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Crewson cracks typecasting
By Peter T. Chattaway
Wendy Crewson may not be a household name, but you've probably seen one of her movies. Over the past two decades, the Hamilton-born
actress-who grew up in Winnipeg, Montreal, and points in-between-has played the supportive wife opposite Sam Neill (Bicentennial
Man), Judge Reinhold (The Santa Clause), Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Sixth Day) and Harrison Ford (Air Force One). She also
had a hilarious turn as a sexually frustrated woman who finds unexpected ecstasy through her lesbian daughter's sex toys in
Anne Wheeler's hit comedy Better Than Chocolate.
But you can only play someone else's wife or mother so many times before you begin to crave bigger roles, so Crewson jumped
at the chance to play Jackie York, a sharp-tongued, self-destructive author who has an affair with a man barely half her age,
in Wheeler's newest film, Suddenly Naked (at Fifth Avenue and Granville Seven).
"You don't often read a lot of comedies with 40-year-old women protagonists," says Crewson, who is currently in town shooting
This Much I Know with Leslie Hope, during an interview at the Sutton Place Hotel. "And I loved that her behaviour-and this
gets me in a lot of trouble-was so male. Not all guys live like that, but it's not generally seen as female behaviour-the
kitchen's a mess and she eats junk food all the time, and she smokes and drinks too much, and she lives like a cocky 30-year-old
guy. And that really appealed to me."
Jackie York is also quite promiscuous-she secretly sleeps with fans who show up at her door, then rates them in a database-but
even she's unprepared for the turn her love life takes when she meets the author of a novel that she's been reading online.
It turns out the author, Patrick McKeating (Joe Cobden), is only 20 years old-but Jackie has been suffering from writer's
block, and there's something about Patrick's writing, and his ability to counter her quips, that inspires her, so they embark
on an affair. But Jackie is desperate to keep the affair a secret, lest it ruin her public image.
Crewson, who is 46, can identify with the age gap, sort of-she's 18 years younger than her husband, actor Michael Murphy (An
Unmarried Woman). But she says women like Jackie, who are at the older end of such gaps, still suffer from a social double
standard. "Do you think anybody looks twice at Michael and me and thinks, 'Oh man, he's 18 years older than she is?' Not a
blink. It's completely accepted that a man would have a younger wife, and quite frankly, we don't often think about the age
difference. But you put a woman who's 18 or 19 years older than a man in this situation, then of course the conversation comes
up. Guys have always gotten away with tons more. It's always more acceptable for the guy to be out doing whatever, having
casual sex, sowing his wild oats-what a guy! And if a girl does it, immediately she's like some fallen woman."
Crewson says she hopes the arrival of movies like Tadpole and Lovely & Amazing indicates our society may be more open to relationships
where the woman is the older partner. But she cautions against the idea that middle-aged women are on the prowl for younger
companions; the reason Jackie and Patrick click so well is that they had a meeting of the minds before they had a meeting
of the bodies. "The popular belief that all older women are cougars that are letching after young men is, I think, complete
crap," she says. "The truth of the matter is that the young guy would be lucky if it happened at all, and quite frankly, most
women I know aren't really interested in a 20-year-old, because what the hell are you going to say to them? What's the conversation
ever going to be, in terms of a relationship? Who wants to be somebody's babysitter? You get some guy who doesn't know how
to order a bottle of wine, doesn't have any money and doesn't know anything of anything, and it's supposed to be cute?"
If Crewson is concerned about the impact this film might have on young men, it may be because the film has been marketed with
just such an audience in mind. The script was originally called Show and Tell, but the producers-including Crewson, who took
a co-executive producer credit on this film-agreed the title had to change. "The props girl came up with 'Literary Affairs,'
which I thought was a brilliant title. But 'Suddenly Naked' apparently looked better on a video jacket when 14-to-24-year-olds
are looking at it. I don't know why they'd want to see the movie anyway," she laughs. "I mean, I made it for 40-year-old women.
I didn't really make it for 14-year-old boys."
