BARElY REGAL
To kick off our look at the best films in Scotland this spring, Mexican heartthrob Gael Garcia Bernal, who stars in the Glasgow Film Festival’s opening movie The King, talks to Kaleem Aftab about faith, redemption and what Y tu mama tambien has done for
his career.
hen director .lames Marsh read the
script in Mill for .Iloiivti'r'v Ball by
Milo .-\ddica. he thought it was so dark that Hollywood would never allow it to be made. Ilis lack of faith proved unfounded and the Marc I‘tit'stcr-dirccted liltn went on to win a host of ()seai's. But by this time. Marsh had got :\ddica to pen him The King. a movie revolving around l'ratricide.
:\ddica and Marsh molested (‘ain and Abel and other biblical tales for the story. I-‘or the style and muted tone of the lilm they looked at directors whose work revolves arottnd faith particularly Protestants like (‘arl l)rey er. Ingmar Bergman and [ms \on 'I'rier. who stress faith and stuttering and ju\taposed them with (‘atholics like I.uis Bunuel and Scorsese who emphasise ritual and guilt.
'I‘hcy catne up with a story in which Zl-year- old lilvis Valdcre/ returns to his hotnetown of ('orpus ('hristi. 'I‘c\as alter being honourany discharged from the ['8 Navy. Ilis plan is to seek out the man who abandoned his now dead mother when she was pregnant. He soon discovers that his lather is now the pastor of a thriving Baptist church and has a rather attractive lb-year-old daughter with his new wife. I-‘rom that moment on. disaster is only one prayer away.
Marsh knew that the film would only work with the right actor playing Iilvis. (iael (iarcia Bernal. despite never having acted in an Iinglish language lilm before. was Marsh’s dream casting choice. Marsh was not alone in being struck by Bernal's presence in the lilms that kicked off the
16 THE LIST 'c i a: .‘ ‘.‘.‘:' .‘
recent renaissance in Mexican cinema. Alejandro (ion/ale/ Inarritu's .-Im()r('.v perms and Alfonso (‘uaron‘s I’ III murmi Iuni/iien.
Sitting in a London hotel room Bernal picks up the story. ‘While I was in the middle of shooting The .lloronjvi‘lt' Diaries. Marsh came to the set and gave me the script. We had a chat and then I started reading the script in the jungle in Peru. It was womlerful.‘
In person the Mexican is every inch the heartthrob he is on screen. In fact. his only drawback for some is that he is not endowed with very many inches. Bernal is the size of one of those ditninutive footballers who always seem to link the defence to attack in Latin American football teams. IIis deep set eyes are striking: his
‘WE WERE DOING SMALL FILMS AND SUDDENLY WE WERE GETI'ING CALLS FROM AROUND THE WORLD'
nose slightly crooked. He holds his conversation with an intense glare and his eyes twinkle at all the right moments.
Reading the screenplay of The King. he was struck by the sense of faith and redemption. It tapped into a fascination he has always had with the Bible. ‘I enjoy the mystery; religion is a way O ' ‘
i a . -- m‘ w . ,v «
° 1
¢
u.