Its possible to forget just how damn funny Donald Sutherland is. Hes been in some of the funniest movies of all time and it shows when he walks into our interview with a wry smile while cracking jokes. But his latest movie, An American Haunting, is definitely not a comedy. The movie is set in the American south in 1818 and Sutherland stars as John Bell Sr. a man with a tight knit family and he commits a sin against his church which releases a spirit to haunt his house and take out anger against his daughter.
Check out the official site for An American Haunting
Daniel Robert Epstein: Have you had any personal experiences with the supernatural?
Donald Sutherland: Yes. Until about six years ago I lived with a ghost in the house we had in Quebec. When the house was sold to us they told us there was ghost in it and we said ok. Were kind of ghost friendly so the idea didnt terrify us. It was a little annoying because he was angry and he stomped around. He played the piano and it got to the point where we had to lock the doors. I dont know how the ghost did it but the ghost opened the damn doors. We had two people who worked on the property and the ghost would come and sit on bed of the wife of one of the guys. She had the kind of personality that was susceptible to that. The ghost used to come and sit on the side of the bed and talk to her but not in an angry way. We were drilling a well and the dowser came to find the water. He came into our house and told us there was a ghost and did we want him to get rid of it. We found that whenever people brought plates into the room where the ghost was the plates would break so we wanted him to fix that. Nobody ever broke a plate in that room again but instead it started happening in another room. We lost cutlery but then when the owner of the house died six years ago, the ghost moved.
DRE: Whose ghost was it?
DS: His widow says it was his uncle.
DRE: Youve done a number of horror films over the years starting with Dont Look Now; do you like to work in that genre?
DS: Nothing to do with genre. It begins with the director and the reality of the character. [Don't Look Now director Nicolas Roeg] changed my life so much that Ive got a son named after him. He called me up and said Do you have any experience with ESP? I used to live right next door to the spiritualists association and I would go listen to sances. They were a bunch of people sitting in chairs like a lecture, except the lecturer was talking to somebody from somewhere else. It was extraordinary and they told me a bunch of things that made a difference in my life. Roeg sent me the script of Dont Look Now and I liked it a lot. I had this conversation with him over the phone while he was in England and I was in Florida. He said, Did you like the script? and I said I like it a lot. I just think its incorrect to take extra sensory perception and use it as a vehicle for horror. If that man experiences extra sensory perception they should react to it positively. I think that I should recognize what his fate is and save his life as a result of it. He shouldnt be punished because he has extra sensory perception. Then Roeg said, quite succinctly, Do you want to do the film or not? It was the first time I really came to terms with the fact that directors make movies.
DRE: Did you do any research on the real Bell Witch haunting?
DS: I do remember that [writer/director] Courtney [Solomon] brought me lots of information and we had a very collaborative exchange. Sometimes I would find things in my mouth that didnt feel right in the continuity of what I had assumed the character to be and we would try to pull that together and change the script.
DRE: Were you familiar with story of Bell Witch ghost story before?
DS: No. I dont know much about American history. Im educated in Canada and I spent most of my theatrical life in England, I try to catch up but theres so much out there.
DRE: Do you intend to do more theater?
DS: Maybe. I dont intend to die tomorrow but I could.
DRE: Do you miss the live audience?
DS: No. I was just thinking of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. Burton said being married to Elizabeth Taylor was like having a one night stand every night of your life. The only thing that really fascinates me is marriage. I live with the most beautiful, extraordinary, shockingly intelligent woman. I do what she says. So if she wants me to go to the theater, I go to the theater because when she goes every night and comes backstage and tells me what she thinks.
DRE: What did she think of An American Haunting?
DS: She had her fingernails in my wrist. She creamed and jumped in her seat. They did so much of it for real. When Rachel [Hurd-Wood] is dragged up the stairs, shes really dragged up the stairs. When the carriage flips over it really happened.
DRE: When I was growing up I used to see you in so many brilliant comedies like MASH, Crackers and Animal House. Are people just not bringing you comedies anymore?
DS: Youre right. I remember asking if I could audition for Same Time Next Year [released in 1978]. The producer said Why? Does he do comedy?
DRE: How was it being in the video for Kate Bushs video for Cloudbursting?
DS: Shes such a stoner. She was great. She came out of this camper at eight in the morning smoking a joint and I said What are you doing? and she said, I havent been straight for eight years. I got into the video because Kate found out from Julie Christies hairdresser that I was staying at The Savoy. She came and knocked on my door. She was so small that when I opened the door I didnt see anybody. I looked down and there she was. She told me she wanted me to play Wilhelm Reich. I wanted to be able to create a character that could hold a child by his feet and hit him against the side of a building and turn his head into a squashed pumpkin, which is what we did. So it so profoundly impressed me that she wanted to do that. I adored her. I thought she was great.
DRE: Would you ever write an autobiography?
DS: No. I cant remember anything. I can remember jokes. I can remember thousands and thousands and thousands of jokes.
DRE: Whats a good joke?
