Martin Freeman interview – “Well, I didn’t really have a lot of experience acting opposite the dragon …”
以下內容整理自死線太太的原噗裡的翻譯:
http://www.plurk.com/p/jaqdaf
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| 內文中的圖片直接連自UCD網站，都是大檔原圖，請慢用 =////= |
在UCD接受L&H榮譽學位的Martin Freeman與Steven Balbirnie談hobbits、偵探、和如何替自己喜愛的事物挪出時間。（譯註：都柏林大學的歷史文學社是歷史悠久的辯論社團，其L&H榮譽學位與James Joyce獎給主要頒給對社會貢獻卓越的文藝界名人，往年得主包括J.K.羅琳與眾多資深演員）
Martin Freeman最近證明了自己就像個發電廠一樣，演戲毫不間斷，不只出現在哈比人三部曲與BBC的Sherlock現代詮釋版中，甚至還有時間接演《The World's End》，更別提接下來的電影《Svengali》 與《Saving Santa》。更令人驚異的是，雖然他的演藝經歷看起來無比繁忙，本尊卻八成是你所能想像得到最有禮貌、最和藹可親的人。
不過他很快就指出，這一連串的豐沛作品量被宣稱為『超人般的演藝壯舉』並不恰當，「你大概也知道，一個人可以在很多時候拍攝這些，一切都要看它們什麼時候被集結完成跟公開。只是如果它們在差不多的時間推出，看起來就好像你在十分鐘內拍了所有東西，可事實上那都是工作一年多以後的成果。」他解釋著。
Freeman也迅速反駁關於他的演藝作品在近年爆增的看法，「老實說工作量真的沒什麼增加，我以前工作量就很大了。我是說，在我23、24歲的時候工作得很兇，但明顯不是什麼會出名的作品。現在我很幸運能演出《Sherlock》和《The Hobbit》，而且是同步進行中，這真是個重頭戲，是很棒的（工作）組合。」
的確，隨著《The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug》被視為本年度最賣座的電影之一，Freeman已經從飾演與電影標題那位哈比人：比爾博巴金斯中獲得極大好評。也許很多演員會認為進入中土世界是項艱鉅的任務，畢竟在魔戒三部曲之後誰都明白這是個錯綜複雜的故事，但Freeman並不這麼想。
「從我的觀點來看，我想我是從零開始，因為這是我的新領域、也是一個不同版本的比爾博，儘管你們知道的版本是Ian Holm演的、他創的比爾博非常好，但那是50年後的比爾博。所以我覺得這對我來說也是一片可供揮灑的空白畫布。」
「我完全不覺得（可能因為我愚勇、也因為劇組的運作方式）虧欠任何人任何東西。 也不認為我好像應該要對得起誰才行。他們選擇我，他們在選擇我這件事上有完全的信任和信心（trust and faith，不只覺得MF合適而且相信他可以完全KO），所以我也帶著相同的信念去演出。」
由於魔戒與哈比人系列（franchise指不斷翻拍/有續集的電影）十分成功，Freemanh曾經差點就要放棄比爾博巴金斯的消息實在令人難以想像。「我當時必須推掉的時候心情真的很沈重，因為我已經答應《Sherlock》了，它推出的大成功讓BBC想打鐵趁熱拍攝第二季。
「老實說《Sherlock》和BBC沒有退讓的意思，所以Peter Jackson退讓了然後重新安排了整個拍攝檔期，讓我兩邊都能拍。他真的非常看重我，我很幸運。因此這表示我可以拍一點哈比人，然後休息趕快去《Sherlock》第二季，接著再回去（紐西蘭）拍哈比人。能兩部都接下真是太棒了。」
Jackson這樣的舉動顯示出他想要Freeman演出此角的決心有多堅定，而Freeman對這位生於紐西蘭的導演也讚不絕口。「我喜歡他說故事的方式，而且他很隨和，你知道嗎，真的就很隨和。他不會很高冷，不難搞。
「他是很真誠地相信不要把人生搞得更複雜，我也是。我們只是要講一個故事，他尤其這麼想。除非他覺得看見的是完全OK的版本，否則他不會滿意。所以你會不斷跟導演溝通協調，你想的跟他們想的哪種比較好。」
「希望最後拍出來的效果是兩邊都同意樂見的，因為身為演員，你絕不想回到家後心忖『好吧我給了我想給的但那都垃圾』，所以首先就得讓自己滿意才行。當然，你受合約限制是要讓導演滿意的，可其實在情理和美學上你必須先讓自己滿意。不過我很享受那些與Peter協商的過程。」
