November 17, 2006
'Fountain' in the Rain
Thursday night's screening of
The Fountain at the
Tribeca Cinemas Gallery was fittingly wet, thanks to a serious downpour. Low-maintenance Oscar winner Rachel Weisz apparently walked to the after-party herself, sans entourage or even a P.U.H. (personal umbrella holder). She carried her own, shook off the raindrops, tossed it aside and instantly lit up the room where her fiancé—the film's writer-director, Darren Aronofsky—was greeting fans of his ambitious new
sci-fi romance.
Rachel Weisz and Darren Aronofsky
Photo by Mark A. Neston
I first met Darren at
In Style's
party for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association during the Toronto Film Festival. "I remember," Darren told me when I said hello. "You were surprised that I knew who Narciso Rodriguez was." He's right! It's so rare for an intellectual auteur to be fluent in fashionista-speak (after all, I never saw Woody Allen at fashion shows until Soon-Yi started dragging him there). As it turns out, Narciso and Darren are such good friends that the designer agreed to make stylish costumes for
The Fountain.
Since the evening was part of the Tribeca Cinema Series (the Tribeca Film Festival now offers year-round screenings with filmmakers and actors), I asked Darren about the biggest challenges of shooting in New York. He's "Brooklyn born and raised," and his last movie,
Requiem for a Dream, was filmed in Coney Island. "
Craft services," deadpanned Darren. "Go blog about my movie—I need to get the word out," he jokingly added. He seems like the sweetest guy, but obviously he can be a demanding director. (Anyone who has seen Jennifer Connelly's harrowing scenes in
Requiem can imagine.)
Would he consider working again with Rachel—the mother of their six-month-old baby, Henry? "Oh, yeah," he said. "Absolutely!" And then they left the party together, hand in hand. It's so romantic and downright life-affirming—much like
The Fountain—to see a happy Hollywood couple. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that they live in N.Y.C. instead of L.A.?
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