PROJECT FINAL CUT: An interview with Stolen Summer Star Bonnie Hunt By Warren Curry 3/21/02 Part 2 of 2

How intrusive was the documentary crew on the set? Were they really disruptive?

BH: They really weren't -- that's what's even scarier. You just didn't know they were there.

Do you feel overall that the Project Greenlight series was representative of the production?

BH: I think the accuracy of Project Greenlight is in the eyes of each person that is portrayed in it. It was a different experience for every single person and how it affected them.

For such a small and sweet film, it's incredibly hyped. What do you think about that?

BH: I know when I did Return To Me I would've killed for this publicity. It's amazing -- you basically had a 13-week commercial. Would I have chosen to do the same type of commercial? Maybe not, but so far Miramax has a track record of knowing how to market a film.

There might be some surprises, though. They're marketing it as "You've seen the backstabbing, now see the final cut." You go see the movie and you don't see the backstabbing; it's a really heartwarming movie. It might be a little deceptive.

BH: I don't know if it's deceptive. I think they're just great marketers. I don't know if I agree with every aspect of it, but it's like anything in the business. I did my part with my honesty and integrity intact. The rest of it you have no control over.

Because you had just finished directing a movie, did you have to bite your tongue a lot if you saw Pete making mistakes?

BH: I just felt so much empathy, because I had a lot of people around me telling me to do this or do that. For the most part, I had really good people offering me stuff. Aidan Quinn, Kevin Pollack and myself all gave to Pete, and Pete gave to us. We were all there because of his script. Once we were there, he opened the door to say, "Help." It's teamwork. Plus, we're all kids from blue-collar families; well, Pete isn't actually. Pete's from a white-collar family, but we both grew up in the Midwest with a bunch of kids, so there's that communication. It's so easy, because you're speaking the same language.

Can you speak about working with the child actors?

BH: I love the kids. I would light up every time they showed up on the set. I really love to have children around me. When you are in this business and you're with people who are used to it all the time, through the wonderment of a kid you're reminded how lucky you are that you're telling a story and they're putting pictures and music to it. When you see their excitement, their naievete, their enthusiasm, you just realize you're really lucky. You experience it through their eyes. That was so rewarding and so much fun. And look at the nice movie they get to be a part of and all the children that will be affected by it, who will learn that there's a difference in religions, but a commonality between all men. It's incredible.

Back to a marketing question. Do you think that they might be making a mistake by skewing it so much to the Project Greenlight series audience, instead of trying to sell a heartwarming story?

BH: I'm sure they've done tons of research. They're very, very smart and I believe they're thinking, "Since when do you market a heartwarming movie and it's a success?" They're thinking, "Look at reality TV, look at how huge it is, look at all the people we have as a built-in audience. If we don't remind those people that this is the movie they saw the reality TV series on, maybe we're losing people." That's what I think, but I don't know. I think they came up with it because it's the most lucrative means to an end.

But what about the people who go in expecting something completely different because of the way that it sounds?

BH: I think they'll be pleasantly surprised. The movie speaks for itself and once you're into it, hopefully you're forgetting about the poster or the advertising.

Was the process of making this movie different than any other movie that you've done?

BH: There really was no difference, except for the perks. We didn't have a makeup trailer, so there wasn't a place to go hide. You were in the basement of this house in the northwest side of Chicago, next to the broken down pool table getting your makeup done. It was fun; it was more romantic. It was like being in the theater again -- "You have to do the show no matter what." That's what I love being in the theater for. My mom is like, "How can you live like that? You're not sleeping, you're living in that little apartment." And I say, "It's the most glorious time of my life! We're solving the world's problems, mother! Don't you understand? We're up all night drinking coffee and figuring it all out!" (laughs)

What was it like to work with Aidan?

BH: Aidan and I have such completely different styles of acting, but so much mutual respect that it made for a great team. I think it's obvious in the movie that there's a lot of collaboration and teamwork.

What's the difference in your styles?

BH: I like to be the ball, and he's method and has to go through a whole process. Most people I work with are method, but I never had any training except for my mother -- every Sunday morning "Happy Family ­ Act I!"

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