“Why make action movies when you’re 66? It’s stupid!” declared a characteristically effervescent Emma Thompson upon arriving at the Locarno Film Festival. The acclaimed actress is presenting her latest film, Brian Kirk’s ‘The Dead of Winter’, but primarily to receive the Leopard Club Award in the Piazza Grande later that evening. “I’ve had the Golden Lion too, but this one is really elegant,” she quipped.
Thompson posed with her daughter, Gaia Wise, who portrays her character’s younger self in the film. After surveying the photographers’ vantage point with a smile, she entered a press room filled with awaiting journalists. “We’re in this extraordinarily beautiful place,” she remarked in Italian before switching to English for the interview.
Her attention was immediately captured by the ceiling of the Museo Casorella: “It’s beautiful.” In Kirk’s film, Thompson plays a woman whose simple fishing trip becomes a desperate mission to rescue a kidnapped girl (Laurel Marsden) in Minnesota from a desperate woman (Judy Greer). The role involved taking bullets, torching a van, and immense physical exertion.
Reflecting on her career nearly three decades ago, Thompson recalled discussions with peers about female heroism: “My first question to them was, ‘Who is the female hero? What does she do?’ I was still identifying with Marlon Brando and wasn’t happy about it. I don’t want to do the same things just with long hair, like certain so-called feminist action films today. This woman, however, feels like a true heroine to me.”
She praised the character’s authenticity: “She doesn’t say, ‘You should fear me because I have certain skills.’ She’s been shaped by time, she’s had her traumas. Some things she does are surprising, like knowing she can unsettle people by freezing their belongings.” Portraying the role wasn’t simple, despite Thompson’s radiant appearance. “I think I stretched every single muscle,” she revealed with a laugh.
Thompson underwent extensive preparation, particularly for the extreme cold, which she described as “gripping like metal” (miming the sensation). The cast spent a month in Finland before filming the remainder in Minnesota. “Stories of us doing sauna then plunging into the icy lake are hilarious,” she laughed. “I trained with a fantastic coach to hold my breath under the freezing water – eventually managing three or four minutes. But I was genuinely afraid of drowning.”
Accustomed to snowy landscapes, Thompson felt Locarno’s heat intensely: “I could jump into a frozen lake right now, I’ve never felt so hot,” she commented, waving an electric fan. “I’m living through a second menopause!”
A highlight was collaborating with her daughter on crafting the younger version of her character. “We took long walks, talking about the character, her life, trying to imagine her,” Thompson explained. “We built the character together.” Wise added, “It was lovely because after a long workday, I’d return to the hotel and find my mother.” However, Thompson’s corrections on her American accent occasionally proved too much. “At that point, I’d tell Brian [the director], ‘Can you get Mum off the set?'”
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