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"Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" put the extraordinary actress Gwyneth Paltrow in a very extraordinary filmmaking situation. Everything in the film except the actors was computer-generated, which made for stunning visuals but difficult work, considering that the actors had nothing but each other to play off of. But Paltrow seized the role with her characteristic understated confidence, bringing sass and savvy to her character of reporter Polly Perkins, hero Joe Sullivan's sidekick and former girlfriend. Together, they protect the world from the forces of evil, and Paltrow and Law's personal friendship helped them bring the film to life, as the actress recently told MTV Radio's Curtis Waller.
MTV: Tell me about Polly.
Gwyneth Paltrow: Polly Perkins is one of those fantastic, archetypical women from [the 1930s]. She's incredibly gutsy and she's got a lot of moxy and guile, and she's very articulate and has a lot of strength.
MTV: The film was shot entirely in front of a blue screen — what was that like?
Paltrow: The blue screen was very surreal, and on certain days it was very hard to take. It was electric blue, and then there would be these orange dots on the walls so the computers could line things up. I mean, I didn't really understand the technical part of it. And it was basically just Jude and I the whole time — with some other fantastic actors coming in here and there — kind of clinging to each other for dear life, because we were the only real thing that the other one had to work off of. It was kind of like going back to old-school theater days — no-budget theater, with no sets and no props. It was definitely an experience.
MTV: How do you like working with Jude?
Paltrow: Jude is really a fantastic person and amazing to work with on so many levels because he is a real gentleman. He's very kind. He's got a real good energy and he's a superb actor. And we've worked with each other before, on "The Talented Mister Ripley" a few years ago, so we've been friends for a long time and that makes it so easy because we already have a rapport. I would work with him all the time if I could.
MTV: Do you feel that the experience of "Ripley" enhanced your performance together this time?
Paltrow: I think that we really got to know each other doing "Ripley." It was a time we were all in Italy and we spent a lot of time together off set with his then wife [Sadie Frost] and his child, having pasta and really just hanging out. And we forged this friendship. Any time you have a real friendship with somebody outside of work, you bring that kind of ease to work, to the dynamic that you have together. We have a very nice chemistry together that's very easy for us to achieve, luckily.
MTV: What is the relationship between Polly and Joe in the film?
Paltrow: Well, Polly and Joe had been lovers in the past and when the film starts, they're at a very acrimonious point. She thinks that he cheated on her and that ended the relationship, and he thinks that she sabotaged his plane so she could get a story. They haven't seen each other in a long time but they're still kind of in love, and they come together to unravel the mystery of why these robots are wreaking havoc upon the planet and these scientists keep going missing. And they kind of need each other: She needs him to get the story and he needs her brains. They go off on this adventure together and it's that wonderful thing of sexual tension and animosity, but at the same time a kind of real yearning for each other underneath.
MTV: Did you feel comfortable working with the director?
Paltrow: Kerry [Conran] was really super to work with. He was incredibly shy when we first started — Jude and I would kind of have to beg him to tell us what to do and help us with our performances. He's just such an incredibly inventive and creative kind of person, and we had a lot of faith in him that he knew what he was doing. We saw this six-minute short that [laid out] what the film would look like, and it was so extraordinary in its look that we just thought, "Well, this guy knows what he's doing and let's just kind of jump off the cliff and trust him and see what happens." There were days when we looked at each other and thought, "I hope this is gonna work!"
MTV: Talk about Polly's obsession with taking pictures.
Paltrow: Polly is the type of reporter/photographer that always thinks there's gonna be something better and more interesting around the corner, and she loses her film. It gets blown up in an explosion halfway through the film, and she only has two remaining shots in her camera. So she's obsessive about what she's not taking pictures of [throughout] the whole film, and it's an endless source of amusement for Jude's character.
MTV: Did you enjoy working with Angelina Jolie?
Paltrow: It was really cool working with Angelina. I really love working with other women that I respect, and it was just so nice to have her there. She's a super-strong person and a very commanding presence, and I really like that in a woman. It's hard for women to be like that, so I always respect it when I see it. She's very talented — I just thought she was fantastic.
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Photo: Paramount
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