The movies of Albert Brooks, the director, were once an
acquired taste, personal, cerebral comedies that had their
particular audience. But with his latest film, Mother, all that
changed, because after all, everyone has a mother, and that
comically realistic perspective is what gives this sardonic
comedy its bite. The acclaimed writer/actor/director spoke to
Paul Fischer from his offices at Paramount Studios.
While Albert Brooks' latest movie, the acidic comedy Mother,
is not strictly autobiographical, the film's creator recalls a
conversation he had with his own mother shortly before the film
went into production. "I rang her all excited because the
studio had given the movie the green light. 'That's nice dear',
she replied. 'So does that mean you can't find any work as an
actor?' " Raucous laughter.
'So does that mean you
can't find any work as an actor?' Mother, Thelma to son Albert Brooks
on hearing about his newly accepted creative project
Such stories are typical of the former stand up comedian who
has been rediscovered in what is essentially a two-hander: the
relationship between a divorced writer and his domineering
mother, played to sublime perfection by Debbie Reynolds,
appearing in her first major film in over two decades. "I
rang Carrie [Fisher] and asked her whether she thought her mum
would be able to do this. 'Is she playing the mom from hell? In
that case, she'd be perfect.' " Considered one of the
wittiest, most incisive performers in movies today, Brooks made
his comic debut in 1967 performing standup on America's once
popular "The Steve Allen Show".
'Is she playing the mom
from hell? In that case, she'd be perfect.' Carrie Fisher to Albert Brooks on
whether mother Debbie Reynolds would play the title role
He was born Albert Einstein in Los Angeles on July 22, 1947
["No relation. The other guy wasn't as funny as me"] He
had, what he describes, as a "typical Jewish childhood"
and "was bar-mitzvahed with all the trappings." But
unlike Woody Allen, with whom comparisons are frequently drawn,
Brooks doesn't use his Jewish ethnicity as any kind of comic
trademark. "It's not as important to me, possibly, as that
of Woody. I think my humour is drawn from my other insecurities,
not just the Jewish ones."
"I think my humour is
drawn from my other insecurities, not just the Jewish
ones." Albert
Brooks
Despite his father being a successful comic on vaudeville and
the movies, his 85-year old mother, Thelma, did not overly
embrace her son's quest for comic fame and fortune. "Have
something to fall back on", she would say. "Why should
I have something to fall back on when I'm the funniest guy in the
class?" Funnily enough, she still says it.
"Why should I have
something to fall back on when I'm the funniest guy in the
class?" Albert
Brooks to his mother
Brooks' manic, sardonic wit and satirical stylings quickly
made him one of the brightest young talents of the late 60s. He
first tried his hand at directing with a segment for a TV show,
"The Great American Dream Machine", by adapting an
essay he wrote for "Esquire" magazine entitled
"Albert Brooks's Famous School for Comedians". He
remained busy in the 70s alternating between performing standup,
acting in films and TV (also lending his voice to the children's
action show, "Hot Wheels" 1969-71), writing and finding
his voice as a director. 1976 was a boon year for Brooks, who
played most of the roles on his second comedy album, "A Star
Is Bought", a catalogue of types of radio programs ranging
from contemporary call-in shows to Jack Benny-style sketch
comedy. That same year he made his feature acting debut as a
co-worker of Cybill Shepherd's in Martin Scorsese's "Taxi
Driver".
"No matter what your
religion or ethnicity, everyone can relate to a story about a
guy and his mother." Albert Brooks
As a director, Brooks' films strike an effective balance
between, humour and social criticism. "Real Life" (1978
starred Brooks as a documentarian searching for the typical
American family who alters real events to make them more
cinematic. His next effort, "Modern Romance" (1981),
was an extremely funny look at one neurotic man's attempt to find
love in Hollywood. He followed up with "Lost in
America" (1985), a meticulous observation of disillusioned
yuppies who take to the road in an ill-fated attempt to
"find themselves". Brooks's fourth feature,
"Defending Your Life" (1991), Brooks is featured as a
self-obsessed, recently deceased executive who never accomplished
his life goals, and must face his past in order to continue in
the afterlife. As an actor, Brooks however, is probably best
known for his association with director James L. Brooks (no
relation), for whom he played the talented but luckless TV
journalist who sweats a lot in "Broadcast News" (1987),
a role that garnered Brooks an Oscar nomination for supporting
actor, and "I'll Do Anything" (1994), as a strident
Hollywood producer of slick action films.
"Even the studio was
surprised that the movie did as well as it did." Albert Brooks
But it's his current effort as co-writer, director and star in
a comedy about a man's relationship with his "Mother"
that has made audiences rediscover the sheer audacity of Mr
Brooks. He describes his film "as a comedy that crosses all
boundaries. No matter what your religion or ethnicity, everyone
can relate to a story about a guy and his mother." He partly
wrote the script as a response "to all those awful movies
where mothers are so ridiculously depicted, as in 'Stop or my Mom
will Shoot'. I mean, what IS that?" It's the realistic slant
he brought to "Mother" that may well be responsible for
its surprise success in the US. "Even the studio was
surprised that the movie did as well as it did. I don't think
they quite knew what they had."
In the midst of promoting
the film, the 49-year old finally succumbed to marriage
In the midst of promoting the film, the 49-year old finally
succumbed to marriage, and has his unique thoughts on the
prospect of starting a family. "The first thing you say when
you get up every morning won't be, 'What am I going to do today?'
" says Brooks. "Instead it will be, 'Where's Billy? Has
he fallen in the pool?' " Typical Brooks. Like mother like
son maybe?
AUSTRALIAN RELEASE DATE: MAY 8, 1997