- Title: USA: Diane Lane and John Malkovich walk red carpet for "Secretariat" premiere
- Date: 1st October 2010
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (SEPTEMBER 30, 2010) (REUTERS) (*** FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY ***) RACEHORSE WITH A "SECRETARIAT" BLANKET WALKING RED CARPET "SECRETARIAT" POSTER "SECRETARIAT" ON MARQUEE AT EL CAPITAN THEATRE AND PULL WIDE TO RED CARPET VARIOUS OF DIANE LANE POSING FOR PHOTOS (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIANE LANE, COMMENTING ON HER CHARACTER, SAYING: "The true story of Penny Chenerey is, is quite vast, actually. And to tell it in 120 minutes the best we could we had to have a director as wonderful as Randall Wallace, because he knows how to mine the archetype out of every story and recall all the, you know, sacrifice for honour and courage that this woman displayed in believing in herself, even despite the naysayers, and the fact that it might have been unpopular. Until she won. And then everybody saw the light." DIANE LANE TALKING TO A REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIANE LANE, COMMENTING ON SECRETARIAT, SAYING: "And believe me, horses have attitudes. They have personalities. They are all as individual as we are. And, you know, some are smarter than others and all the rest of it. But he was the complete package." JOHN MALKOVICH TALKING TO A REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOHN MALKOVICH, COMMENTING ON WHY HE WAS INTERESTED IN MAKING THE FILM, SAYING: "As a young man I was an enormous fan of Secretariat's and remember those races and that summer very, very well. So that obviously was a very critical part of my interest. And plus I'd worked with Randall Wallace before years ago and like and enjoy Randall very much. And Diane is a friend of mine. So for me there wasn't much not to like." JOHN MALKOVICH TALKING TO A REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) JOHN MALKOVICH, COMMENTING ON SECRETARIAT, SAYING: "And as for Secretariat, I think he serves to remind people of the astonishing beauty and grace that living creatures can exhibit. And did some of the greatest athletic feats of the last century." JAMES CROMWELL WALKING RED CARPET (SOUNDBITE) (English) JAMES CROMWELL, COMMENTING ON WORKING WITH DIANE LANE, SAYING: "But I said, you know, when I saw you, not only are you a wonderful actress, but you remind me of my mother. My mother was a wonderful actress. Her name was Kay Johnson. And she has the same kind of pluck and sense of humour and sort of 'I can do it. I'll do anything that a man will do. And, I really loved it. And I loved it for the part. That's why I thought of her. And she still is." DIRECTOR RANDALL WALLACE ON RED CARPET (SOUNDBITE) (English) RANDALL WALLACE, COMMENTING ON THE CHALLENGES OF MAKING THE FILM, SAYING "The two biggest decisions I made to do this movie were that I wanted the audience to be participants in the races, not spectators. I didn't want to know what it's like to watch Secretariat, I wanted to know what it's like to be Secretariat. And let the audience feel that. The other part was I wanted to know what it was like to be Penny. What are the characters like? Not when we know the statistics of what they did, but when they're alone. And for that you have to do the impressionistic painting, you have to take a lifetime of information and put it into the few scenes that you're able to show an audience." CUTAWAY OF TELEVISION CREWS AND PULL WIDE TO RED CARPET
- Embargoed: 16th October 2010 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA3A0ZRI9FDKMBE7ATQRRUUJ243
- Story Text: Diane Lane and John Malkovich were among the cast and crew who walked the red carpet in Hollywood on Thursday (September 30) night in front of the El Capitan Theatre for the world premiere of "Secretariat."
The film tells the true story of a legendary racehorse.
Lane portrays housewife and mother Penny Chenery, who agrees to take over her ailing father's Virginia-based Meadow Stables, despite her lack of horse-racing knowledge.
Against all odds, Chenery manages to navigate the male-dominated business and develop what may be the greatest racehorse of all time.
In 1973, Secretariat became the first U.S. Triple Crown champion in 25 years, setting race records that still stand today.
Malkovich plays veteran trainer Lucien Laurin, the man who helped Chenery achieve the spectacular victory.
Lane, 45, talked about the woman who inspired her role.
"The true story of Penny Chenerey is, is quite vast, actually. And to tell it in 120 minutes the best we could we had to have a director as wonderful as Randall Wallace, because he knows how to mine the archetype out of every story and recall all the, you know, sacrifice for honour and courage that this woman displayed in believing in herself, even despite the naysayers, and the fact that it might have been unpopular. Until she won. And then everybody saw the light."
Malkovich shared why he was interested in the part.
"As a young man I was an enormous fan of Secretariat's and remember those races and that summer very, very well," explained the 56-year-old actor. "So that obviously was a very critical part of my interest. And plus I'd worked with Randall Wallace before years ago and like and enjoy Randall very much. And Diane is a friend of mine. So for me there wasn't much not to like."
Director Randall Wallace, 61, described the challenges he faced in making the film.
"The two biggest decisions I made to do this movie were that I wanted the audience to be participants in the races, not spectators. I didn't want to know what it's like to watch Secretariat, I wanted to know what it's like to be Secretariat. And let the audience feel that. The other part was I wanted to know what it was like to be Penny. What are the characters like? Not when we know the statistics of what they did, but when they're alone. And for that you have to do the impressionistic painting, you have to take a lifetime of information and put it into the few scenes that you're able to show an audience."
Wallace, whose directorial credits include "We Were Soldiers," is the Oscar and Golden Globe-nominated screenwriter of "Braveheart."
"Secretariat" will open in theatres across North America on Friday October 8. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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