Actors Hugh Jackman and Kate Winslet laugh after
sliding down a large inflatable toilet
slide for the premiere of the animated
feature "Flushed Away" in New York City October 29, 2006.[Reuters]
To keep her kit on or take it off - that's the question that drives Kate
Winslet nuts.
The four-times Oscarnominated actress stars in the drama Little Children
playing Sarah, a young mother going through an identity crisis in a small
American town. Then a man in the shape of actor Patrick Wilson (think of Paul
Newman at 30) comes into her life.
"The guilt and the thrill of it and the possibility of what might happen with
this man excites her," Kate told me when we met at London's Covent Garden Hotel.
"He's lost all sense of perception and her judgment is all off the wall at
this point, and it leads them to this heightened scene of sex and passion." Kate
and Patrick engage in a series of full-on sex scenes that are integral to the
story.
It's a harsh take on reality in that it deals with adultery, child molesting,
vigilantism and other suburban staples that tarnish the American dream.
"All the nudity was in the script and the scenes were so beautifully written,
almost poetic, that it's not just about having sex in these chaste, forbidden
moments, it's about these two people being emotionally unveiled and unleashed
through this physical affair," Kate observed.
But she and director Todd Field, who made In The Bedroom four years ago,
discussed in minute detail how she and her leading man would choreograph the
scenes.
"Before I read the script I didn't want to do any more sex scenes," Kate told
me. "Every time I do a nude scene, I think 'That's it now!' because it's so
painful and scary, and I think: 'Why does it keep happening to me?'"
Then she laughed and added, in explanation: "I've had two children, I'm 31
and I can't keep getting away with this - then I find myself doing it all over
again and I don't know why.
"But it comes down to being given these incredible opportunities to play
these inspiring, challenging roles that just so happen to involve getting your
kit off!"
Clearly, there's more to what Kate does in Little
Children than disrobing. As director Field noted, she has to go through the
whole gamut of emotions, from being almost hysterically funny to completely
breaking down, yet also be confident, wise and foolish.
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