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CHUD's Devin Faraci recently took part in a round-table interview with Joaquin Pheonix, and reports that he was anything but spaced or wackjobby. "While Joaquin had been strange in the past, he had never been as loquacious as he was that day -- a complete contrast to his spaced-out Letterman appearance. He was talkative, funny, engaging.
"Most interesting was the fact that he never appeared to actually ramble. He'd give long answers [that] would travel a bit off topic, but would never go off course like the answers you might expect from someone who was really high. His answers were good ones, too, not just bullshit blathering, which made me wonder just what the heck we were seeing in action. This wasn't simply an opportunity to punk a roundtable -- Joaquin was delivering a really good interview. Possibly the best I've ever seen him give.
"At one point when asked why he had made the drastic change in his appearance he said that he needed his external change to reflect his internal change, then he looked at me" -- Faraci has a beard too -- "and said, 'I don't know what your excuse is,' but in a very funny, very good natured way."
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on February 12, 2009 at 5:08 PM
comment #1
roquentin
says ...
I'm starting to feel some major dissonance with anyone taking this story seriously. This is so clearly a celebrity puppet show with actor serving as master and puppet. It's didactic. It's the actor's "commentary on celebrity" (how novel!) staged as a public inside joke. And sadly, it seems to be working for way too many people.
My biggest problem - beyond the transparency - is that it's pointless: is anyone falling for this really going to wake up afterwards to take ownership of our collective perversion with celebrity? Any fan of movies has it to some degree. Actors themselves clearly have it. And parading around like a male Amy Winehouse isn't going to prove instructive, funny, or that entertaining.
The only solace I feel is that many other people see its transparency as well. But if I see anymore of this public concern and outrage I might just be tempted to join on the wretched in-joke and fall prey to the same protective cynicism and self-satisfaction that Joaquin, in his private life, is feeling right now.
Posted by roquentin
at February 12, 2009 6:37 PM
comment #2
McDonaldsMaven
says ...
I finally caught "Man on Wire" last night, and I don't see the difference between Philippe Petit and Joaquin Phoenix. Both of them are pulling weird stunts that some people are going to like and a lot of people are going to say, "Why?" Petit said he felt that was an American thing to do to say "Why" and that he found the question irrelevant.
I feel the same way about people who get on Phoenix's case because they don't think it's "funny" or "instructive." He's doing his thing, and who is anyone else to question what he's doing...it's certainly no more trite or cliched than going on Letterman and acting all excited about his movie and his life. He seems like a smart, funny guy...I don't really get the "why" either but I did enjoy his Letterman appearance. And if you don't find it funny...well that's OK, but I don't know why you have to get on his case.
Posted by McDonaldsMaven
at February 12, 2009 7:28 PM
comment #3
rr3333
says ...
I dont know about the rest of you, but I myself cant wait for the Jay Z/Joaquin Phoenix version of 'You Dont Bring Me Flowers'.
Posted by rr3333
at February 12, 2009 8:14 PM
comment #4
CitizenKanedforChewingGum
says ...
lol...he spelled it Pheonix. Again.
Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum
at February 12, 2009 8:31 PM
comment #5
NotImpressed1Yet
says ...
"I finally caught "Man on Wire" last night, and I don't see the difference between Philippe Petit and Joaquin Phoenix."
Oh c'mon that's the dumbest thing I've heard today. Even a comparison of Andy Kaufman to Philippe Petit would be a little ridiculous, but yours is just retarded.
Posted by NotImpressed1Yet
at February 12, 2009 9:11 PM
comment #6
McDonaldsMaven
says ...
"Oh c'mon that's the dumbest thing I've heard today. Even a comparison of Andy Kaufman to Philippe Petit would be a little ridiculous, but yours is just retarded."
Why?
Posted by McDonaldsMaven
at February 12, 2009 9:46 PM
comment #7
roquentin
says ...
Dangling from without suspension from the WTC towers is not the same as mimicking the spoiled narcissism of celebrities. I would gamble you're young McdonaldsMaven. You're trying to say his is a high wire act, but it comes nowhere near the actual reality of stepping out on that wire. It's ridiculous.
Posted by roquentin
at February 13, 2009 12:29 AM
comment #8
nemo
says ...
"lol...he spelled it Pheonix. Again."
It's either a weird mental block with Wells, or some bizarre point of pride. He must have mentioned Phoenix a hundred times in the last several years, and he hasn't spelled his name right once. Not even once. Not even by accident.
Posted by nemo
at February 13, 2009 12:37 AM
comment #9
nemo
says ...
Well hell, he made a liar of me. Wells actually spelled Phoenix correctly at one spot in his recent Two Lover piece.
http://hollywood-elsewhere.com/2009/02/return_to_two_l.php
Wells is slipping. Of course, he did manage to misspell it as Pheonix at 3 other spots in the same piece.
Equally weirdly, I don't think he's ever misspelled Joaquin.
Posted by nemo
at February 13, 2009 12:44 AM
comment #10
McDonaldsMaven
says ...
I guess my point is I'm not really that impressed by either one. Petit's was obviously riskier and more courageous, but it was still dangerous, unnecessary, and so on.
Phoenix is doing his own stunt and it's not as impressive, but people feel the need to judge it as worthy or unworthy based on what his motivation is. And since I just saw "Man on WIre," Petit's words were rattling around in my head about how the question, "Why" seemed irrelevant. My point is only either you tolerate an individual's ability to do what he wants, or you challenge his motivations, but I don't see how Petit gets a free pass for doing something dangerous while Phoenix is doing something that doesn't bother anybody.
Posted by McDonaldsMaven
at February 13, 2009 7:52 AM
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