Trivia and Quotes
Trivia
 Love, art and betrayal.
Justin Bateman talks with `Little Ashes` director Paul Morrison about iconic Spaniards, and actor Matthew McNulty, who plays Luis Buñuel, about forgetting how to dance.
Justin Bateman: Given that Salvador Dali died 20 years ago, why has this story not been told until now?
Paul Morrison: It’s actually a bit of a mystery to me that nobody – and no Spanish filmmaker – has told this story. Maybe it has something to do with the iconic status of Buñuel, Lorca and Dalí. Lorca in particular I think, because although he was known to be gay, the Spanish wouldn’t really dwell on that aspect. Talking to Javier [Beltran who plays Lorca in the film], doing Lorca at school, it wasn’t really talked about. So maybe it took us coming from Britain, coming from the outside, to tell this story back to the Spanish.
JB: Matthew, how did you get on with the rest of the cast?
Matthew McNulty: Rob [Pattinson, who plays Salvador Dalí] was so dedicated to Dalí and I knew nothing about Lorca and Javier’s knowledge of Lorca became encyclopaedic so it felt like we were in a bubble. And the fact that the subject was so dear to Javier and Marina [Gatell, who plays Lorca’s girlfriend Magdalena] we felt we had to give everything to it.
JB: What were the biggest challenges for each of you?
PM: Shooting it in the time we had was a huge challenge. But perhaps a bigger challenge was taking these historical figures and telling a story that feels real, authentic, contemporary, human, dramatic and we believe in their love and that we believe in them as people. And that we forget that this is Dalí until he turns up right at the end with his moustache. So maintaining that level of intimacy and finding ways of shooting it to keep it young and vital was key.
MM: We had some time before we started shooting to learn the Charleston which helped us to bond and I think that youthful enthusiasm translates onto the screen.
PM: Yeah, it was great except you forgot how to do it when it came to shooting the scene!
JB: So in fact, that was your biggest challenge?!
MM: Yeah, I think it was actually! But also with the time we had and the budget, there was no room for error so we had to get every take right. In the end that helped to make the film turn out as well as it has.
JB: It’s not clear in Little Ashes what’s going on in Dalí’s head. Is that something you wanted the film to reflect?
PM: Yeah, we didn’t want to give any glib answers to that and in fact I don’t think Philippa [Goslett, who wrote the screenplay] or I had any. And that was tough on Robert but I think he did a great job of letting us know there was an inner distress in Dalí. And what I think is terrific about Rob’s performance was that over the film you see him begin to inhabit the persona that Dalí created, the clown and the artist who shocks and that being his defence against his vulnerabilities. It’s the only film I’ve ever seen that’s shown Dalí as a human being so I’m very proud of it and it’s a testament to Rob that he manages to do that.
JB: And how do you think Robert’s teen fanbase who have seen him in Twilight will react to this dramatic change of role?
PM: We screened the film at the Belfast Film Festival and maybe a third of the audience were his fans and they loved. They totally bought into it, and Marina, Javier and Matthew as well. And for us of course it’s a piece of good fortune because with a film as small as ours needs a bit of help.
-Written by Justin Bateman.
Much ink is about to be spilled over this controversial film about Dali, Lorca and Bunuel`s tempestuous youth, friendship and love...
Synopsis:
In 1922, Madrid is teetering on the edge of change as traditional values are challenged by the dangerous new influences of Jazz, Freud and the avant-garde movement. Salvador Dali arrives at university. He is 18 years old and determined to become a great artist. His bizarre blend of shyness and rampant exhibitionism attracts the attention of two of the university`s social elite - Federico Garcia Lorca and Luis Bunuel. Salvador is absorbed into their decadent group and for a time Salvador, Luis and Federico become a formidable trio, the most ultra-modern group in Madrid. However as time passes, Salvador feels an increasingly strong pull towards the charismatic Federico - who is himself oblivious to the attentions he is getting from his beautiful writer friend, Margarita.
