The Friday highlight of the 58th KVIFF was especially Clive Owen. The well-known British actor, who will receive the Festival President’s Award at the end of the festival, presented the film Closer in the Grand Hall on Friday evening. The film celebrates twenty years since its premiere. “I’ve worked in the Czech Republic many times, I have very good friends here and I’ve been hearing about this festival for years. I’m really thrilled to actually be here in person,” Owen said at the start. He went on to explain how he got the role for which he received an Oscar nomination. “I wanted to play the part in a theatre production, but the playwright Patrick Marber told me I was too young for it. They offered me to play Dan on stage, and I didn’t hesitate. Cut seven years later, Mike Nichols wanted to meet me to see if I’d like to play the part of Larry alongside Jude Law, Julia Roberts and Natalie Portman. To get the opportunity to do a piece that I was so familiar with and play the other part was very special. I haven’t seen the film since 20 years ago, so I’ll watch it with you tonight,” the British star concluded.
This afternoon, Owen discussed his entire career with Scott Feinberg of the Hollywood Reporter on the Awards Chatter LIVE podcast. “I grew up in Coventry, went to a pretty rough school there, and when I did a play there at the age of 13, I decided that that was what I wanted to do. There was no plan B, I needed my acting career to work out,” Owen said. It took him two years of unemployment before he got into the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Another landmark for him was the 1998 film Croupier, Robert Altman’s favourite. “After that, I started meeting directors in Los Angeles, not just assistant directors like before,” Owen recalled.
At KVIFF Talk, Owen’s stylish BMW commercials were discussed, along with his collaborations with Spike Lee, Robert Altman, Alfonso Cuarón and Mike Nichols, who talked Patrick Marber, after seven years, into finally adapting his play Closer. “Mike’s always been good with actors, he knew how to make them feel comfortable. If you can make the actor feel that he has what the role needs, you get the best out of him. Torturing doesn’t work.” Owen also reminisced about his collaboration with Steven Soderbergh, who visited KVIFF a few days earlier. “He’s very economical, he shoots very few takes and edits the scene the same day. He’s very smart, you have to come to his set prepared and he makes everyone work better.”
The interview also covered former rumours that Clive Owen would be the next James Bond. “That was just a rumour. Becoming Bond is a big decision. It means that some of the normal things like going out for a drink in a bar would be out of the question. Not everyone wants to undergo this,” he pointed out.
