SET: But have you not bitten by Russell Crowe?

Paul: No, not (giggles). Not physically. He bit me in here (he puts his hand at his chest).

SET: Which was your role?

Paul: Russell is the boxer Jim Braddock, and I am his manager and trainer, Joe Gould.

SET: Were you guys very near to each other?

Paul: Oh yes, a lot. My hand is full of his spit and his sweat.

SET: He [Gould] was a real person, right?

Paul: Yes, but we know very little about him, Joe had died so many time ago, and he was only famous because he had been Braddock’s manager. Besides that, nothing else.

SET: Did you know which Russell you would have every shooting day, the good Russell or the bad one?

Paul: I had always the good one. But I have only worked with the guy, we didn’t go out together or nothing else. No, it was spectacular working with him.

SET: And what does an actor do to be a good work fellow?

Paul: You know, it is like Tom (Thomas Hayden Church), he loves the experience. But with Russell, he likes to interact with the other actors, he learns – what is rare in a star of his level. What he wants is that you give the maximum of yourself and have so much fun as him. Russell dives deeply in this experience, in the work, he is fascinated of each aspect of the mechanics of making a movie.

SET: And you are not?

Paul: No (giggles), of course I am not. But not like him. It’s the guy's life!

Thanks, Ivani

Thanks to Feeyara from MR:

OSCAR TALK - ISSUE #30 -- The Race thickens...again

So, its been exactly a week since the nominations were announced. And its been a couple days since Clint Eastwood won the DGA and screwed everything up again. While the nominations were exciting to watch, they really didn’t offer us any real insight. THE AVIATOR lead with 11 (as expected) and support for both that film and MILLION DOLLAR BABY is evident in the nods for Eastwood and Alan Alda respectively. SIDEWAYS was kinda given a shot to the chest when Paul Giamatti failed to get nominated, but I have a hunch that’s going to be remedied next year when he’s most likely nominated for CINDERELLA MAN. Is it crazy to already be talking about next year? No, more on that later...

Eastwood is now the frontrunner for Best Director. After winning the Globe AND the DGA honour (which lines up 90% of the time on its own), how can he be disputed? That being said, Scorsese could still very much win this, its just depending on how much they feel sorry for him and don’t mind rewarding him for what is in my opinion a messy and incoherent film. THE AVIATOR is still the frontrunner for the gold, and although M$B could pull it out keep in mind THE AVIATOR has won the Golden Globe for Drama and the Producers Guild award for Best Picture as well as only missing the BFCA by 4 votes to the king of all critic films this year: SIDEWAYS. So, if you had to ask me today what’s gonna go down, I’d say THE AVIATOR wins Best Picture, Eastwood wins his second Best Director Oscar and Scorsese is totally snubbed again. Honestly, he simply must not be liked. Someone up there really doesn’t like him. If he can’t win with THE AVIATOR (which is a total Academy movie) then he should retire to the Dominican Republic somewhere.

Now, rumblings regarding next year...

I’m going to be honest with you, I don’t care at all about this years Oscar race. There wasn’t a single film worthy of Best Picture (save maybe THE INCREDIBLES) and I can’t really put my heart behind any of the films. Next year though could possibly be one of the best years for good films in a whole long time. Here’s also hoping that M$B doesn’t win Best Picture because that would severely impair the chances of CINDERELLA MAN, a film I’m dying to see. That along with RENT, OLIVER TWIST (directed by the great Roman Polanski and starring Ben Kingsley), MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA (helmed by Rob Marshall) and of-course KINGDOM OF HEAVEN I’ve got a whole slew of films I can actually care about. Films about people struggling to fight for what they believe in, another Ridley Scott epic, what will be another awesome performance by Russell Crowe (does he ever disappoint?). All that versus a crazy power hungry avionics mogul you couldn’t possibly care less about, a bunch of deadbeats who like wine and a totally unrealistic turn of events that leads to euthanasia. Handing out forms to this years Oscar Pool was enough to prove this point. Half of the people that normally do my pool said they didn’t see any of the Best Picture nominees this year? What does that tell you? Questions like "whats MILLION DOLLAR BABY about again?" and "Is SIDEWAYS out yet?" resurface again and again. Noone cares. This years ratings (even with Chris Rock) will most likely be one of the lowest ever. Wake me when this years Oscars is over so I can start to care again.

