Spend some time with Richard Gere on the latest episode of our podcast. During the 52nd New York Film Festival last fall, the actor and activist joined festival director Kent Jones for an intimate discussion about his life and career. His latest film, Time Out of Mind, was an official selection of the festival and opens in select theaters this weekend. Subscribe to The Close-Up on iTunes so that you never miss an episode and, if you like what you hear, leave us a review!
Time Out of Mind stars Gere as George, a homeless man in New York City. In the midst of the everyday hardships and humiliations of his life, George attempts to reconnect with his estranged daughter, played by Jena Malone. The film was written and directed by Oren Moverman, best known for his work as a screenwriter on Todd Haynes’s I’m Not There and this year’s highly acclaimed Brian Wilson biopic, Love & Mercy. On the set of I’m Not There, Gere and Moverman began discussing the project that eventually became Time Out of Mind.
In his conversation with Kent Jones, Gere said that the resulting film is among his proudest achievements. “The movie is asking: What is it to be a human being?” he explained. The actor and director used improvisation and long telephoto lenses to stage scenes in which Gere, in character, interacted with everyday civilians. Oblivious to the movie star behind the costume, the vast majority didn’t even recognize him. “No one would even make eye contact with me,” he said. “It’s that black hole of failure that they can see from two blocks away.”
