His new film, ‘Secrets of a Scandal’, connects in different ways to almost all the films he has directed before, such as ‘Poison’ (1991) and ‘Carol’ (2015). desire and pressure; Like ‘Safe’ (1995) and ‘Far From Heaven’ (2002), She portrays a traumatized woman with a magnificent interpretation julianne moore; Showbiz hits like ‘Superstar’ (1987), ‘Velvet Goldmine’ (1998) and ‘I’m Not There’ (2007).
He also mentions narcissism and public ridiculeand the elusive meanings of concepts such as normality, truth, and morality; and gets inspired for it The trial of school teacher Mary Kay Letourneau, who was found guilty of having sexual intercourse with a 12-year-old boy.Vili Fualaau, with whom she became pregnant several times while in prison and married when she was released.
What was it about the true story that inspired the film that really intrigued you?
In fact, what attracted me most was the possibility of thinking about the characters more than twenty years after they were involved in the public scandal that made them tabloid material and marked their lives, and to discover how they survived and what walls they built for themselves. to protect yourself. I’ve always been fascinated by our tendency as human beings not to question the decisions we make in life, to cling to the relationships and families that define our lives until it’s too late, even if they don’t make us happy.
Vili Fualaau recently stated that he was disturbed by the film and regretted not being able to take part in its production as a consultant. Would you accept their participation?
We always wanted to keep the film at a certain distance from the real case of Letorneau and Fualaau, and in my opinion, I reject the obligation to be a responsible or reliable narrator. By definition, storytelling is subjective and subject to the creative instincts of those responsible for it, which means it is potentially abrasive. And in fact, one of the main goals of this film is to challenge social conventions that truth is calculable and measurable and something different people can agree on. Who owns the truth? Who will have the final say on the creation of the official version of Stories and History? These are exciting questions, and it seems to me that it is reactionary to assume that the answers to them are fixed and unchangeable, and thus to cede authority over the discourse and narrative of things. As I said, this movie talks about the impossibility of finding the truth.
Do you think the Letorneau and Fualaau case would have created as much excitement if he had been an adult and she had been a teenager?
No, of course not. There is something sexist about the assumption that she completely abused her power over that child and the degree of public outrage the case has generated. Society continues to judge men’s sexual transgressions with much more tolerance and less moralism than women’s. And the regulation of morality in general is very arbitrary, especially in my country. In some parts of the United States, it is legal to marry at age 16, in others it is not necessary to be that age to do so, and relationships involving minors are perfectly acceptable in the eyes of the law and the public. while others generate rejection and confusion.
‘Secrets of a Scandal’ stands out from his previous films that focused on female characters. If the heroines of ‘Safe’ (1995) and ‘Far From Heaven’ (2002) are subjugated women, here the heroes are amoral women who impose their will on the will of men.
That’s it. I think it’s important to continue working to normalize stories about scary women or women with questionable behavior and stop creating solely female characters whose behavior fits men’s reductive idea of women. Unless this happens, it will not be possible to move towards true social and political equality. In that sense, it would undoubtedly be positive to take a look back at the last decade of the 1930s, when the Hollywood box office was dominated by women’s fiction and actresses like Bette Davis could portray absolutely vile and charming characters over and over again. also the reason for this.
‘Secrets of a Scandal’ exudes this kind of ambiguity and moral complexity. You experience a certain uneasiness when you see it because its characters do not allow to be categorized.
Today, the public is increasingly accustomed to consuming films that confirm their preconceptions about what is good and bad, or about socially acceptable and unacceptable behavior. However, when making ‘Secrets of a Scandal’ I wanted to push the audience into an ambiguous moral territory, thus leaving them confused and disoriented. At a very young age, when I started to develop not only my love of cinema but also my human identity, these were the films that made me ask myself questions and learn. And of course the ones that amuse me the most.
We’re talking about fun. Do you have fun making movies, or is it a rather painful process?
I would say it’s a very painful process, and that’s definitely a good part of what makes it fun. Whenever I dive into the production of a film, I feel like I’m on the edge of a cliff, believing that at any moment I’ll lose my balance and fall to the ground. So what would our lives be if we didn’t dedicate our lives to taking risks and trying new things for the first time?