Widely touted as the most beautiful woman in the world, Angelina Jolie is in fact a fine actress, whose broad range of roles are often overlooked by journalists and paparazzi obsessed with her private life. On screen, she is a risk-taker, and is seen by many as the spiritual sister of the likes of Meryl Streep, Michelle Pfeiffer and Jessica Lange. She scooped an Oscar® for an early performance in Girl, Interrupted and conjures another startling performance in The Good Shepherd, playing Clover, wife to Matt Damons Edward Wilson. Clover is a character with a personality far removed from Jolies, and her ability to mine such deep emotion proves that she still has much to offer other her status as Hollywoods most sought-after celebrity.
Q. The spies in this film are a little different from Mr & Mrs Smith?
AJ: Yes, sadly I dont get to be one in this film Im the sad housewife. It was different and it was hard not playing with the boys. And it was hard to be that kind f a woman. There was a certain repression at that time, and playing a woman like that was hard for me.Q. Did your character seem a bit proper to you at first?
AJ: Ive done period stuff, and shes a bit proper, but shes not the perfect cookie-cutter housewife and shes quite fiery at the beginning. Also, she speaks up more than anyone else in the movie; shes a bit wild. Shes stopped by her time, and held back from what shed like to do. If I were trapped by the CIA Im sure personally Id fight more, and in a different way!Q. Did you get sense of the strain this puts on CIA operatives and their families?
AJ: Yeah, certainly the families of the CIA and all different levels of service. Whether youre a policeman or a member of government, your country has to come first. You live with that. The CIAs probably worse because they really cant talk to you about anything. Its a real sacrifice they make.Q. Theres a stigma around the CIA now and a sinister connation. Why?
AJ: I think you should be suspicious you should question elements of your government. They are the ones who hold the secrets and information, and sometimes they get it right, and sometimes they dont. I think its important to remember that.
Q. The first time you worked with De Niro was on a Shark Tale.
AJ: Yeah, we were fish. This was as a dram job I love the writer, Eric Roth, and Matt, and to do anything with De Niro is a dream come true.
Q. But not all actors make great directors.
AJ: Thats true. But Bob sees the bigger picture. As an actor, in his films hes not just thought about his character, hes thought about the whole story, and how his character fits into it. So he sees this film and its not just a study in behavior and characters its the whole story, the history and the people, the detail. And hes very passionate about film.
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