雖然比爾博巴金斯將在今年12月稱霸戲院，但真正讓他獲得讚譽的角色卻是Dr. John Watson，與Benedict Cumberbatch在《Sherlock》中聯袂演出。這部大受歡迎的影集被視為是21世紀的福華現代版，但同時卻又忠於亞瑟柯南道爾影響深遠的偵探故事集。
Freeman很清楚影集試圖維持的那種顯著的平衡感。「危險的地方在於，運用iPhone或車子等等可能會讓它非常偏離原著資料的精神，不過很高興我們兼顧了魚與熊掌。
「這部戲很有我們的風格，但說到底，兩個角色之間的氣場與神韻真的才是這部戲成功的關鍵。戲是這樣寫、這樣設定的，讓你因此想去探究他們之間的關係，這也是我認為忠於柯南道爾的部份。」
「華生才是進入這些探險的途徑，因為他是說故事的人，而我的John也是你在這個影集裡第一個看見的人物，他把Sherlock介紹給觀眾。」
Freeman很欣賞華生，並透露了他對這個角色內心活動的深刻見解，「John很沈靜，他是嚴以律己而警醒的，意志心靈都非常非常堅強，也不容易被惹毛（原文有煽動情緒之意）。
「你知道他是個alpha male，他既會救人也能殺人，如果不是為了夏洛克，他大可以當那個發光發熱的主角。你看得出來，因為他甚至跟著一個比他更alpha的人大街小巷地跑。這些演起來都很有趣，因為你演的是個非常獨立自主的角色，這些角色真的都很強悍。」
Freeman也十分景仰他接下的這個小說人物：「他講話不花腔花調、也不怎麼愛現，他就是有些讓我很嫉妒的特質，那是種真正的堅毅感。」
Freeman顯然非常以這部影集為榮，「如果獎項是種評量依據的話，那我們得的獎早就他媽的多了。我還沒參與過這麼成功的製作，你知道，《The Office》已經全球知名地受歡迎了，甚至都還沒拿過這麼多獎。我們感到非常光榮，這真的是部好影集。」
Freeman始終非常公開地認定，這齣劇之所以成功要歸因於背後強大的編劇團隊。「很多東西都是靠直覺的：畫作不好、劇本不好、足球員不好…因為我們都能發現什麼是好東西。而《Sherlock》在劇本上完全就是另個等級。」
2014年，新一季的《Sherlock》上映在即，Freeman認為編劇團隊又一次刷新上限。「今年的劇本棒透了，我們已經替自己設了很難跨越的門檻，但這對編劇來說完全不是問題，大家都知道他們第二季就比第一季更精彩，而新季證明他們又再次超越自身的成就。」
儘管演了這樣高知名度的角色，Freeman顯然依舊腳踏實地而且對他的名氣十分謙虛。「還是很多人不知道我是誰。沒什麼真的大變化，又不像我走到哪裡都會有人牆暴動，你知道的，尤其在非英語系區域。」
不過，Freeman對（不容易被認出）這點抱持著正面的看法，他說，「我覺得你的世界變動多大，要看你願意讓它改變多少。如果你想走出去追求一切，也要先看你自己想擁有什麼，有些東西我就不怎麼想要。我想要工作，我想做些很棒的工作，但我不怎麼需要那些衍生而來的一切。
「我想要我的生活維持原狀，因為我生命中有更重要的事情，我的家人、我的房子等等，所以我不希望這些有所改變、也不想從此都不能再擠地鐵，你懂嗎？我希望（名氣）發展到某個程度也就夠了。」
被問到如何能在這麼多工作間周旋，他的回答簡單明瞭。「我想每個演員或自由工作者都知道，能夠對某些工作說不，然後享受那些答應下來的工作是種幸運；你就是這樣找到時間的。」
不過到底要答應或拒絕哪個邀約，Freeman透露一切都還是要看劇本，「你心裡明白自己就是喜歡這個、覺得它很棒，如果某人昨天隨口說說今天就有個劇本，我又很喜歡，那我就會接。
「如果是我喜歡的原著去改編的，那我也接。總之還是要看劇本，因為你有可能接到一個爛改編，我是說那些心愛的原著有可能被改得很糟，而我可不想在裡面參一腳。」
為了貫徹強烈的職業道德，Freeman並不因得獎而少接戲；他將橫越大西洋拍攝下一部大作，我們會看到他如何搞定目前為止最大的挑戰：美國的明尼蘇達口音。「我要拍的新片是美國電視連續劇《Fargo》，科恩兄弟的片子，一部十集左右的美劇。」
「我在11月(2013)開始試拍，然後一直拍到4月(2014)。這部劇本寫得很美很刺激。那是個很棒的角色，很棒的世界。一個很奇怪但我很愛的世界，它有點黑色喜劇，科恩兄弟太了不起了，我簡直興奮得快死掉。」
毫無疑問的，Freeman的粉絲們看到他將在另一齣未來大戲裡扮演一個角色也會興奮極了，但光是熱切等待即將來臨的新一季《Sherlock》與《The Hobbit》續集，就夠吊他們胃口了。
This entry was posted in Otwo and tagged popular, Solus by Steven Balbirnie, Otwo co-Editor. Bookmark the permalink.
