Jason Schwartzman definitely moves to the beat of a different drummer–perhaps it’s his own drumming, considering he actually plays the drums and started a band when he was 14. His films to date have all been quirky, heartfelt movies, including I Heart Huckabees, Shopgirl–and his most recent film, The Darjeeling Limited, his second effort with director Wes Anderson (the first was the 1998 Rushmore, Schwartzman’s debut film). Hollywood.com caught up with the vivacious actor to get his take on Darjeeling, movies and more.
On Darjeeling’s train vs. a real Indian train
“It’s kind of in the middle. We just took a real train around when we went, but there’s obviously many versions of trains, the degrees of trainage that you can party with. But Wes [Anderson] was adamant; he didn’t want to go to India and build our India. He wasn’t going to invent what this thing is. He didn’t want to shoot on a set, but on a real moving train and everyone thought we were crazy. But Wes is like, ‘No, we’re doing it.’ So we had to find an old broken down train we found in a junk yard. It wasn’t operational and was re-built by us. The compartments were slightly bigger and some of the walls moved but that was it. We would be walking down the street and see some curtains painted a certain way and asked, ‘Who painted these curtains?’ And they’d tell us some guy and we’d ask him to paint the curtains. So, it’s both. We’d say is it possible to do this? And they’d say sure and then do their own thing. But Wes surrendered to India and lead by example and said whatever India gives us, go with it.”
On brothers
“We are born with these people around us. I am, at least, in my own life. I have brothers. So, it’s in you to love them but at times you don’t necessarily love them and what an awkward feeling that is. Love someone but not be happy with them at a certain moment in your life. I think it’s a very universal thing. My little brother saw the movie and he’s like, ‘Yeah, there’s definitely times when I wanted to kill you. I locked my door and swore to myself, I don’t need that guy. I can live without him, f**k him.’ And then like a half hour later, ‘I miss my brother. I’m going to go get some lunch with him.’ That’s a very powerful emotional dynamic that is engrained in your DNA.”
On watching movies
“Everyone goes to the theater with their own rules and ideas. Even their trip getting to the theater. And they bring it. So sometimes, you see a movie, and it doesn’t relate to you, and that’s fine. That’s why one person can love a movie and the other one hate it and they are both right. I know I’ve seen movies and go, ‘I just don’t like this. This doesn’t make me feel anything.’ And then something will happen to me in my life a year later and I go back to this movie and am totally knocked off my feet by it and I think it’s the greatest thing ever made. I remember I went through a period in my life in which I didn’t cry. And I saw this movie that had a lot of crying in it. My reaction was ‘Oh, cry, cry ,cry, boo hoo.’ I didn’t relate to it. And then I had something happen to me and I cried and I was like, ‘Wow, I’m crying now.’ I went back to see the movie and cried through the whole thing. It was, ‘YES! I appreciate this emotional intensity!’ Movies are beautiful. They change because YOU change. A movie takes two things: the person and the movie to make it happen. It’s like a kite and the wind. It’ll never be the same movie because you’ll never be the same person. I believe in going back to movies you didn’t like. I’m a fan of movies, beyond belief, and I’m cynical of cynics. I think it’s much harder to find positivity in things and easier to hate a movie. I mean, if it sucks, I’m gonna slaughter that thing, I will. But I’m really excited about movies, f**k it, I want to see everything!”
Bonus question: On his Darjeeling character never wearing shoes
“I can’t tell you [why]. It’s a clue. [Walking around without shoes] definitely hurt. But it ended up being OK. I didn’t break any skin or bones. And I didn’t even wear any when you can’t see my feet. Still not wearing shoes. Wes was like, ‘Oh, if you put on shoes, you’ll walk like it doesn’t hurt.’ Fun times. My character’s on a mission.”
And if you want to check out some of Jason Schwartzman’s music, go to www.youngbabyrecords.com