DS: A guy comes running into a bar and tells the bartender Quick give me ten martinis. The bartender pours out the ten martinis and the guy drinks them all very quickly and asks for ten more. The bartender says Wait a minute, I wouldnt drink them that fast if I were you. The guy says You would drink them this fast if you had what I have. The bartender says What do you have? The guy says Fifty cents.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
Check out the official site for An American Haunting
Daniel Robert Epstein: Have you had any personal experiences with the supernatural?
Donald Sutherland: Yes. Until about six years ago I lived with a ghost in the house we had in Quebec. When the house was sold to us they told us there was ghost in it and we said ok. Were kind of ghost friendly so the idea didnt terrify us. It was a little annoying because he was angry and he stomped around. He played the piano and it got to the point where we had to lock the doors. I dont know how the ghost did it but the ghost opened the damn doors. We had two people who worked on the property and the ghost would come and sit on bed of the wife of one of the guys. She had the kind of personality that was susceptible to that. The ghost used to come and sit on the side of the bed and talk to her but not in an angry way. We were drilling a well and the dowser came to find the water. He came into our house and told us there was a ghost and did we want him to get rid of it. We found that whenever people brought plates into the room where the ghost was the plates would break so we wanted him to fix that. Nobody ever broke a plate in that room again but instead it started happening in another room. We lost cutlery but then when the owner of the house died six years ago, the ghost moved.
DRE: Whose ghost was it?
DS: His widow says it was his uncle.
DRE: Youve done a number of horror films over the years starting with Dont Look Now; do you like to work in that genre?
DS: Nothing to do with genre. It begins with the director and the reality of the character. [Don't Look Now director Nicolas Roeg] changed my life so much that Ive got a son named after him. He called me up and said Do you have any experience with ESP? I used to live right next door to the spiritualists association and I would go listen to sances. They were a bunch of people sitting in chairs like a lecture, except the lecturer was talking to somebody from somewhere else. It was extraordinary and they told me a bunch of things that made a difference in my life. Roeg sent me the script of Dont Look Now and I liked it a lot. I had this conversation with him over the phone while he was in England and I was in Florida. He said, Did you like the script? and I said I like it a lot. I just think its incorrect to take extra sensory perception and use it as a vehicle for horror. If that man experiences extra sensory perception they should react to it positively. I think that I should recognize what his fate is and save his life as a result of it. He shouldnt be punished because he has extra sensory perception. Then Roeg said, quite succinctly, Do you want to do the film or not? It was the first time I really came to terms with the fact that directors make movies.
DRE: Did you do any research on the real Bell Witch haunting?
DS: I do remember that [writer/director] Courtney [Solomon] brought me lots of information and we had a very collaborative exchange. Sometimes I would find things in my mouth that didnt feel right in the continuity of what I had assumed the character to be and we would try to pull that together and change the script.
DRE: Were you familiar with story of Bell Witch ghost story before?
DS: No. I dont know much about American history. Im educated in Canada and I spent most of my theatrical life in England, I try to catch up but theres so much out there.
DRE: Do you intend to do more theater?
DS: Maybe. I dont intend to die tomorrow but I could.
DRE: Do you miss the live audience?
DS: No. I was just thinking of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. Burton said being married to Elizabeth Taylor was like having a one night stand every night of your life. The only thing that really fascinates me is marriage. I live with the most beautiful, extraordinary, shockingly intelligent woman. I do what she says. So if she wants me to go to the theater, I go to the theater because when she goes every night and comes backstage and tells me what she thinks.
DRE: What did she think of An American Haunting?
DS: She had her fingernails in my wrist. She creamed and jumped in her seat. They did so much of it for real. When Rachel [Hurd-Wood] is dragged up the stairs, shes really dragged up the stairs. When the carriage flips over it really happened.
DRE: When I was growing up I used to see you in so many brilliant comedies like MASH, Crackers and Animal House. Are people just not bringing you comedies anymore?
DS: Youre right. I remember asking if I could audition for Same Time Next Year [released in 1978]. The producer said Why? Does he do comedy?
DRE: How was it being in the video for Kate Bushs video for Cloudbursting?
DS: Shes such a stoner. She was great. She came out of this camper at eight in the morning smoking a joint and I said What are you doing? and she said, I havent been straight for eight years. I got into the video because Kate found out from Julie Christies hairdresser that I was staying at The Savoy. She came and knocked on my door. She was so small that when I opened the door I didnt see anybody. I looked down and there she was. She told me she wanted me to play Wilhelm Reich. I wanted to be able to create a character that could hold a child by his feet and hit him against the side of a building and turn his head into a squashed pumpkin, which is what we did. So it so profoundly impressed me that she wanted to do that. I adored her. I thought she was great.
DRE: Would you ever write an autobiography?
DS: No. I cant remember anything. I can remember jokes. I can remember thousands and thousands and thousands of jokes.
DRE: Whats a good joke?
DS: A guy comes running into a bar and tells the bartender Quick give me ten martinis. The bartender pours out the ten martinis and the guy drinks them all very quickly and asks for ten more. The bartender says Wait a minute, I wouldnt drink them that fast if I were you. The guy says You would drink them this fast if you had what I have. The bartender says What do you have? The guy says Fifty cents.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
VIEW 8 of 8 COMMENTS
rdpixie:
Hehe he rocks!
saraphim:
heh. I love this man. I wish I could give him a hug 