Finally, in the face of his friends` preoccupations - and Federico`s growing renown as a poet - Luis sets off for Paris in search of his own artistic success. Federico and Salvador spend the holiday in the sea-side town of Cadaques. Both the idyllic surroundings and the warmth of the Dali family sweep Federico off his feet. Salvador and he draw closer as days pass, sharing their deepest beliefs, inspirations and secrets, convinced that they have found a kind of friendship undreamt of by others. It is more than a meeting of the minds; it is a fusion of souls. And then one night, in the phosphorescent water, it becomes something else...
Review:
Gripping and moving, this film portrays three young men, three great geniuses yearning for the absolute, pushing back the traditional frontiers of art and struggling with bourgeois conformism and upcoming fascism. At the heart of 1920s, 1930s’ whirling Spain, Dali, Lorca and Bunuel build themselves as artists and as men. As artists their expectations are not small “I need to go further. In life. In art. In everything.” as Dali sums up. Genius and creativity are put forward at the very beginning and set the tone. Bunuel and Dali are chatting: “Interest?” asks Bunuel, “Construction of genius” – “Whose genius?” – “My own”. Anarchic excitement of youth, its longing and its revolts are underlined by director Paul Morrison. They are filmed whilst getting inspired, working or claiming artistic statements: “Morality, immorality. Good, bad. We have to smash that to pieces”. And this is what the three brilliant friends do with their “No limits” credo. Lorca’s poems give the rhythm: Their trio is so mesmerising that spectators are yearning to be with them. However, the three young men are not only artists, they are also human beings discovering love, friendship and facing major life choices.
The film is mainly focused on the very special relationship between Lorca and Dali. Fascination, admiration, friendship, attraction, love. As Lorca, no one can remain indifferent to Dali (I said Dali, not Robert Pattinson). Vulnerable under his mask, sensitive, lively, childish and more than brilliant, he seduces Lorca from the very beginning. Dali is not that indifferent either and the comedy of love between the two young and tortured men is first amusing, before being beautiful and bitter. The film highlights some crucial questions about friendship, love, sexuality, homosexuality, betrayal, revenge and the desire to hurt the beloved one … Falling in love with Dali at the same time as Lorca, spectators will experience Lorca’s feelings: his hopes and his sorrow as Dali changes and gets more and more big headed through narcissism and fame. Whatever it might be, it is also a reflection on personal integrity: what Dali sold and what Lorca died for.
As a relatively low-budget independent film, “Little Ashes” has all the qualities of a great movie. Beautiful and moving but also funny and light, it is served by a wonderful cast. Heart-throb Robert Pattinson who had not yet grown his vampire teeth at that time and his sorcerer’s broom for Dali’s moustache and homosexual love scenes. Surprising but not as surprising as his performance itself. Who could have believed anyone could have been credible as Dali let alone a young 22 year old actor like Pattinson? And yet, this really young man does it with subtlety and depth. His body language suits his character perfectly . He manages not to make it a caricature of Dali. It is hard to choose a favourite sequence, but both the arrival at the Residencia de Estudiantes and the sex scene with Lorca are outstanding because of the precision and maturity he shows in them. We could also applaud the fact that, having to speak with a Spanish accent for the film, the London-born actor remains credible. Do not simply go and see this film for Pattinson as a sex symbol or you run the risk of being disappointed. Go for the film itself and the actors` talent, and you will not be disappointed!
Javier Beltran plays opposite him. The duo is perfect and spectators will share their feelings throughout the film. Reserved, loyal, sincere and tortured, Javier Beltran expresses all his character`s confused feelings and despair only with his eyes. The contrast between his reserve and Dali’s eccentricity is poignant.
Last but by no means least, supporting roles are to be highlighted, especially Matthew McNulty who plays Bunuel and Marina Gatell as a hopeless well-intentioned lover. Bunuel’s troubles discovering the feelings between his two friends are particularly well interpreted by Matthew McNulty who oscillates between severity and compassion for Lorca.
