believe that may be the key to the success of the film. You can't manufacture chemistry, especially with a kid.
Q: What was it about this script that really captured you and made you want to do the film?
RR: I felt like it was the most unusual take on a romantic comedy that I had read. It was wholly unpredictable from the start. While reading the script, even with a few pages left I still had no idea who my character was going to end up with. You have a charming love story that's also pretty multifaceted as far as what's going on ... really, just that romantic 'whodunnit' aspect, I thought, was pretty cool.
Q: How did you prepare for the role with that in mind?
RR: Well, I've always been fairly knowledgeable about politics historically and obviously contemporary politics ... I just did as much reading as I could on Bill Clinton. I really think that's the driving force for this character in the beginning; he emulates this iconic presidential candidate. My journey mirrors that of Bill Clinton's in the movie; in fact, my downfall happens around his - my disillusionment with Bill Clinton involves his disillusionment with the world. It's pretty uncanny. I really just ... spent a lot of time in political analysis with each of the writers.
Q: What's the worst job you've had in real life?
RR: I've had a few pretty bad jobs, but one of the greatest jobs I ever had was working midnight to 8 a.m. in a grocery store. The weirdest people would come in at 5:30 in the morning, and I used to love that. The worst job I had: I worked at this restaurant in Vancouver, and I learned as I worked there that my bosses were all irretrievable crackheads. I remember being really disillusioned with leadership.
Q: So you did this with the makers of "Love Actually." What's their secret to doing romance [movies]?
RR: My thought is that they have a real handle on irony ... they're very clever producers and have a real eye for material that's unorthodox in a genre that's been a little exhausted.
Q: It's been said that "Definitely, Maybe" is a new type of romantic comedy, maybe because there's an opinion that they don't seem to be as popular as they were?
RR: Well, romantic comedies are still popular in general, but there is a formula to them, and that is the thing that can be a little bit tired. That's why I think this film, we had to make it fresh in some way. You look at a romantic comedy poster and you see the actor and the actress ... he ends up with her. Maybe sometimes there's a person in the middle that gets in between, but we basically get the gist of it from the poster. What I love about "Definitely, Maybe" is that from the poster you have no idea who this guy is going to end up with.
Q: You have three love interests in the movie. Was it difficult to create the right amount of chemistry with each actress?
RR: Yeah, and you can't really create chemistry. It's either there or it's not. With this I think I was just lucky. We all had a dynamic that we shifted into that was beautiful and distinctly different with each.
Q: Did you see similarities between Will Hayes, your character, and yourself?
RR: I think we've all had a fairly diverse look back on our love lives. I related to that feeling of na'veté that the character has. He goes to New York City and thinks that he's just going to dominate the world and change it, and I have those notions and feelings (albeit a little more fleeting than him) ... starting out and moving to Los Angeles I felt like him, wandering the street with dinner plates for eyes. And also disillusionment ... you never want to meet your heroes.
