It deals with much more adult subject matters than you see in mainstream movies these days.
Was that a factor that attracted you to the project?
And I have to say that they honored their guarantee.
But often in HollywoodIve been therethe business model changes!
But theyve stuck to it, and I applaud everybody for that.
Well, I want to be clear that in no way that I feel that anything was gratuitous.
It really was their pain.
There was never a take your clothes off.
I had never heard of this project.
We just bought this crazy book.
Tell me what you think.
That just doesnt happen a lot.
They have an inner-life.
You know something about it.
And that works, but I want to know stuff about people, and this had that.
And I called her up and said, I want to do this.
I actually thought it had a little bit of thatRear Windowquality.
Someone who people are going to discount sees something, and they seemingly cant do anything about it.
Also, I think this movie is very novelistic.
The way that you spend time with these characters, the narration.
How important for you was that as this developed?
It was of the utmost importance.
This isntThe Usual Suspects.
And that requires, as you said novelisticI will take that and run with itI use the word full-scenes.
Not being worried about the in and the out.
The way that movies are being made now, its justchop, chop, chop.
Did you find this format freeing or limiting in what you could do both in production and in editing?
Evolution is the word.
Scenes arent needed at all.
And halfway through filming, it hit me.
I said, This is going to be a true movie made in editorial.
And I had my rough assembly, and five minutes into it, I was going, Nope!
The things you never would have dreamed of, and thats fun, thats exciting.
I was wondering in material like this, a darker drama, how much room there is to experiment?
Theres lot of improvisation.
But absolutely, their movements, I dont ever lock an actor down with blocking.
Its why I dont do shot lists, its senseless.
You feel whats going to happen when you get on-set.
They were freeI dont ever like somebody to feel like theyre stuck somewhere.
Well I think, regardless of sex, there needs to be more adult movies, period.
But you know since I madeThe Help,things are changingnotbecauseofThe Help, but Im just sayingBridesmaidscame along.
Look what that did.
I think its slowly getting there.
I dont think theres this conspiracy theory.
I think this is discrediting the idea thatits just good material.
Well how was it working with Emily on this movie then?
Because its such a complicated character, a potentially pitiful character.
How did you two work to bring such a unique and almost passive protagonist to this?
So that was as a fun in terms of how the character of alcohol goes.
When a character says, Youve been drinking today, havent you?
and she just sort of sits there.
I want the audience to think, Well did she or didnt she?
And then technically, Emily and I came up with four levels of intoxication.
We came up with what it looked like, what it sounded like.
She did it, believe me.
I didnt play Rachel, but it was important for us to know how far we wanted to go.
And we talked about it like that.
We would do the scene, and she goes, I think this is a two.
And wed do it as a two.
Then Id say, Lets do a level three.
And it was fun to have that TSA style system.
Was it Emily that came up with the numbers?
To number it one through four?
I think it may have been the plumpers.
The plumpers were this prosthetic mouthpiece, retainer that she wore that made her cheeks puffy.
I think maybe we were labeling them.
I dont remember, but it came from the plumpers.
As a filmmaker, how did you visually have a go at convey that?
Well, so much in doing that is without spoken word.
And thats the first time you think, Oh, shes wasted.
Has she been wasted this whole time?
And things like in the therapists office.
Its the secret drinking.
Not knowing every time shes drinking, not seeing her throw back a drink.
And she did that just so well.
Thank you for doing this today.
Thank you, I really appreciate it.
The Girl on the Train is in theaters everywhere on Friday, Oct. 7.