Well, the range of emotions is all-embracing and so is the acting. There is pace and rhythm and the set is absolutely beautiful. So, is there anything that does not work? Some people will surely question the truthfulness of it since, if Lorca’s love for Dali is beyond doubt, Dali’s feelings are way less certain and he had always denied it. Here is what he said : `He tried to screw me twice... I was extremely annoyed, because I wasn`t homosexual, and I wasn`t interested in giving in. Besides, it hurts. So nothing came of it. But I felt awfully flattered vis-à-vis the prestige. Deep down I felt that he was a great poet and that I owe him a tiny bit of the Divine Dali`s asshole.` (“Conversations with Dali” – Alain Bosquet). Is it really necessary to point out that this is not exactly the atmosphere of “Little Ashes’”? Screenwriter Philippa Goslett claimed she has done a lot of research and has the deep conviction something happened between them. However, is that really the point? As far as I am concerned, whether the film is totally true or not does not matter that much since the feelings it shows are unquestionably sincere. Lyricism is sometimes more important than truth, no artist will deny. And yet, if I had one reproach to point out, it is maybe an excess of sentimentality. It sometimes feels like they are trying to get tears from you at all costs. This will not prevent me, however, from going to see it again when it is released…
written by Joffre Agnes - review
(franceinlondon.com)
Interview with Paul Morrison and Matthew McNulty:
Touching, sincere and well-acted, Little Ashes, the new film about Dali, Lorca and Bunuel`s tempestuous youth, friendship and love was both deeply moving and convincing. Therefore, I was extremely excited when our team was asked to interview its crew. I admit it might have raised in me the hope of approaching Robert Pattinson but still, I was not that disappointed when I found out we were going to interview its director Paul Morrison and the actor Matthew McNulty. And with good reasons.
His character is so impressive, charismatic and impulsive that his judgments exert a strong pressure on his two friends. Well, not exactly the type of person one meets with pleasure. However, Matthew McNulty is far from being that harsh. Gentle, smiling and maybe a little shy, he answers the questions naturally and even makes some jokes: Success is not about to go to his head!
Playing Bunuel is a big deal, and yet, as Matthew McNulty confessed, he read the script only two weeks before shooting! “It was kind of a last minute thing. But, from reading the script I was just like: “I want desperately to be in it”!" As excited as he was about being involved he readily admits that there it was also a huge weight on his mind: the pressure of playing such a huge Spanish cultural icon as an english actor.
Getting it right may not have been that easy, thought I as we agreed he was “such a great icon”. Conversant with Bunuel`s work and major place in the history of cinema since he studied it at university, Matthew McNulty was less initiate when it came to the man himself. It is certainly not the easiest thing. Bunuel’s personality is complex and the actor does not have that much time on screen: which means that all his scenes are crucial and very strong. On top of that he had to take a Spanish accent… How did he cope with that? “It is confidence in the script initially that helped me. I wanted to be true to that because that is the only thing that I could use as an authority on Bunuel. Indeed, even having seen his films I did not know that much about Bunuel, the man. So it was also about asking the crew and making sure, during the rehearsals that I got it right. Especially screenwriter Philippa (Philippa Goslett) who was the most informed thanks to her research.”
What was the hardest scene to shoot? The one which involved dancing, he laughingly answered first but, “in terms of emotion, there is the scene when Bunuel enters the room when Dali and Lorca have just kissed. There is this tension, the scene is just incredible. Most of the scenes came naturally, but we worked very hard on this one. In fact, because of the budget, we had to know what we were doing before shooting.” And what scene did he enjoy the most? First, the one at the Residencia because all of the young cast is present and it grasps perfectly the essence of that time and the one when Bunuel simply explodes. Well, Matthew McNulty is not the kind of actor to be scared of difficult scenes!
Concerning the accent, it does not seem to have caused him any major issues: the Manchester-born actor is kind of used to working on accents and, as others would say, he got by with a little help from his (Spanish) friends during the rehearsal week.
