Amy Adams is one of Hollywood's best young actresses currently working at the moment with the likes of Junebug and Enchanted under her belt.
Her latest role in Doubt, which saw her star alongside Meryl Streep, landed her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination, her second nod from the Academy.
What is Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day about?
The film is the story of a governess who has fallen on hard times, and she steals the job as my character’s social secretary, and I play Delysia Lafosse, who is a handful hand when we meet her, she’s on the verge of what is the most important day of her life, and what really she’s done is gotten herself in a pickle by getting involved with three men to try to, one man gets her a job, the other makes her a star, and the other she loves.
And Miss Pettigrew goes along on this journey, and through the journey, they both learn about who they really are. And I think it always does take someone coming into our life to sort of hold a mirror up to our face and really show us who we are.
What’s your assessment of Delysia?
My assessment, yes, Delysia’s very aware of what is happening. She has feelers up everywhere, and she’s always looking. You know, she’s in survival mode. You know, she’s always doing damage control.
She’s always looking for a new opportunity, and she’s not above some manipulation to get what she wants or what she needs. She’s very aware.
How was the chemistry between you and Frances McDormand?
Well, I can’t speak for her, but when I met her, not in a situation of filming or even having to do with 'Miss Pettigrew,' I met her elsewhere and immediately walked away from the conversation, saying, I have to work with Frances McDormand.
I just have to work with her. I just know I have to work with her. And I hope she felt the same way. But when we started working, we were just all on the same page, you know, the whole time.
There was never a moment where I felt that she was no right there beside me and just completely willing to dive into this madcap romp and take chances and have fun.
What were romantic scenes like with three actors?
Playing romantic scenes with three actors, it’s challenging. It’s really hard. No, but it was great, because the three actors were all so different, and their characters are so different, and they bring something different out of Delysia.
So that was so much fun to sort of get to see who she was with each person and, you know, with Tom Payne’s character, she’s the very, she’s the older woman. She’s the sophisticated woman. Let me help you, darling.
And now she takes more of a motherly, you know, more of like a sexual tutor sort of role. And with Nick, she’s much more docile and fragile, and you know, she’s submissive to him.
And then with Michael, she’s herself, and you get to see her spunkiness, and you get to see her feistiness and her heart. You get to see her heart when she’s with him.
How was it to sing a 1939 song?
I know, I loved the song. I’ve been in love with that song ever since I saw 'Shawshank Redemption.' I think it plays in the beginning, and it’s The Inkspots.
So when I heard it, I absolutely, I was like, yes, yes, this would be perfect. And we recorded, Lee and I recorded in Abbey Road Studios, which was so surreal and fantastic, and there was a piano there that The Beatles had played on.
But we recorded, looking at each other, which was so helpful, because you’re able to evoke the emotions of the scene, and were even more helpful, because when we shot the scene, we weren’t looking at each other.
So it was really great to have done that and to have understood what was transpiring, the energy that was transpiring between the two people.
How was it filming in London with period costumes?
It was surreal. I mean, the Savoy and the part where we were walking into the lingerie show, that’s all how it really looks, and they changed the window fronts, so it looked like you can imagine this is exactly how it looked in that period. And all of the background artists are dressed like, it’s really fun, and you just feel transported.
What will this movie offer to audiences?
I think that, you know, Miss Pettigrew leaves you smiling. It leaves you feeling good. It reminds you about romance, reminds you about being true to yourself.
But it does it in a really fun way. There’s no, you know, they’re not beating you over the head with it, so you’ll leave feeling good, feeling warm, hopefully.
Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day is released on DVD on 9 March 2009
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