Cheers, Joshua Lawson

Who Magazine 1/1/05 thanks to foxy at Nicolekidmanunited.com

***********************************************************

From Russell's responses to some questions on CM:

What kind of conditioning/ideal weight did you try to achieve:

My weight in my various roles: Jim 176 lbs - Jack 228 - Wigand up to 250+ - Maximus 190 - Johnny 168 - Sid 180 - Terry 195 --- The difference now is no heavy weights at all. Weight sessions are with very low weights like 4 pounds or thera-band. I have taken physio excercises with Errol Alcott who designed a complete muscle workout based on that recovery programme. It works quite well. All the major muscle groups get worked but you don't fatigue or stress your joints and tendons. There is also an emphasis on aerobic excercise.

Braddock info: Some people will be critical that Braddock's weight for the Baer fight was 191 1/2, but he was 6'3" (RC is 5' 11 1/2"). He was 17 pounds at birth.

Sunday Herald Sun - Edition 1 - FIRST SUN 02 JAN 2005, Page 025

Star's best role yet - Crowe's a model for dads - By ROBYN RILEY

RUSSELL CROWE has not always been in my good books. He is a bloke who has behaved badly in the past, an actor with as big a reputation for his off-screen antics as for his on-screen performances.

That said, I have to admit the man has shown signs of growing up at last. More than that, he is fast becoming a role model for other husbands and fathers.

First, there was his romantic celebration of his marriage to Danielle and now there is the beautiful letter he is said to have written for his son, Charles, to celebrate the child's first birthday.

Those beautiful gestures have made a mockery of his reputation as a Hollywood hell-raiser.

Cynics might have thought that his outpouring of feelings for his wife were the exception to the rule for this serial bad boy, but Crowe's glowing tribute to his baby boy suggests he really has turned the corner and become a complete family man.

For Crowe to display such confidence and maturity in public by expressing his obvious joy at being a dad is, I think, very big of him. And, dare I say it, the stuff that role models are made of.

There should be more of this: dads genuinely expressing their delight openly and comfortably, without fear of ridicule -- and not just because their partners told them to do it.

It is not only good for the dad, but for the child, too.

Research by Oxford University confirms dads who read bedtime stories to their children can help them become more rounded individuals in later life.

Another study, by Professor Paul Gregg, of Bristol University, found that dads reading to their children and singing them songs was also of great benefit to the family.

Sadly, though, fewer than 25 per cent of fathers questioned admitted they did this regularly, citing the modern-day dilemma of working parents: finding the right balance of work and home life.

A British study found 66 per cent of fathers blamed work commitments for not spending enough time with their children during the week. Although that's much better than the time their fathers spent with them. In earlier generations, children were seen and not heard and their fathers were too often heard, but rarely seen.

Certainly, Crowe is luckier than most dads because the nature of his profession allows him the luxury of more free time with his family.

That he chooses to spend this free time with his wife, Danielle, and son Charles, shows a softer side of this, at times, prickly character.

Could it be that fatherhood has mellowed and matured him?

Are we to read in to this letter to his son that Crowe today is so content and uninhibited that he wants the world to know he is besotted with his child? If so, that's fantastic and it couldn't have come at a better time.

It has been a horrendous week. We will never forget the images of the victims of southern Asia's devastating tsunami. Nor will our children.

So, in the midst of such pain and suffering, it was uplifting to read: "Thank you for coming into my life Charlie. I love you. Dad'.

I hope many dads are inspired by these words because they are the best gift any father could give a child.

Crowe has, well, crowed a lot about his family since his son was born last December. He has described wife Danielle as a blessing and his son a gift from God. True, he has been known to rant and rave in public before, and who can forget his tantrum three years ago, after a poem he read during his acceptance speech at a BAFTA awards ceremony was cut for a television broadcast?

Crowe was so angry, he later confronted the show's producer, Malcolm Gerrie, and pinned the poor bloke to a wall as he told him what he thought of his editing.

Still, I reckon you can forgive a man such egotistical and unpredictable behaviour when he can so openly adore a child.

"You are a very special little boy, so affectionate and lovely. I am going to wake you up in a minute and give you your first-birthday bottle, then later Mum and I will take you on the harbour for breakfast.''

Crowe's letter to his son continued: "You were born at seven minutes to seven on the 21st of December, one year ago -- and I can truly tell you it has been the most wonderful year of our lives.''

Before his son was born, Crowe said: "People keep asking me what kind of father am I going to be. I don't know who my boy is yet, but hopefully, I'll be the father he needs.''

I think it is fair to say he has made a good start.

Thanks, Chattles

Thanks, Chattles