(原文如下)
In UCD to accept an honorary L&H fellowship, Martin Freeman chats with Steven Balbirnie about hobbits, detectives and finding time for the things that you love
Martin Freeman has been proving himself to be an acting powerhouse of late, not only with starring roles in The Hobbit trilogy and the BBC’s modern interpretation of Sherlock Holmes, but also by finding the time to act in The World’s End, as well as the forthcoming films Svengali and Saving Santa. The only thing more impressive than his acting CV is that for such a busy man, he is possibly the most polite and amiable person you could hope to meet.
He is swift to dismiss the assertion that this current abundance of releases is due to some kind of superhuman acting feat, pointing out that “sometimes, as you probably know, you can be filming these things at various times and it just kind of depends on when they all elide and come out.
“It’s just that if they come out at a similar kind of time it’s like you’ve all done it in ten minutes kind of thing, but actually it’s the result of work of over a year,” he explains.
Freeman is also quick to counter the suggestion that there has been a massive increase in his acting output. “It honestly doesn’t feel like an increased workload as I’ve always worked a lot. I mean when I was 23, 24 I worked a lot, but obviously not in things that were ever famous. At the moment I’m lucky enough to have Sherlock and The Hobbit going on, and to have those things sort of dually going on, that’s a big gig, that’s a great combination.”
Indeed, with The Desolation of Smaug set to be one of the top grossing films of this year, Freeman has achieved great success with his portrayal of the titular hobbit, Bilbo Baggins. Many actors would’ve found the idea of stepping into the world of Middle Earth, which has been so intricately defined by the Lord of the Rings trilogy, to be a daunting prospect, but not Freeman.
“I think from my point of view I was starting from scratch, because it was a new part for me and that version of Bilbo was a new version, albeit you know one that was started by Ian Holm, started very well by Ian Holm, but that’s Bilbo in fifty years’ time. So I felt like it was kind of a blank canvas for me.
“I didn’t feel in anyway, which was partly down to my foolhardiness and partly down to the way that they operate, I didn’t feel like I owed anyone anything. I didn’t feel like I had to sort of live up to anything. They cast me, they had absolute trust and faith in casting me and I had absolute faith in doing it.”
In light of the success the franchise has already enjoyed, it is incredible to think how close Freeman came to turning down the part of Bilbo Baggins. “I was in a position with a very heavy heart where I kind of had to because of commitments to Sherlock, because Sherlock had gone out and been a huge success for BBC and they wanted to strike while the iron was hot and do a second series.
“To be fair, Sherlock wasn’t really budging, the BBC weren’t really budging so Peter Jackson budged and rearranged the entire shooting schedule of The Hobbit so I could do both. Which is very flattering and very lucky for me. So it meant that I could film some of The Hobbit and have downtime to go and do Sherlock series two and come back to The Hobbit. It’s amazing that I got to do both.”
Such a gesture by Jackson shows how firmly committed he was to get Freeman on board for the role, and the actor has nothing but praise for the New Zealand-born director. “I like the way he tells stories and he’s just easy you know, he’s just easy. He’s not precious. He’s not difficult.
“He’s a big believer, as I am, in not making life more difficult than it needs to be. We’re all just there to tell a story, him most of all. He’s not satisfied until he gets absolutely what he sees as the right thing and so as always it’s a negotiation between you and any director you’re working with between what you think is the right thing and what they think is the right thing.
“Hopefully those things are going to come together and be the same, because the last thing you want to do as an actor is go home thinking, ‘Well I gave him what I wanted but I hated it.’ So you have to please yourself before anybody. I mean, you’re contractually obliged to please the director, but really you’re morally and artistically obliged to please yourself as well. But I enjoyed those negotiations with Peter.”
While his role as Bilbo Baggins will be dominating cinemas this December, the role which has gained him the most acclaim has been his performance as Dr. John Watson alongside Benedict Cumberbatch in Sherlock. The massively popular series has seen the duo of Holmes and Watson reimagined for a 21st Century audience while remaining faithful to the original vision of Arthur Conan Doyle’s seminal detective stories.