Crewson, who won a best-actress Gemini for the CBC TV movie At the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez Story, has plenty of
other projects in the works. She recently starred in several CTV movies based on Gail Bowen's Joanne Kilbourn mysteries, and
she'll also return to the big screen this fall in Between Strangers, opposite Sophia Loren, and in The Santa Clause 2. All
of these shows were made in Canada, and the sheer amount of work here prompted Crewson and her family-she has two children,
aged 12 and 9-to move to Toronto after living in San Francisco for 10 years. The family made the switch so she could do more
work without going on the road. "So I could actually go home at night and see the kids." Being a wife and mother on the big
screen may get tiring, but Crewson still likes to play the part at home.
Thursday, August 29, 2002
Naked for the camera
By LISA WILTON -- Calgary Sun
Wendy Crewson's career has spanned more than 20 years.
One of Canada's most talented actresses, she has played everything from Arnold Schwarzenegger's wife in The 6th Day to a terminally
ill euthanasia advocate in At the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez Story, for which she won a Gemini Award.
So when she was offered the role of a brilliant, but self-destructive novelist in director Anne Wheeler's sexy new comedy,
Suddenly Naked, Crewson immediately set out to find some real authors in order to research her role.
Right? Well, not exactly.
"I just wanted to lose weight," says Crewson with a laugh.
"Losing weight was more important to me at the time than doing any character research."
Crewson, 46, was understandably nervous about her appearance as the script called for several love scenes, which involved
some nudity.
"I just kept thinking, 'Oh my God, I have to take my clothes off at this late stage of my life? What am I thinking? Why didn't
somebody ask me to do this when I was 25?' " she says.
"Then there were those actors, nice enough guys. It was like, 'Hi Bob, I'm Wendy,' as I standing there in a robe with nothing
on underneath.
"Of course the guys get all taped up. God forbid you should see any of that little woo-woo. But I can't even put a thong on
because they could see it (on camera).
"I'm in my 40s, I've had two kids and I'm taking my robe off ... I hope these actors look back when they're in their 40s and
think, 'Damn, she looked good.' "
In Suddenly Naked, the Hamilton-born, Winnipeg-raised actress plays Jackie York, a chain-smoking author who begins an affair
with a much younger man. Joe Cobden is the 20-year-old punk kid for whom she falls head over heels.
Crewson and Cobden share some steamy scenes together, and although she was somewhat nervous filming these scenes, she says
it's all part of her job.
"It's all fake," she explains. "You choreograph it and look like you're having a good time. Just like real sex."
'DOUBLE STANDARD'
Crewson says she has nothing against older woman-younger man relationships personally and is actually offended by the fact
it is often frowned up by society.
"It's a double-standard," she says. "My husband (actor Michael Murphy whose credits include Manhattan and Nashville) is 18
years older than me and nobody blinks an eye. But if that was turned around ... I don't know why we get so uptight about that."
Now based in Toronto, Crewson and her family spent 10 years in San Francisco. During that time she appeared in big budget
American films such as What Lies Beneath, Bicentennial Man and Air Force One.
One of Crewson's next films is Between Strangers, in which she plays Sophia Loren's daughter.
"It's like, 'What happened? Did (Loren) marry some skinny Welsh guy and this is what came out?' " she asks playfully.
"If I was the daughter of Sophia Loren and looked like me, I would be a little upset. It would be genetic unfairness."
Still, Crewson was thrilled to share the screen with the Italian movie goddess.
"All the boys on the crew were looking at her like she was one hot tomato," Crewson recalls. "She's gracious, elegant, soft
spoken and warm. I felt like a loud beached whale beside her."
SUDDENLY NAKED GRABS ATTENTION: WHEELER FILM MAKES A SPLASH AT U.S. PREMIER
by Jim Holt / The Canadian Press / The Halifax Herald Limited
Los Angeles - Suddenly Naked, the Canadian comedy with half a dozen Genie nominations, is suddenly finding
acclaim south of the border. Americans were treated to the film's U.S. premiere in Los Angeles on Thursday amid banter it
would be the next big fat Canadian sleeper hit.
