Featuring an all-star cast – Jessica Lang, Kathy Bates, Jesse Williams, Lily Rabe and Pierce Brosnan - THE GREAT LILLIAN HALL is a feel-good and inspirational story of resilience, showcasing the indomitable spirit of an artist in the face of insurmountable odds.
Portrayed by the iconic Jessica Lange in a captivating performance, Lillian Hall is a beloved and seasoned actress on the brink of a career-defining performance on the Broadway stage. But as opening night approaches, her confidence is challenged. With the unwavering support of her lifelong friend and assistant Edith (Bates) and the newfound inspiration from fellow artist Ty (Brosnan), Lillian is determined to defy the odds and pour her heart into one final, unforgettable performance. The film is directed by Tony Award winning Michael Cristofer.
As the film releases in Australian cinemas on June 5, Nick L’Barrow spoke with award-winning director, Michael Cristofer, about his time directing stage and screen, and how Jessica Lange perfectly embodied the humanity of Lillian Hall.
Nick: I’d love to start our chat at the beginning of the film, and Lillian opens the movie by saying, “My whole life, I’ve observed and have been observed”. I’m curious to know what role observation has played in your journey as an artist and filmmaker?
Michael Cristofer: Wow, what a good question. I would say, first of all, observation was a lifeline when I was very young, because I was unsure of who I was. Unsure of what I was supposed to be, or what I was supposed to do in life. I know that I was constantly looking at other people, and saying, “Could I be like that person? Could I do what this person does?” And I’m afraid in doing all that, I completely lost whoever the hell I was! And to this day, I’m still not sure I know!
But it just opened a door for me that may have been psychologically suspect, but it was always the way for me. So, observation is always… whether it happens on the street, in life, or on the stage, or on a set, I think that’s where I project myself into other people, other situations. That’s where I live, in my imagination. But when I was young, if I could just be that other person, I’d be safe. If I could just turn into that, I’d be okay. That’s where it all came from.
Nick: I’d love to discuss how great Jessica Lange is in this film. There are so many aspects of her performance that are very vulnerable, especially as Lillian Hall’s condition gets worse and worse. What were the conversations like with Jessica in finding the physicality and emotionality of someone who’s life is so impacted by her degenerative condition?
Michael Cristofer: It was very specific, because when I first read the script, it was a very sad movie about a person slipping into dementia. And the opening night of the play in the film, which is our ending, actually happened in the middle of that original script. Then the last third or so of the movie was the character becoming worse and worse with this disease.
And I said when I came on board that I didn’t want to make another film about this. It’s been done before – people slipping into dementia. And it’s been done well. So, the first thing I did was I moved that opening night scene to the end of the film, and it was just the right instinct at the time. It was about giving her a triumph, and celebrating that human triumph.
Jessica and I both talked about this a lot. We were now making a movie about courage in the face of obstacles, and suddenly it became universal. The whole story was about humanity, and what makes that beautiful, which is the face that none of us get out alive. So, how do we live in the face of that mortality? And once we tapped into that, Jess and I knew that’s where the emotional aspects of the character lived.
Nick: I felt a lot of that humanity through the relationship Lillian has with Edith [Kathy Bates]. Out of all the relationships that this story explores, was that one that stuck out to you as important to explore?
Michael Cristofer: It was prime, and that’s why we went immediately to Kathy Bates once Jessica was on board, because they go back almost longer than I go back! So, that took away any necessity to shape the performances. They just got it instinctively. They’ve been in so many situations together, professionally and personally, where they have supported each other, one way or another. All of that legwork was done.
And that was the case for all of the relationships in the film. I was begging my friends to be in this because I knew that Pierce Brosnan and Jessica would hit it off right away, and they absolutely did. And Lily Rabe, I’ve known her since she was five years old. Her father is playwright David Rabe, so I’ve known her forever. And piecing them together was really lovely. It just worked out so well.
Nick: We briefly touched on the film’s closing scene earlier at the opening night of the play. And listening to Lillian’s monologue about how much love and admiration she has for being in the room that she is in, plus the way you shoot the theatre space with such warmth and light, really shows your love for the stage. How much of all of those elements – the cinematography, the play, Jessica’s performance – were conscious efforts to profess your love for theatre within this film?
Michael Cristofer: Oh, more than conscious! We were passionate about it. I was in a production of The Cherry Orchard on Broadway, as an actor, in 1977, with Meryl Streep and Irene Worth. An amazing cast of complete unknowns at the time. So, that play has always been big for me. It was the first Broadway play that I was acting in. It was a huge experience for me.
So, the play always means something, and I knew that the play was about this lady losing her house, losing her property. We call theatre “the house”. I knew that analogy made perfect sense where she was saying goodbye to the house. She was saying goodbye to the theatre. Her life in the theatre. It was heaven. And it was nice to steal the best lines from Chekhov too!
Nick: How has directing in the theatre informed decisions you make directing films?
Michael Cristofer: Not only decisions you make, but how you make those decisions, more importantly. Film has a lot of mystique about it, and a lot of auteur directors who behave in mysterious ways. But, if you come from theatre, it’s much more collaborative, and you treat people as artists. It’s not just the director being this “great artist” on the film. In a play, actors are much more powerful because you can’t edit or cut and change what they’ve done. Once the curtain goes up, they’re in charge of the entire thing. So, you learn to respect actors. You learn to respect the playwright, and the writing that’s been done. That creates a specific atmosphere.
On a film, I create a shot list for every scene, and some days I’ve posted that list right at craft services, because I know every single person from every department will see it. It’s not a secret. This is the work we’re getting done today, and we’re all doing it. So, it just benefits the film, because you’re allowing all these artists that you’ve assembled to contribute at their best. The goal is to always give everyone the freedom to feel that they can contribute anything. And that’s how I work, which basically comes from the theatre.
Nick: I’ll close out on this, and please let me know if you think I’m grasping at straws here. But I couldn’t help but feel this kindred connection between The Great Lillian Hall and Gia. Obviously, they’re different character studies about different people, but when you look at how Angelina Jolie was an emerging star, playing this model who was entering the spotlight, and then you look at Jessica Lange, who has such a storied career, playing someone who is leaving the spotlight, I just couldn’t help but see these parallels in their narratives, perhaps on opposite ends of the same narrative…
Michael Cristofer: It’s funny, nobody else has asked that. And I’ve had this discussion with a lot of friends. And, it did. I think it started on Lillian Hall when we added those black and white interview scenes, and as soon as I did that I was like, “God, this is so much like Gia!” It became very much on my mind. And I kept putting it away and pushing it to the side. And like you said, even though it’s different, there are parallels.
Gia is at the beginning of her career, Lillian is at the end of hers. Both of them are moving towards a sort of end in their own spectacular ways. And then of course, you have two of the best actresses in the world. Angie was really at the top of her game. I know she’s not acting much anymore, and it’s not quite the same without her, but she was something special then. And Jessica is certainly something special now. I see the parallels.
Thank you to Michael for his time, and to Transmission Films and TM Publicity for organising the interview. The Great Lillian Hall is in cinemas June 5.
