Q&A with THOMAS MCCARTHY: "It was a challenge to make these characters sing. I loved that challenge."

Win Win, the newest film from writer/director Thomas McCarthy, is much more than a subtly poignant, deeply funny and uniquely literate film about high school wrestling, poor choices, lost love and irksome adolescence.

options

Q&A with THOMAS MCCARTHY: "It was a challenge to make these characters sing. I loved that challenge."

POSTED: Friday, April 1, 2011, 4:00 PM

Filed Under: Movies

Director Tom McCarthy with Alex Shaffer and Andrew Greenblat answer questions after a screening of Win Win at Ritz 5. (Photo | Scott Weiner)

Win Win, the newest film from writer/director Thomas McCarthy, is much more than a subtly poignant, deeply funny and uniquely literate film about high school wrestling, poor choices, lost love and irksome adolescence starring Paul Giamatti, Bobby Cannavale, Amy Ryan and young Alex Shaffer. (It's all those things, and more.) Like Shaffer’s wrestler in Win Win, McCarthy was once a young mat-hugger in New Providence, N.J. Since then he's been Oscar-nominated for screenwriting (the animated Up) and directed his scripts for The Station Agent and The Visitor — not to mention being a memorable character actor with titles such as The Wire, Little Fockers, The Lovely Bones and Syriana to his credit. Let’s rock this.

City Paper: Should we consider Win Win at all autobiographical since the film is set at New Providence High, where you went to school? What elements came from your experience?
Thomas McCarthy: Not really autobiographical, no. There are personal elements, yes, from my history, that I drew upon. I grew up there. I know a little about the high school wrestling team. … Certainly reflecting upon our wrestling experiences and some of the things we went through as kids and with other kids. What the matches felt like. I was a mediocre to bad wrestler, so that helped.

CP: All of the male leads in all of your films — The Station Agent, The Visitor, Win Win — they all seem put out, very put upon. Even when the best of luck is theirs, they don’t seem easy about having it.
TM: You wouldn’t be wrong. I don’t set out that way. Some of them had good lives cut out for them to start. Maybe things didn’t wind up good in the end. Now Paul’s character in Win Win — he loves his life. He’s built that life. He likes his practice, his house. He’s trying to live his American dream. But then he commits this act under an enormous amount of pressure that invites the put-upon-ness you speak of. He’s a really good guy who made some bad choices, and now he has to pay for them. That’s what I was trying to explore. Paul and I talked a lot about this. He didn’t want to play people he’s been before. His character here is different than the ones he’s worked on before. In fact this guy is quite content and happy in his life. It’s just that in this moment in time — it ain’t working.

CP: Next time, I'll preface questions like those with “Willie Loman”-level put-outedness versus the lesser sort.
TM: (laughs) That’s a whole different level of pain.

CP: What made you want to do this film at this point in your career?
TM: It was gradual. I didn’t have a eureka moment, in fact, I had the idea in my head for over a year before I committed to start writing it. I had it. Laughed a lot about it. Then I fell in love with the characters and the story. I do that with a lot of scripts. See the merit as the passion grows. Plus it had something to say as well as had heart. The characters, at first blush, are quite conventional — who they are, where they live in small-town New Jersey. It was a challenge to make these characters sing. I loved that challenge.

CP: Your characters are truly lit from within. Did you get into this business leaning more toward acting, writing or directing?
TM: I did see my self as actor first even though I entered this business late. Right after college. That was a big jump to start. Hey I want to be an actor. But as I was achieving that — hey, I’m being taken seriously, this must be a mistake — I just found myself writing. After I had a few movies under my belt where I started portraying the same guy, thirtysomething, not married, but trying — I thought about what to do. Should I set around and complain and do the same part or do I write? As I was writing The Station Agent, I began to think that I would love to direct this. It was a very organic process, honestly. My life and career shifted. It had options. I had options. Suddenly there were a few different tings that I could do. I didn’t see why I shouldn’t be allowed to do all three. I will continue to do as such until someone asks me to stop.

Posted by A.D. Amorosi @ 4:00 PM Permalink | Post a comment

options

Comments (0)

Q&A with SHARI SOLANIS: "The goal isn't pornography"
What we're trying to do this weekend
SEXY TIME Q&A: I've never had an orgasm during sex with a man — and I'm 30!
Coming soon to Philly: Two cockamamie movie promotion schemes
Q&A with Tony Goldwyn: "Life is gray, and relationships are, too"
ICE CUBE: In Memoriam: Joe Tartaglia
CONCERT REVIEW: Primus (3D & quadraphonic sound) @ The Tower 10/17
NOW SEE THIS: Transit cop arrests marijuana activist for alleged disorderly conduct.
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: The Archbishop meets the Geator, the Mayor goes suit shopping, Le Bec Fin fin.
NOW SEE THIS: Tim and Eric direct Terry Crews for Old Spice

About this blog

Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

Follow Critical Mass editors Patrick Rapa and Emily Guendelsberger on Twitter:

@mission2denmark | @emilygee

Search this blog:

Topics:

Blog archives:

May
April
March

February
January

Past Archives: