411 Movies Interview: Joe Anderson of The Ruins Posted by Tony Farinella on 07.07.2008
411's Tony Farinella sits down with Joe Anderson of The Ruins for an exclusive interview!
Joe Anderson is a British actor known for his performances in Across the Universe and The Ruins. The Ruins is based on the novel of the same name by Scott Smith, who wrote the screenplay for his own novel. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Joe Anderson, and we talked about his new film The Ruins, which was produced by comedian Ben Stiller. The Ruins hits DVD on July 8th. I hope you enjoy my interview with Joe Anderson.
TONY: When you first read the script for The Ruins, did you have a feeling that it was going to be something different and unique?
Joe Anderson: Yes. And you hope that the execution of the script is as unique as the piece itself. So, yeah, I did. I thought it would be interesting. The concept of killer vines, I hadn't seen that before. So I was like, "How are they gonna pull that off? How is that gonna work?" And also playing somebody who is on their back for most of the film and dying.
TONY: I thought your character was extremely mysterious and hard-to-read. Is he going after their girlfriends? Is he a bad guy? Was that included in the script, or did you add that on your own?
Joe Anderson: It's weird ...it was something that was thought about and talked about briefly during rehearsals. And then as we sort of came to film it and we saw how this short bit leading up to them actually arriving at the ruins, how that needed more hooks and more questions. So it was something that was sort of talked about between Carter and myself. It's weird, because on some takes, we sort of left it completely alone, and on other takes, you'd get a different vibe. So it was something that was kind of there but not really trying to point out too much, because there was no backing up for it. The guy wasn't bad and he wasn't evil, because he didn't do any of the things. You couldn't justify it, so you could only hint at it, if you know what I mean.
TONY: What was it like working with the rest of the cast? I thought every actor brought something unique and different to the table.
Joe Anderson: It was good. It's funny, especially when you're working in an ensemble, how everyone can sort of fit slightly into their characters outside of work as well and whether that's their character making them like that or they go like that because of the characters. We bonded as if we were sitting by the pool, if you know what I mean. So everybody kind of became friends and everyone sort of slipped into their roles quite easily and everyone's dynamic was completely different. It felt easy, and there was never any problems. It got intense at times and people were tired and sick of screaming and sore throats, but there was definitely an ensemble vibe.
TONY: When you were working on this film, did you have to go to some pretty dark places in your mind?
Joe Anderson: It's a weird thing. There was a lot of physical stuff to do and breathing and your eyes and blood and seeing all that. It works outside in your surroundings. If there's not a release and it's just two people having a conversation with that amount of intensity, then that comes, from me, from the inside out, and that's when you really have to get into a head space I suppose. But this was quite physical, so it didn't take the emotional toll so to speak. It was more of a physical toll, like the body felt tired, your throat was sore, your hands were busted up, and everyone had bruises and cuts. It took its toll.
TONY: What was it like shooting the infamous leg-cutting scene? I had to look away during that scene because it was so intense.
Joe Anderson: It was weird. It was bizarre. It was a bit of release, actually, because I'd gone through the whole building of all the prosthetics and I had both my legs cast and the stomach made and watching the legs being made with the bones inside and the arteries. By the time we got to shoot it, it was like, "Thank god I can actually play with these toys now." Because I was watching it sort of come to life. It was great. But it was bizarre and really weird to look down and you could move those legs, yet there was no flesh or bone. It was a bit weird. And there were weird moments where I would be looking at my fake feet, and I'd just want to move it, and it wouldn't move. So I'd get a strange kind of thing in my brain where my foot wouldn't move, but I wanted it to. It was strange.
TONY:The Ruins was directed by first-time director Carter Smith. When you're working with a first-time director, do you have different expectations?
Joe Anderson: It's totally dependent on the individual. I don't think it has anything to do with the fact they're a first-time director or not. Naturally, you question the fact, "Can you actually do it? Because it is your first time, and you haven't done one before." But Bugcrush was so well-done, and I thought it had such a cool tone to it. Then to take that and apply that director and that guy to this, I thought it was a nice blend. I thought it was the right blend. It's quite extraordinary, actually, that essentially a fashion photographer as well, Carter, could do a somewhat gritty jungle-based movie. I just thought it was an interesting concept, and Darius Khondji, the director of photography, is just awesome. So I thought with that combination, it can't be that bad. (laughs)
TONY: What was it like the first time you watched the movie with an audience?
Joe Anderson: It was great. I was filming, so I missed all the premieres and the screenings. I got back to L.A., and I actually took my dad and my brother, and we went and a guy passed out. My next door neighbor is a doctor, and we're watching the movie and I'm getting my legs cut off, and this guy just drops, dude. He falls off in front of his chair. That was the first time I saw it, and it was fun. Good reaction.
TONY: Whenever you work on a horror film, you always run into a number of hardcore horror fans. What have you learned about the horror genre recently?
Joe Anderson: It's weird. It's bizarre. It's like the comic thing as well and all those things with a huge fan base. It's not as big as something like X-Men or something like that, so it hasn't been that different, to be honest. But it's been interesting, because it's not really a genre that I was big into. I loved watching horror movies, but I wasn't big into reading up on it or doing that stuff, so actually having to read some of these articles in the magazines have opened me up to that world. I didn't really know there was magazines on make-up and Fangoria. It's been pretty interesting.
TONY: This is obviously a very busy time in your career. You just worked on Across The Universe and now The Ruins is coming out on DVD. How are you handling it?
Joe Anderson: It's fine. It's fine. I just think, "Let's just keep working. Just give me more work." But, obviously, I get bummed if I don't get a job and I might sulk for half a day or something, but it's also the thing of just battling with yourself the whole time. You're constantly learning stuff, you're constantly reading, or you're constantly auditioning. You just don't think about it, because you're doing it all the time. It's bizarre when people say stuff, "Oh, you're doing quite well." And it's like, "Well, I dunno, I missed two jobs last week." (laughs)
TONY: I read on Wikipedia that your parents are theater thespians. What have you learned from them?
Joe Anderson: Both of my parents were theater actors. It wasn't really the movie or television business, it was quite a different animal. It's strange, because there's a lot of behavior that goes on in the theater industry. I'm not saying always, but I find that working in film and TV, the ones that I like doing, I'm trying to get to a based-reality somewhere, even if it's not real. I'm not a big fan of fantasy. I can't relate to them. So, in a weird way, getting away from the theater in England and what I've grown up with, it was a breath of fresh air. I've always wanted to come and do movies because the grass is always greener, and I was getting sick of looking at the stage and being in those circles. I wanted to get over here and make films.
TONY: How did your friends and family respond to The Ruins?
Joe Anderson: My mom said, "Very nice." That's all she said, which means you're disgusting. It's weird. The English are strange. They're like, "Saw you in a movie, wanker." And you're like, "Oh, thanks, mate." I sort of get random texts like that from friends. The part of England that I come from is quite a creative area in a weird way: The Who, Rolling Stones. It's a melting pop for musicians and for the English actors. So most of the people that I know back there are either in the music industry or the theater industry or TV, so they see it as the norm, really.
