Michael Pitt, the antistar of Hollywood

In the greatest secrecy, François Girard makes at present his next film in the countryside surrounding Matsumoto, a small city located at the center of Japan. It is about the adaptation of the Soie best-seller of Alessandro Baricco, translated into 26 languages. The Press was the only media in North America with being able to thread in the slides of this coproduction of 26 million, financed by Canada, Italy and Japan.

Sat with the bar of a hotel BCBG of Matsumoto, Michael Pitt clashes with its parka green army, its perforated clothing and its tuque striped, that it fixes on its fair hair and rebel.

The day of turning in Iriyamabe, at 30 minutes of road of Matsumoto, was difficult and the 24 year old actor took part in all the scenes, without exception. Its schedule of the following day will hardly leave him more respite: the production requires its presence on the plate at 5. 30 precise.

Michael Pitt must now lend itself to the play of the interview, which it does not like particularly. "I am really not good in interview", launches it in introduction, while igniting a cigarette. The scenario writer québécois François Girard, who directs it in the adaptation of the Soie novel of Alessandro Baricco, had informed us well: "Michael, it is contemplative. You assois with him, you speak to him and the answer comes ten seconds later. It is very intelligent and has instincts of artist which are remarkable. But it is not a chatterer."

As for a small savage animal, it is necessary to spend time to tame the American actor, the only one of its nationality in all the team of Silk . "I am accustomed to be the only American on a plate. That Silk I am not an American film liked the fact much ", slips it of a voice monocorde.

Put aside The Village of Mr. Night Shyamalan and Murder by Numbers de Barbet Schroeder, the catalogue of films of Michael Pitt contains only very few Hollywood spectaculars. It is rather about independent a film succession, carried out by talented scenario writers. One thinks here of Bully de Larry Clark, The Dreamers de Bernardo Bertolucci and Last Days de Gus Van Sant, where Michael Pitt interpreted a character copied on Kurt Cobain, late leader of the Nirvana group.

Shy person, Michael Pitt hates the star system and his surface society life. "I am not certain to have a relation with Hollywood. I never go there. I try of me to hold some further possible, because that makes me hate my work ", indicates it on a calm tone.

When one points out to him that Hollywood does not produce that turnips, it increases: "They are not only the films of Hollywood, even if the majority are rotted, they are also people, the attitude and the values. That depresses me. It is not very healthy for me ", explains the resident of Brooklyn, which grew in the New Jersey.

Its only flirt with the large machine was an episodical role in the serial for banked-up bed Dawson' S Creek . It played there the footballer Henry Parker at the sides of Katie Holmes, known today as being Mrs Tom Cruise.

Music

In interview, Michael Pitt keeps the lowered head, mechanically replaces a wick of hair behind its ear and has fun to make slip a toothpick with the four corners of a small ceramics bowl. Despite everything, it is surprisingly sympathetic nerve. And especially, very charismatic.

"Michael is fresh compared to the trade. It is in one moment of explosion. It is not a careerist. He does not follow logic to become the first star of Hollywood. He is rather suspicieux world of the cinema, very cut off in the music with his group, Pagoda ", notes the realizer François Girard.

With the cinema, the music is one of the subjects which impassion Michael Pitt. Like influences, it quotes PJ Harvey, Nirvana, Sonic Youth, The Pixies and Black Sabbath, which is located at light-years of alienating the Brazilian music which plays in loop with the bar of the hotel.

In Pagoda, Michael Pitt sings and scrapes the guitar. The first disc of the group, which points out the sound grunge of Seattle of the beginning of the Nineties, will leave in June and a round will be followed from there. "I would like much to come to play in Canada", notes the actor.

The time of a pause

And After Silk ? "I think that I need a pause. I do not do many films, but when I of selected one, I invested to 100 %. Silk , it is much of work. The hours are long. But I adore when it is difficult. If not, it there does not have pleasure ", underlines Michael Pitt, which remains in Japan with his/her Jaime girlfriend, large brown thread-like which was already mannequin.

"Michael Pitt makes me think of a young person River Phoenix in My Own Private Idaho . With the screen, it can appear angelica and the moment according to, it is transformed into a hard and contained being ", underlines Camela Galano, person in charge for the international distribution for the studio New Line.

In Silk , film camped at the end of the XIXe century, Michael Pitt incarne Herve Joncour, a French tradesman who travels to Japan to buy there invaluable eggs of worms with silk. An impossible idylle will be born between him and mysterious Japonaise, who will haunt her thoughts during several years.

Tous.les.jours, Michael Pitt must thus forsake its clothing grunge to thread its costume of merchant of time, that is to say large bales of straw, an Asian hat, a kind of kimono beige and a coat in brown hair.

During the pauses, Michael renfile its tuque and smokes of the cigarettes to the chain with the technical team. It is ensured of the good pronunciation of its Japanese dialogues and looks at what it has just turned with François Girard.

Tom Hanks Japanese

If the star American of Silk is Michael Pitt, the star Nipponese is, indisputably, Koji Yaku- sho, considering recently in Memoirs of has Geisha de Rob Marshall.

In 1996, Koji Yakusho knew glory in Japan while playing in Shall We Dance , a film which the Americans have remakes in 2004 with Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez. Here, it is regarded as Tom Hanks Japanese. "Koji, it is a prince, it is a champion", notes François Girard.

In Silk , Koji Yakusho, 50 years, takes the features of Hara Jubei, a entremettor who facilitates trade of Herve Joncour. "François Girard is an extremely patient realizer. I entirely trust him ", known as Koji Yakusho, whose Japanese remarks were translated by an interpreter.

Koji Yakusho also took down a role in Babel , the last film of the Mexican realizer Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu ( 21 Grams , Amores Perros ), who puts in the high-speed motorboat Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett and Gael Garcia Bernal.

When one asks him which of Pitt (Michael or Brad?) is the best actor, Koji Yakusho bursts of laughing. "It is Michael, because in Babel , I did not divide a scene with Brad. Michael, it is a naturalness ", answers it.

In the role of the woman with which Herve Joncour falls in love, François Girard chose, after having seen a hundred actresses, beautiful Sei Ashina, 22 years. Unknown factor in Japan, the actress has only very little experiment, put aside a role in a tele series of science fiction of series B.

However, it quickly adopted reflexes worthy of largest the stars. When we wanted to interview it first once, it answered us that it was initially to wash the hair. Return during the buffet, it warned us. Per hour of the buffet, us revoilà thus, but beautiful Sei did not finish its meal. During 30 minutes, it will finish its plate in front of us, before finally granting its interview.

"It is really interesting to work with Michael Pitt. It has splendid blue eyes. I am fascinated by his eyes ", says it, in Japanese.

Will know that the preferred film of Sei Ashina is Saw and that it hopes that Silk will launch its international career. "When I was chosen, I did not believe in it. It is really an incredible experiment ", adds it, before turning over to be made cap.