Freeman is very conscious of this remarkable balance that the show has managed to maintain. “The danger was that it would just go way away from the original source material in spirit as well as iPhones and cars and all that, but it’s been really nice actually to know that we can have our cake and eat it.
“It’s very much our thing, but as far as the spirit and the dynamic goes between those two characters, which is after all, really is the success of the show, it’s written that way, it’s made that way, that you want to know about the dynamic of these two characters and that I think is true to Conan Doyle.
“Watson is the way in in those stories because he’s the narrator in those stories, and my John is the first person you see in this programme. He introduces us to Sherlock.”
Freeman relishes his role as Watson and exhibits an insightful understanding of the character’s inner workings. “John is still, he’s stoical, he’s very watchful, he’s very very strong-willed, a strong-minded person, he’s not easily flappable.
“You know he’s an alpha male, he saves lives and can kill people; like if it wasn’t for Sherlock he’d be the most impressive man in the room, you know because he’s knocking about with someone who’s even more fucking alpha than he is. All of which is interesting to play because you’re playing someone who is very much their own man, they’re very strong.”
Freeman also has a certain sense of admiration for his fictional counterpart. “He doesn’t do a lot of vocal flourishes, he doesn’t do a lot of showing off, it’s just he’s still in a way that I envy about some men. He’s got a real strength to him.”
Freeman is evidently very proud of the show, saying, “If awards are an indicator of something, we’ve won a fuck load of awards already and I’ve never been in anything as successful in those terms as that, you know. I mean, even The Office didn’t win that many things. It’s done amazingly well, and all over the world. We’re very very proud of it. It’s a good show.”
Freeman is consistently very open about attributing the show’s success to the calibre of the writing team behind it. “Most things by their very nature, most paintings aren’t great and most scripts aren’t great, most footballers aren’t great, because we notice the great ones and the Sherlock stuff is a different class script-wise.”
With a new series of Sherlock in the pipeline for 2014, Freeman believes that the writing team have upped their game once again. “The scripts this year are fantastic. We’ve put ourselves in a hard position where we have to up our game from an already high standard, and that’s no mean feat for the writers, but you know they’ve done it, they’ve outdone themselves.”
Despite such high profile roles, Freeman clearly has his feet still on the ground and is modest about his fame. “There are still plenty of people who don’t know who I am. That hasn’t changed in that way, really. It’s not like everywhere I go I’m mobbed, you know, certainly not in non-English speaking places.”
Freeman sees this as positive, however, reflecting that, “I think your world changes as much as you want it to change. I think if you go out there and court everything, it depends on how much you embrace, how much you want it and there are some things I don’t particularly want. I want work and I want to be doing good work but I don’t necessarily need everything that goes with it.
“I want my life to stay pretty much as it is, because I’ve got the important things in my life, which is my family, my house and all that stuff. So, I don’t want that to change. I don’t want to not be able to get on the tube ever; do you know what I mean? I quite like it staying to a certain extent how it is.”
When asked about how he manages to juggle his commitments to such demanding acting roles, his answer is straightforward. “I think any actor or any self-employed person knows that if you’re lucky enough to have choice in things that you say no to, and then things that you say yes to are such a pleasure to do; that’s how you find time.”
When choosing what projects to say yes and no to, Freeman reveals that it all comes down to good writing. “You know I just like it if it’s good, if it’s something that someone’s made up yesterday and the first thing is a screenplay and I love it then I’m in.
“If it’s an adaptation of something that I like then I’m also in. It’s always just about what that screenplay is like, because you could’ve had a terrible adaptation of any of those things, I mean you could’ve had a terrible adaptation of any of those beloved books and I wouldn’t have wanted to do it.”
In keeping with his strong work ethic, Freeman isn’t resting on his laurels; he’s crossing the Atlantic for his next major project that will see him tackling his greatest challenge yet, the Minnesotan accent. “Well my next thing I’m doing is an American TV series of Fargo, the Coen brothers’ film, and that is a ten part series for American telly.
“I start the pilot of that in November and then we do the series of that up until April. It’s beautifully written and very very exciting. It’s a great part, it’s a great world. I love that world; it’s sort of a darkly comic, odd world that the Coen brothers created. I’m dead excited about that.”
No doubt Freeman’s fans will also be dead excited to see him taking on a role in yet another iconic production, but between eagerly awaiting a new season of Sherlock and the concluding instalments of The Hobbit saga, they should have enough to whet their appetite.
This entry was posted in Otwo and tagged popular, Solus by Steven Balbirnie, Otwo co-Editor. Bookmark the permalink.
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