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"You read things and wonder 'where the f**k did they get
that from?'. Like I was driving down a freeway in LA and I pulled
in because there was a tow truck which was stuck. I got under the
tow truck and fixed it. "There
was oil all over my shirt and I was on my way to a party in Malibu
and all the women were all over me because I had oil on my shirt
and I was a stud! I can't even fix a toaster! "And
Gwynneth Paltrow who dumped me - which I'm still getting over -
just wouldn't accept my approaches. I've never met her! You just
look at things and think 'that's bizarre!'. I can fix a plug, so
if that tow truck had been electric, I'd have been away!" 26-year-old
Irishman Farrell is the epitome of cool. The shirt he wears on
anyone else would be garish, his ancient sheepskin jacket in
another's hands would be pimp-esque. But
Farrell carries it off. And does it well. Rapidly
garnering a reputation as a quality actor, Farrell is also getting
a rep as a straight, if somewhat sweary, talker. What you see is
strictly what you get. One of the Hollywood set who actually tells
the truth. A somewhat valued, but rarely seen commodity in the
Beverly Hills. "I've
read things and I've thought (intake of breath) 'what the f**k, my
mouth!'. But then it passes. I have opinions on certain things and
the thing is, print is difficult. I have a certain way of talking
and explaining myself, and when you read it in print, it comes
across as very different. "But
if I start now, mannering myself and worrying about what I'm gonna
say and try to please everyone or fit into some ideal, I'm
screwed. I would lose myself very quickly in this madness. Without
saying stuff for shock tactics, I just wanna keep spilling stuff
out of my mouth from the top of my head!" Futhermore,
Farrell isn't concerned about the impact his devil may care
outlook will have on his blossoming film career. With his feet
firmly on the ground, Farrell is refreshingly honest.
"I don't see why you should brown nose anyone. I think I've
changed in the last few years, but not as a result of the position
I've found myself in. "It's
much more simple than I'm given credit for. It does show you what
has happened to some people in my position, and it's a kind of
statement on the business and maybe on Hollywood that I get kudos
for being decent and down to earth and respecting people. I
shouldn't get kudos for it - you don't get kudos for it. It was
just the way I was brought up." Farrell's
modest attitude is in stark contrast to some of the egos which run
Hollywood, egos which would have you believe films made millions
simply because they were on board. Farrell, on the other hand,
sees straight through this shroud, especially when it comes to a
recent hit, Minority Report. "I
knew it was a banker. In fact, they all thought it would do better
than it did financially because it was such a double header with
Spielberg and Cruise. "I
knew it was gonna be a big hit, but I also knew it was nothing to
do with me! Let's chalk that down to the other two names. No-one
came to see Minority Report to see Colin Farrell in a suit! "But
it was nice to be in something that did decent in the States.
Nicer than being in Hart's War! That was a killer! "You
put five months of your life into something, you get over paid,
two and a half million dollars I think I got, and then in the
space of two days it's done. All that work. For everyone involved,
it's a nightmare." Farrell
is a joker. He would be the ultimate class clown. And that's what
makes him such a popular interview subject. Here
alone, he quips that he's so tone deaf, 'they wouldn't have me in
Boyzone', admits he's a total mummy's boy, beams with pride that
he's been dubbed the Lusty Leprachaun, and casually suggests his
performance in Daredevil was 'over baked'. But
get him onto the subject of Pacino, and Farrell's demeanour
changes. The respect is obvious. "He
is serious about his work, and the focus... I've never seen focus
like it. He's got a very acute passion for what he does. He was so
smart and so intelligent, just good company to be around. "When
he came on the set the first day, everyone, me included, was sh***ing
their pants! The buzz on the set just died. But that wasn't him.
That was people misguided idea of what respect was.
"But he's got a quirky sense of humour. He was just a funny
bas**rd!" And
as if to highlight his battle with the press, Farrell returns to
classroom clown mode when someone suggests he called Pacino a
'funny little bas**rd'. "Jesus,
I never said little! See the way they just throw in words when
they want?! Say bas**rd, but the little thing... that s**t will
have me murdered!" March
2003
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