"This is a little Canadian film. It's good to see so many Americans here," producer Gavin Wilding told an invited audience.
"There was another little Canadian film - My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Hopefully, we have as much charm as that." While it seems
unlikely to mimic the runaway success and universal appeal of the earlier indie film, Suddenly Naked is certainly off to a
good start. The LA Weekly, an alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, published a rave review as the film began a 10-day run
at the Laemmle Theatre.
Suddenly Naked stars Wendy Crewson as an uninspired middle-aged writer who rediscovers her writing passion with the help of
a young lover.
Crewson attended the screening Thursday but had to leave before the film was over. "It's hard to sit and watch myself," she
explained afterwards. "I'm always examining each little part." Americans seem to love the film, she added. "They're hip enough
to get it. It's funny and appealing and cute," Crewson said. "We, as Canadians, become hypercritical of ourselves. I think
we're very funny and Americans love that. "For myself, I like it when I go to movies and see women my age playing women my
age."
Suddenly Naked is nominated for six Genie Awards including Best Picture and Best Director. The movie follows the floundering
career of writer Jackie York who struggles to live up to her reputation. She obsesses over the architect of a bad business
deal - Danny Blair (Michael Shanks) - until revenge consumes all her creativity.
Director Anne Wheeler skillfully shows us an unsatisfied woman who overeats, drinks too much and is empowered by her friend
Lionel Heathcote (Peter Coyote) who poses as her lover. Then, York meets talented young writer Patrick McKeating (Joe Cobden)
who forces her to confront the lies that prop up her life.
Absent from the premiere were the director who is in Vancouver recovering from a leg injury, and Crewson's co-stars Coyote
and Cobden. On hand, however, was Canadian actor William Shatner. "It took me most of the film to realize it was (filmed in)
Vancouver - I thought it was Toronto," he said at a wine-and-cheese reception at the St. Regis Hotel.
Shatner said he loved the film. "It was beautifully directed, beautifully acted and should do extraordinarily well." Guests
at the reception were asked to donate to Shatner's charity, the 13th annual Hollywood Charity Horse Show, set for April 26.
'SUDDENLY' A REFRESHING CHANGE FOR THE MASSES
By Robert W. Welkos
To American moviegoers, actress Wendy Crewson always seems to be playing a wife, whether it's opposite Harrison Ford in "Air
Force One," Arnold Schwarzenegger in "The 6th Day" or Tim Allen in "The Santa Clause" and its sequel. She also played Sam
Neill's wife in the sci-fi film "Bicentennial Man," which starred Robin Williams. But in the Canadian-produced sex comedy
"Suddenly Naked," which opens Friday at the Laemmle Sunset 5 in West Hollywood, Crewson plays a "Jackie Collins"-type novelist
who falls for a 20-year-old guy.
"It's absolutely liberating," Crewson said of her role as Jackie York, the 39-year-old novelist at the center of the film's
story. "She's like a guy, an adolescent boy. She's never really grown up or matured gracefully into her years. She smokes
and drinks and sleeps with several fans who come calling. Her apartment is a mess. She eats junk food all the time. That part
I loved. You never see women my age get to do that."
"Suddenly Naked," which has been nominated for a Genie, Canada's version of the Oscar, re-teams Crewson with Anne Wheeler,
who directed her in the 1999 lesbian-themed comedy "Better Than Chocolate."
Hamilton, Ontario, native Crewson, who lives in Toronto with her husband, actor Michael Murphy, and their two children, said
the comedy infusing "Suddenly Naked" is a refreshing departure from most Canadian films."Despite the fact that great comedians
come from this country and, as a people, I think we are very funny, [in our films] you are always dying in some blizzard somewhere.
We don't do comedy on film. We are always battling the elements. It's bleak. There is no hope in our films. We make kitchen-sink
dramas where terrible things happen during the winter in these houses."
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