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Nick Nolte Switches Sides in Drug Drama 'Clean'
2004-05-22
CANNES, France - Actor Nick Nolte has struggled with addiction for years, so he immediately related to "Clean," the story of a woman struggling to kick her drug habit and win back her estranged son.But in a twist on his much publicized problems, he gets to play the part of a redeemer in the movie by French director Olivier Assayas, one of 19 competing for the Palme d'Or best film award at the Cannes festival. "I've been on both sides of this question and I was allowed to play the better half of that," the rumpled "Hulk" star told a news conference Friday. Nolte made headlines with his 2002 arrest for driving under the influence of the banned "date rape" drug GHB. A police mug shot showing him bleary-eyed and disheveled was beamed around the world and made him the butt of comedians' jokes. In "Clean," the 63-year-old actor plays Albrecht, a man whose rock star son dies of a drug overdose but who decides to give his daughter-in-law Emily a second chance. The film allows Chinese actress Maggie Cheung to tackle a role miles removed from her ice-cool image in the award-winning "In The Mood for Love." "To work with Olivier is like working with an old friend," said the actress, who used to be married to Assayas. "It's very rare that you come across a director who knows you so well in real life." Set in the world of rock music, the film features cameos by James Johnston, the former Gallon Drunk frontman who now plays with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and British musician Tricky. Assayas said "Clean" was not an anti-drugs film, but examined instead what happens to people when they turn their back on a self-destructive lifestyle. "What I wanted to express was faith in the fact that you can change, you can become another person, you are not forever marked by your past and you have the right in life to become someone else," he said. Nolte confirmed the hardest part of giving up drugs was the aftermath. "As Olivier says, there comes a time when you just have to stop using," he said in his trademark growl. "It is true, too, you only realize what's happened when you're finally clean. That's when you break down." Reuters
Anti-Bush Tirade Wins Top Award in Cannes (2004-05-22)Maggie Cheung Wins Best Actress Award at Cannes (2004-05-22)Nick Nolte Switches Sides in Drug Drama 'Clean' (2004-05-22)Films in the 57th Cannes Film Festival (2004-04-21)Adam Sandler Crashes Art House Circuit (2002-05-19)
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