An English actor playing with a Spanish accent, an English director working on three of the greatest Spanish geniuses, a mixed crew… How did this idea come to Paul Morrison’s mind? He told me that the genesis of the project was quite a long story… more than 200 pages long to be precise! Indeed, it first came to Paul Morrison as a very long script written by Philippa Goslett who did a lot of research about Dali, Lorca and Bunuel. Everything started at that time, six or seven years ago: “I was absolutely fascinated! I knew very little about it, I mean I knew about them separately as artists (...) Then I suggested to Philippa that she rewrite it as a love story. I wanted the love story to be the backbone of the film. When it came back to me, it was the combination of a very intimate story between four people with a big picture of social, artistic and political change. To unite all that in one script, that excites me as a director! That is what cinema should be doing.”
Having a mixed crew was also essential for him: “I wanted to make a film that Spanish people would feel as Spanish and that, hopefully, seems to have worked.” And it was a delightful experience for the crew. Matthew McNulty cannot help smiling when he speaks about it: “Yes it was great, you know, different cultures… It was also great in helping us understand our Spanish persona. Especially Bunuel since he is typically Spanish, he is quite liberal when it comes to politics and surrealism but still has quite a typically spanish conservative way of life
Lorca and Dali Pointing out the love story between Lorca and Dali: here is what Paul Morrison aimed to do, to use as the “spine” of his film. Not that I disagree but I had to note the extremely controversial aspect of this point of view. The director, aware of the debate he raises, seems to be ready to defend his views: “I think what Philippa did is closer to the truth than anyone else has got and it is very close to Dali’s own account of what happened. In an interview he gave to a French newspaper in his sixties, he said kind of the same thing. As he was about to die he had no reason to lie or to hide anything. And there are the letters between them. Well, there is enough evidence to prove that something happened, that there was something to their relationship. I trust the story that we told.”
As the filming process appeared to me as magical and cloudless, I could not help asking about the difficulties… Both of them mentioned time pressure as a major obstacle. “Most of the scenes were very agreeable to shoot, the actors were great and so the scenes were delivered in two or three takes which was magic! But sex scenes are always hard to shoot particularly when you are under pressure, time pressure. And so it is with scenes involving a lot of cast and extras. For the dinner scene especially, we needed a lot more time that we actually had. So you end up kind of shooting by numbers. That is not what I prefer to do” said the director.
Paul Morrison mentionned the cast: How did the director manage to find such young actors able to play such great figures? Once again this was a long story involving good hunches which turned out to be an extraordinary stroke of luck! Indeed, at the very beginning, he was looking for some reasonably big names because of the budget. “But it never felt right! What felt right was to get younger people that, at that time, were less well-known but they were more excited, vulnerable and trusting in what you started.” By “less well-known people” he means, among others, Robert Pattinson… Hard to believe but the heartthrob vampire was, when the movie was shot, only known for his role in Harry Potter. Lucky draw! Of course it is going to be extremely benefiting for the film but Matthew McNulty and Paul Morrison don’t think only about advantages they can take from the situation, they are also interested in Robert Pattinson’s own career. How nice! Speaking of it, Matthew McNulty said: “Yes this is definitely a good thing for the movie. And I think the audience will appreciate the performance and respect him as an actor. That will make more people see and appreciate the film.”
I wish I could stay longer but time has come to leave the two men who gave me the impression of being extremely proud of what they did. It would be a shame for both of them to stop forging ahead, so, do they have any stimulating projects?
Paul Morrison is about to shoot a new film about another painter, Charlotte Salomon in Germany and France. As far as Matthew McNulty is concerned, the rising actor was recently lucky enough to star in Ken Loach`s upcoming movie, which was very exciting for him. You will soon be able to see him as a huge Cantonna`s fan in "Looking for Eric". As a Manc, was it the case? Ironically not at all since the young actor is a Manchester City supporter.... Well, such betrayals are what it takes to be a good actor! written by Joffre Agnes
(franceinlondon.com)
(youtube.com)
(youtube.com)
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Robert Pattinson
(as Salvador Dali)
with Javier Beltran
(as Federico García Lorca)
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